What comes to mind when you hear the word disability? Do you think of a physical disability? How about when you hear the words learning disability, what comes to mind? Do you think of reading comprehension problems?
Do you know someone with a physical or learning disability? Maybe its your child, yourself and friend or family member. Do you know anyone who struggles with a comprehension problem? In todays reading I want to focus on learning disabilities and comprehension obstacles.
These obstacles, disabilities, whatever you choose to call them are challenging in itself, but, what happens when you put a physical disability in the mix it can make those struggles seem a little harder. All this is manageable.
First know that weather its your child, yourself a loved one whoever you are not alone and you are not the only one dealing and managing these challenges. As an example lets look at someone with cerebral palsy. There are different areas of the brain that gets damaged either during, before or after birth caused from the lack of oxygen. Even though us with cp are very highly intelligent individuals in some cases the learning center of our brain as I like to refer it to gets damaged. This makes it hard for one to understand, read, comprehend possibly even cause one to have speech difficulties. Keep in mind there is hope!
I personally did not realize I was dyslexic until I started my online college career. I have a dear friend whom I help who struggles with audible comprehension everyday. In her own words it makes her feel stupid, overwhelmed, frustrating and angry, which causes a low self-esteem. Sad, but true Im sure that others feel the same way due to their obstacles they face. I want you to remember though it is not your fault. It is the way the brain processes information. so please do not blame yourself for having a learning disability.
There are steps that one can take to help manage these impediments. An interesting fact that research has discovered is that 10% of our worlds population deals with learning disorders. https://www.readandspell.com/learning-disabilities-in-adults
How can we whom don’t struggle help those we know that do live with these problems daily? The following tips can help one cope with these daily complications. These tips are aimed at helping children, however, they can be utilized by adults as well. 1. read out loud this technique helps the person process at their own pace what they are reading so they can understand what the material is saying. 2. make sure your child is reading age appropriate books for their age level. The words should not be to hard for them to read nor for them to be able to understand and reading the words can help them progress and be successful. 3. Encourage reading and rereading of the material. This not only helps build confidence but it also helps them to increase a flow of ones reading. as they say practice makes perfect! https://www.scholastic.com/parents/books-and-reading/reading-resources/developing-reading-skills/improve-reading-comprehension.html
There is more than reading comprehension as I mentioned with my friend there is also audible comprehension also known as listening comprehension. It is hard to deal with listening comprehension, especially when people are talking fast and using words you are not understanding. As an example listening to a doctor explain something to you without using simple English. These moments can be down right frustrating and its no ones fault. Simply, its the way each persons brain processes the information they are hearing, along with the processing speed each processing center takes to take in what was said.
As Im sure you can tell I am a person of simple words, I don’t care for big high vocabular words. Some things a person can do especially adults are to ask questions. You can ask the person you are listening to speak slowly, use simple words and short sentences because you struggle with a learning disorder. Absolutely use your voice and advocate for yourself. There is nothing wrong with that. Asking for help can be hard but essential. Do not hesitate to ask for help by anyone.
It is manageable and its all in the way you look at the obstacles you face on a daily basis. Keep your chin up and keep a positive attitude, say you can rather than you can’t. Happy reading everyone!
Living w/ cerebral palsy 