My Dyslexia Story – How Neurodivergency Has Been Positive For Me

I’ve known that I was dyslexic for as long as I can remember. I was diagnosed in primary school, where my biggest challenges were spelling tests. I got another official diagnosis when I was at university, around 19 years old. 

Although dyslexia can be seen as a disability, I like to think of it as a learning difference. My brain just works differently. I have recently discovered that dyslexia is a neurodivergent condition, just like autism or ADHD. Many people have multiple neurodivergent conditions, and when you look into it, you can see how they overlap as they all have some common characteristics. This led me to jump down a bit of a rabbit hole and try to understand my dyslexia a bit more, as it’s something I have paid zero attention to since being at university. Until now. 

Growing up, I always thought dyslexia meant that I couldn’t spell well or read well. But it’s much more than that. It can cause processing delays, hinder word recall, and impact speech – all of which sound negative. But there are a lot of positive things about dyslexia, too. 

A lot of dyslexic people have gone on to do fantastic things in the world. There are many dyslexic public figures such as Albert Einstein, George Washington, Thomas Edison, and Steve Jobs. Which goes to show that this learning difference doesn’t have to hold you back. A dyslexic brain can be amazing. 

Still, today, most young children are embarrassed about being dyslexic. And I get it – when the stereotype is that you’re a bit dim and can’t spell, it can be a hard pill to swallow (and spell). The thing is that my dyslexia caused me issues during school, but once I was an adult, things got easier. This is purely because the education system caters towards those who are neurotypical. Although things are changing and teachers are gaining more understanding, it’s still hard for children. 

So let’s focus on some of those and how I’ve been able to use them to my advantage in life. 

What Is Dyslexia?

Dyslexia is a form of neurodivergence. This just means that dyslexic people process information differently from a neurotypical person. Dyslexia affects reading, spelling, writing, and sometimes speech. It’s not about intelligence but how the brain processes information. This learning difficulty shows early in life and is often inherited (my mum and brother also have it!), and it often appears alongside other conditions like ADHD, autism and dyscalculia.

In the UK, 1 million young people in education face dyslexia challenges daily. But we now know that people with dyslexia have unique strengths because of the way their brains process information and language. Some of the world’s great thinkers are dyslexics, thanks to the great use of their imagination and their ability to solve complex problems. 

The Many Strengths of Dyslexics

Problem-solving skills 

People with dyslexia solve problems differently from neurotypical people. They think out of the box and find different routes to solutions. They do well in technical tasks and are innovative thinkers as their brains process information differently, leading to creative outcomes.

In various settings, from school to work, dyslexic individuals can do really well when nurtured properly. They can see the bigger picture and consider multiple perspectives. This skill makes them good at jobs that need analytical thinking and creativity, such as graphic design or strategic planning in business environments.

Here is a fun fact – dyslexics make brilliant spies! The GCHQ, or the Government Communications Headquarters (the UK’s intelligence, cyber, and security agency), actively seek out dyslexic employees because of strengths in pattern recognition when dealing with big data, seeing the bigger picture when considering complex future scenarios and finding solutions to novel and challenging problems. 

Strong spatial reasoning abilities

Dyslexic individuals see the world in unique ways, including having good spatial reasoning ability, which is the ability to visualise shapes from different angles, cut in half, or even visualise 2D shapes as 3d ones. Their brains are just great at interpreting space and shapes, making them skilled at picturing how things can come together. 

This means they can handle complex ideas or designs easily and makes dyslexics well-suited for careers in art, design, architecture, and engineering as they can visualise concepts before starting their work.

Creativity and innovative thinking

People with dyslexia are great in creative fields such as the arts, design, and entrepreneurship. Their fantastic view of the world increases their innovative thinking. This creativity helps them solve unique problems and come up with new ideas.

High levels of empathy

Dyslexic people often experience high levels of empathy. They understand the challenges of dealing with negative emotions, such as anxiety and frustration. This understanding allows them to be excellent at seeing things from another person’s perspective.

This ability to empathise helps dyslexic individuals form strong relationships. They easily make friends and offer support, using their own struggles as a way to connect and help others more effectively.

Resilience and adaptability

Resilient people often have dyslexia. This is due to struggles they’ve had in their learning journey, so they become good at finding new ways to solve problems in different ways. 

Strong interpersonal skills

Dyslexic individuals bring a unique perspective to social interactions, making them great conversationalists and empathisers. Their skill at understanding others’ emotions makes it easier for them to navigate complex communication challenges. These inherent qualities help dyslexics form meaningful connections in both personal and professional settings, contributing positively to their lives and careers.

Common career paths for dyslexic individuals

Many dyslexic individuals find success in careers such as music, art, and design. Notable career paths for dyslexics include musicians, artists, actors, scientists, athletes, engineers, entrepreneurs, and chefs. 

My experience with dyslexia 

Being dyslexic and left-handed, the odds were stacked against me in primary school, where spelling tests and handwriting were a big focus. I really struggled in the first few years of school. Like many dyslexic kids, I struggled with learning words for spelling tests. I also struggled to recall words and easily lost concentration. 

I was slower to read and speak than my peers. I remember my best friend, who was in the year below me, had advanced above me in her reading material. She was also allowed to write in pen, whereas I was still using a pencil, as my writing wasn’t neat enough. 

Secondary School With Dyslexia

When I started secondary school, there was less emphasis on spelling and handwriting, which was great news for me. But the dyslexia struggle didn’t stop there. Reading out loud was a big part of secondary school. In almost all lessons, we would have to take turns to read out a few paragraphs of textbooks. This panicked me to my core. I would try and read ahead if I were next, just to make sure I could read all the words when it was my turn. I would often stutter through my paragraph, feeling really embarrassed. This meant I didn’t get any learning done as I was too busy concentrating on being able to say the words out loud. 

