Go to Part 1

Q: How did you cope, as a child, especially since it wasn’t diagnosed and treated?

A: I never volunteered to read aloud in class. I took books home and spent LOTS of extra time reading my assignments. If I knew I’d be called upon, I memorized things, so I could recite them quickly and accurately. I used memorization as my tool. I did fine on most tests in high school. I was a B student. Timed tests were difficult, though.

Q: Did your mom help you employ any strategies?

A: Nothing was ever formally offered through school, but my mom would read my books into a tape recorder for me, or we would buy books on tape. That was VERY helpful.
She did have me do some exercises at home based on what she’d learned. I don’t recall much about them at the time, except they were new and untested. There is much more that can be done for children now.


Q: So what was it like when you were younger?

A: I felt really stupid and ashamed of it early in my life. I didn’t understand what was wrong. I was teased a lot. I never thought of myself as a good student, even though I was working really hard. Still, if I mention it to people, they sometimes react oddly. Now, I just don’t really care what people think. It is a disability, not a character weakness. Most people who know me and love me just accept it and fix my spelling or let me know if I’ve made a mistake.

Q: What strategies do you employ now?

A: I thank God for word processing software with spell-check. I don’t notice my problems so much as the computer fixes so many things for me. I think it’s gotten better over time, though. The more typing and writing I did in college and through my work, the easier it has gotten. Learning to type was a big improvement for me. The more I practice the skills of typing and reading aloud, the better they get. My anxiety about these tasks is much lower than when I was a child. I know when I slow myself down and relax, I do better.

Q: How does having dyslexia change the way you parent your own son?

A: I’m always watching for signs in him. I notice that he does transpose letters and writes his numbers backwards. I’ve had tons of people tell me it’s too early (he’s 6 now) and not to worry. I think if I didn’t understand what to look for, I wouldn’t be watching so closely. I also might not have the level of patience with others’ shortcomings and with the disabilities we’ve already identified that my son does have (sensory integration dysfunction).


Q: What advise do you give to parents of children with dyslexia?

A: Be patient with them. Don’t make a big deal out of it. Try to do things where you have the child read aloud at home. Ask them to slow down and relax. Make it seem like you can’t understand them if they go fast. Definitely support them completely in all the things they do. I don’t think the memorization technique is a bad one and I would start them on a word processor for all their written assignments.

Thanks Christa! I need to let you know just how well Christa has overcome the limitations of her disability. She will soon graduate with honors from an MBA program where much of her classwork was done on-line. She and I have worked together for six years now, the last four almost exclusively in cyberspace, when she moved from Atlanta to Iowa to be closer to family. She does use spellcheck and sometimes even her friend, the English major, proofreads her assignments -- grin. But, Christa's determination, courage and hardwork outshine the dyslexia! Congratulations on your degree Christa!!!!