How Assistive Technologies Helped Me Conquer My Learning Disorders
By
Zahavit Paz
If you suffer from Dyslexia or ADHD, thank your lucky stars! The latest breakthroughs in technology have created easy-to-use devices that can help you conquer your disorder!
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My name is Zahavit Paz. I suffered from Dyslexia and ADHD all my life - but I didn t know it! I was never diagnosed for learning disorders until I was 43 years old. My life was a living hell before doctors determined what was wrong with me. After my diagnosis, I dedicated my life to helping others around the world who are challenged by their disabilities.
Let me tell you a little bit about my story. I wonder: is it very similar to your own?
In school, my teachers routinely told me how smart I was. But I never believed it. How could I be smart when I kept confusing words? And I couldn t write things down properly. I thought, is this a symptom of intelligence?
I could never concentrate on what my teachers were saying in class. Then, when I d notice I hadn t really been listening for the past few minutes, I d experience a horrible, manic burst of anxiety that pushed me to beg notes from fellow students sitting beside me. I didn t want to fall behind in the material. Sometimes I d cry. Sometimes I got nauseous. Inevitably, I developed Irritable Bowel Syndrome.
Sitting in a classroom and trying to focus felt like riding in an airplane whose pilot had just blacked out from a heart attack. The panic was awful. A crash seemed inevitable. But they kept telling me, "Zahavit, you re really smart!" And each time I heard it, I d want to throw up.
I was so ashamed of my handwriting that I actually used to hide it from other people - that way they d never notice how stupid my "p s, "q s, and "z s looked. Going to a bookstore or the library was awful - just awful. The simple act of searching for a particular title or author was an all-afternoon challenge; there were so many choices to make, I d get confused. Can you imagine what it was like for me to look up a single word in a dictionary? A telephone book? Or anything alphabetical, for that matter!
Everything the average person does and takes for granted felt like torture to me. Do you feel like this, too?!?
If you do, you may have a learning disorder and I encourage you to use the resources of this website to obtain a proper physician s diagnosis.
But remember this: if it turns out that you do have a learning disorder - DON T PANIC!!! These days, more than ever before, technology can help you keep your thoughts - and your life - crystal clear.
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Some people with learning disorders manage to achieve sufficient grades to enter higher education. It happens all the time. But it would be a mistake to assume that these people do not suffer immense difficulties emanating from their disorders. The truth of the matter is, the majority of Dyslexic students struggle with things like note-taking, orientating themselves around campus, organizing material for essays, writing, spelling, reading and expressing themselves on paper.
I learned to compensate for my problems by using augmentative tools. I ve listed a few of these tools here for you with the hope that you will find them as useful to your life as I did.
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For more information on specific Assitive Learning Technologies, please visit the LISTING OF ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGIES area available on right.
And to anyone reading this, I can assure you: PERSERVERANCE PAYS!!!
Your life as a person living with a learning disability will always be different from the lives of others. I ask you: so what? None of us are created in each others image. Every human being on the planet must overcome his or her own series of personal hurdles. Perhaps, if you are open-minded enough, you may come to view your Dyslexia or Attention Deficit Disorder the same way I view mine: as a rare gift from God that distinguishes me as a truly unique person from every other person on the planet!
No one can think exactly like me. No one looks at the world in the same way I do. Dyslexia and ADHD have granted me a rare opportunity to study the inner resources of my own willpower, compassion, and capability.
I am humbled to share these experiences with you. If they make a difference in your life, pass them on to a friend. Together, we can change the world!
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