Masking / Camouflaging
Consciously or unconsciously suppressing neurodivergent behaviors and mimicking neurotypical ones to fit in socially. Common in autism and ADHD, especially in women.
Masking is the process of hiding your natural neurodivergent behaviors to appear "normal." Autistic masking includes: forcing eye contact, scripting conversations, suppressing stims, and performing social expressions that don't come naturally.
ADHD masking includes: developing elaborate organizational systems to compensate, staying silent to avoid impulsive comments, and overworking to match neurotypical productivity patterns.
Masking is exhausting and a major contributor to autistic burnout. Research shows women and late-diagnosed adults mask more heavily (Hull et al., 2017), which is why they're diagnosed later — their "performance" hides the underlying neurology.