One big problem for me is absorbing the information from the text I am reading. I am great at visual learning. But reading from a book, I lose focus or don’t remember the information. In my final few years of school, I was taught more about visual learners and different revision styles. This meant I was able to revise in a way that suited me. One technique I would use is writing everything I needed to learn down, then slowly making the sentences smaller until they were bullet points. Going over the information again made it easier for me to retain. Then making it into bullet points made it easier for me to recall the whole facts. I’d have to use different coloured pens for each paragraph or sentence. 

I tried so hard at school. I would revise 8 hours a day for exams, and my room was covered with paper. I had to work twice as hard as everyone else to just be average. Many of my friends barely studied for exams and got similar marks to me. 

Adult Life With Dyslexia

Today, I struggle mostly with my speech. I can have delayed processing at times, I  struggle to organise sentences or find the right word. Sometimes I will say words in the wrong order or swap the first letters around, so just nonsense words come out. I believe some of this is linked to other neurodivergent traits I have, such as social anxiety and struggling in social situations. My speech is much worse if I am anxious (anxiety was picked up in my diagnosis). I really struggle in groups as I find myself overanalysing everything. If there is more than one conversation going on, my brain tries to be present in both. If I have anything important to add to the conversation, I struggle to know when it is appropriate to interrupt with my point. Then I’m too busy focusing on how to express myself, I lose track of the conversation so I don’t join in. After a short time, I become exhausted and my brain completely checks out of trying to keep up or get involved. This can sometimes make me appear uninterested or rude. 

This can lead to low self-esteem at times, as I can feel like I come across a bit dull or empty, even though there is SO MUCH going on in my head, I just cannot always get it out. As an adult, this bothers me less, mostly because I’m not often having to insert myself into social situations with people I’m unfamiliar with. 

Thinking back, I struggled a lot during school, it was mostly my barriers to communication and social interaction that impacted my mental health. Especially when I hit puberty. I felt so different from anyone else, I felt like I could never truly express myself verbally, despite there being so much going on in my mind. It was like I was trapped. 

But cheer up. It’s not all doom and gloom, here are some of the things I’m great it.

Visual memory

I always remember things others have forgotten. It can sometimes be useless facts or old memories, but I remember them vividly. I can remember where we were, what we were eating, what I was wearing, and everything visually associated with the memory. 

Good At Analysing People

I feel like I’m great at analysing people and picking up on their moods and emotions. This is part due to my visual memory, and also years and years of overanalysing people’s behaviour to allow me to mask my neurodivergent tendencies well. Just like most neurodivergent girls, social acceptance was important to me, so I learned to imitate others to fit in, as social interactions have never felt natural to me. I still script a lot and plan out conversations ahead of time – it’s like a flow chart in my mind of every possible scenario of where the conversation can go. When it doesn’t go to plan or I am unprepared, I can feel panicked, stutter and sometimes just shut down and not respond at all (more so with people I’m not familiar with).

I then spend a stupid amount of time thinking about how the conversation went, how I could have done better and if the other person showed any sign of thinking I’m odd.  

In my teens and 20s, I would drink alcohol to allow me to enjoy social situations more. I don’t drink anymore, so I have to just deal with social situations head-on. 

Good with data

Again, I think this is something that links in with other neurodivergencies, but I am great with data and statistics. I can spot trends and patterns quickly, I can analyse, and my critical thinking skills are great. In my previous job I had before blogging full time, I worked with data a lot and was the expert who coached others.

I’m creative

I am such a creative person, I basically have the urge to be creating all the time. Whether that’s a new website, writing a blog post, writing poetry, playing the piano, making a video or taking photos – I feel like any time I have free, I have to create. I do struggle to switch off, though, and my mind is a pretty busy place! 

I do some funny word jokes

Well, I think they are funny, anyway. Because of how I process language and take things literally, this makes funny jokes and puns come quite naturally to me. That, paired with my vivid memory, means I can often make jokes relating back to old conversations with my friends. I’ve had many people tell me I’m the funniest person they’ve met.

But my humour is not for everything, it takes a certain type of person to get me, as I can be quite dark and dry. This is a side of myself that I often mask as my humour can be like marmite. But I love it when someone gets me and I make them laugh. It’s basically my love language.

Entrepreneurial skills

I am not sure if I am classed as an entrepreneur, but I run my own business. I am self-employed, and I’ve built a career in something I love – blogging. This is not something I just fell into. After about a year of blogging, I knew I wanted to make this my job. So I worked hard, I was determined, and put the hours in until it finally paid off. I guess you could say it’s my special interest, so that made it a bit easier. 

Determination

I always know I have to work harder than everyone else, but it just makes me more determined to reach my goals. I am a stubborn person, so if someone doesn’t believe I can do something, I’m going to prove them wrong and do it three times over. This is what my dyslexia diagnosis was for me. It was something that gave me more drive to beat the odds, especially in a time when dyslexia was only seen as something that could hold you back in the 90s!

So, although my experience with dyslexia has not always been positive, I feel like I can class myself among the successful dyslexics out there. It may have taken me a long time to get into a good headspace, but I’ve been able to harness some of the traits that come with being dyslexic to get to where I am now. 

Although it does amuse me that 90% of my job is writing! I hope you’ve not found too many errors in this article, and if you have any dyslexia success stories to share with me, I would love to hear them. 

If you are struggling with your own dyslexia diagnosis, remember that you are part of an amazing group of people who are critical thinkers with a strong memory who have a beautifully creative approach to life and there are many dyslexic strengths that mean with the appropriate help and reasonable adjustments, you can thrive in life! 

Related posts:

• Vertigo is ruining my life
• Why I was a sober bride at my wedding