It’s Finally Here...
The problem isn't the human mind. It's how we've been taught to understand it.
Today feels a little surreal.
For the past year, you’ve watched this book slowly come to life. You’ve read snippets, celebrated milestones with me, cheered me on through countless revisions, and even volunteered to become early readers before the manuscript was finalized.
Today…
The Misunderstood Mind is officially available for pre-order on Amazon Kindle.
Paperback pre-orders are coming soon. Both editions release on October 6, 2026.
While researching this book, I kept returning to one unsettling question:
What if some of our ideas about what is normal, what is flawed, and what is disordered are rooted in an incomplete understanding of ourselves as human beings?
Every generation inherits assumptions about what it means to think, feel, communicate, learn, and relate to one another. Over time, those assumptions become so deeply embedded in our families, schools, workplaces, healthcare systems, and culture that they stop feeling like beliefs.
They feel like facts.
But history has shown us, time and again, that what feels like common sense isn’t always correct.
I believe we’re living through another one of those moments.
The problem isn’t the human mind. It’s how we’ve been taught to understand it.
That idea became the foundation for The Misunderstood Mind.
Over the past few weeks, a small group of early readers has had the opportunity to read advance copies. Their responses have affirmed to me that this conversation is one people have been waiting to have.
“Jodi’s book illuminates... guiding readers away from blame and toward the framework of double empathy. A reflective and grounding read that celebrates neurodiversity with nuanced appreciation and insight.”
—Eva A. Mendes, LPC, Author of Marriage and Lasting Relationships with Asperger’s Syndrome,
Armchair Conversations on Love and Autism, and Gender, IdentitySexuality, and Autism: Voices from
Across the Spectrum“The Misunderstood Mind will be especially useful for parents, teachers, and therapists to introduce them to the concept of neurodiversity. It has a really good, straightforward style, which explains that neurodiversity is a difference and not a disability.”
—Temple Grandin, PhD, Author of The Autistic Brain and Visual Thinking.
“Reading this book left me with two regrets: that I wasn’t properly diagnosed as being neurodivergent while in my teens... and that I didn’t have this book to help me understand myself when I first suspected I was neurodivergent.”
—Joe, Late-Diagnosed Autistic Reader
“Everybody in a neurodivergent person’s life should read this book... The stories helped me understand my husband in ways I never had before.”
—Mabel S., Neurotypical Spouse
Reading these responses has reminded me why I wrote this book.
Whether you’re neurodivergent yourself, love someone who is, are raising a neurodivergent child, work as a clinician, educator, or healthcare professional, or simply want to better understand the incredible diversity of the human mind, I hope this book leaves you with a greater sense of understanding and renewed curiosity.
Because clarity changes everything.
When we change the way we understand neurodivergence, we change the way we parent, teach, provide healthcare, build relationships, lead workplaces, and perhaps most importantly, the way we understand ourselves.
If you’d like to continue on this journey with me, I’d be honored if you’d pre-order your copy today.
Thank you for trusting me with your stories and lived experiences. They have shaped this book in ways you may never fully realize. I truly couldn't have done it without you.
With gratitude,
Jodi
YAY!!!!!