Git Happens – Surviving Merge Hell With a Neurodivergent Brain

I just wanted to fix a typo.

That’s how it always starts.
One quick edit turns into a checkout spiral, a merge conflict, and suddenly Git is yelling at me in a dialect of regret I didn’t know I spoke.

If you’ve ever opened your terminal and felt your soul physically leave your body, this issue is for you.

Because version control isn’t just confusing - it’s hostile to brains that don’t think in straight lines.
Whether you’re ADHD, Autistic, AuDHD, or just deeply overwhelmed by the concept of HEAD, Git can feel like it was designed by a time-traveling cryptographer with a grudge.

But here’s the twist: neurodivergent devs are brilliant at creative problem-solving, chaotic debugging, and seeing the weird paths no one else notices.
We’re not bad at Git — Git is just bad at us.

So today, we’re making peace with the chaos.
We’re talking memory gaps, rogue commits, stash hoarding, and why your branch names deserve to be ✨ unhinged ✨.

Let’s explore how neurodivergent brains actually use version control — and maybe find a little joy in the mess.

🔧 When Git Breaks Your Brain (and Then Blames You)

Let’s be honest: Git is confusing on a good day.

But when you’re neurodivergent — ADHD, Autistic, AuDHD, PDA, dyslexic, or just running a spicy brain mod - Git becomes less "version control" and more "choose your own disaster."

You try to fix one thing. Next thing you know, you're ten commits deep, your HEAD is detached (relatable), and you've named your branch _{pls-work-i-beg-you}.

We’ve all been there. And if you haven’t yet? Give it time.

🧠 Why Version Control Feels Like Mental Gymnastics

Neurodivergent brains are excellent at seeing patterns, solving weird bugs, and jumping between contexts.

But Git asks you to:

• Remember what branch you were on
• Understand what origin means
• Predict the consequences of a rebase
• Read diff output like a court transcript

Meanwhile, your brain is like, "I just wanted to change a button color."

Version control assumes your short-term memory works. That you're organised. That you don't impulsively refactor an entire component tree mid-bugfix.

It assumes wrong.

🧹 The Git Crimes We All Commit

Let’s normalize it:

• ✅ You’ve _{git commit -am fix'd} and hoped for the best
• ✅ You’ve stashed things you forgot about forever
• ✅ You’ve rage-pushed directly to main
• ✅ You’ve rebased and prayed
• ✅ You’ve cloned the whole repo again just to get a clean slate
• ✅ You’ve opened GitLens and immediately closed it

Git isn’t just a tool - it’s a minefield.

And neurodivergent brains are out here navigating it with charm, chaos, and at least three energy drinks.

💡 Git Tips for Neurodivergent Devs (That Actually Help)

Let’s make this more survivable - no shame, no gatekeeping.

🧠 Memory Anchors

• Write commit messages for your future self like you're leaving a sticky note: _{adds padding, not sure if it breaks anything lol} is better than silence.
• Use a running README.md or notes doc to log decisions.
• Set up a recurring reminder: "🌀 Hey, what branch are you on and do you actually need to be there?"

🏷️ Branch Naming That Doesn’t Suck

_{draft/add-hover-state}, _{panic/fix-login}, _{explore/try-idea}

The goal isn’t perfect names - it’s names that reduce brainload.

🔁 Aliases to Rescue You From Yourself

_{git config --global alias.oops "reset --soft HEAD~1"}

_{git config --global alias.panic "!git stash && git checkout main"}

_{git config --global alias.graph "log --oneline --graph --decorate"}

/h🖼️ Visuals Are Valid

• Try lazygit in the terminal
• Use GitLens if you’re on VS Code (This version is before the paywall v11.7.0)
• GUI clients like Fork or Tower aren’t cheating - they’re accessibility tools

🧭 Use .git/info/exclude

Like a private _.gitignore - useful when your personal workflow isn’t team-approved.

You can hide your chaos. You’re safe here.

🧘‍♀️ Git Doesn’t Have to Be a Personality Test

• You don’t need to be a Git wizard.
• You don’t need perfect commit hygiene.
• You don’t need to memorize reflog like it’s scripture.

You need a system that forgives your brain.

The truth is, your chaotic commit history still holds brilliance.

And if your git log looks like a diary of despair?

That’s fine too.

Your code doesn’t have to be clean to be valuable.

And you don’t have to understand Git perfectly to be a real develop

So maybe your Git history looks like a crime scene.
Maybe your branches are weirdly named, your commits are emotionally charged, and your stashes are… mysterious.

That doesn’t mean you’re broken.
It means your brain is building in its own way - full of false starts, messy progress, and occasional brilliance disguised as "oops."

You don’t need to clean it up to prove your worth.
Your chaos is version-controlled. And that counts for something.

See you next Tuesday,