Dys-Advantages- Maybe, Maybe Not

I wish I could say that having dyslexia was a walk in the park all the time and that there are no disadvantages to having it, but that would be a big fat dirty lie. And I will not lie to you guys, (or at least I will try not to). There are major and minor inconveniences and they do affect my life, some days a lot more then others. That is the truth. (If you don’t believe me ask my family or friends. They will tell you!) Not a really happy truth, but that is a part of life.

I may really hate that idea that dyslexia is a labeled disability (I talked about this in earlier blogs), but a disability is defined as a physical or mental condition that limits a person’s movements, senses, or activities. Since dyslexia presents a series of limitation on your brain activities, memories, and movements, therefore the definition does apply to dyslexia (and so many other things in life). Those who are dyslexic know this fact very well. Most people who have dyslexia can tell something is “wrong”, or at the very lest something is different with their brain ability compared to other people.

Dyslexia is a disability with a wide spectrum, from minor to severe levels that affects the individual’s brain. Since it is so varied in its affects and to what degree that it affects someone there are many things that could be considered a disadvantage. For the most part most people could list the big ones. Ones like it is hard to spell words, reading is really hard for us, and so on. These are the ones that most people discussed and know the most about.

The problem is there are more limitations to think and discuss then just these. Like the fact most dyslexics need to feel in control of their environment, so that we are comfortable and can function to the best of our ability. This means that we tend to work for ourselves, or at a place that we can manipulate the space to best suit us.

Then there is the fact that a lot of jobs are not very dyslexia friendly especially since we have a hard time with spelling, writing (dysgraphia, which I will talk about next time!), we are more visual then auditory, have a hard time starting organized, and all those skills are used in a working space. There is no job you can name that does not use some form of writing, grammar, or organization.

The good news is that most skills that you, or anyone, struggle with can become easier with practice and patience. Not always the advice you want to hear, but it does work. J For things like notes taking (with is a auditory and visual thing), spelling, and handwriting- I will be sharing about my ways to deal with these things.

I will also talk about organization and how it can help with all aspects of life, with or without dyslexia. At the end of the day even with limitations, disadvantages, or whatever you want to call don’t have to control your life. There is always hope for a better day tomorrow and if not tomorrow then the day after that.

Unit Next time!