What next?

Some suggestions on "what to do next?" after you detected somebody has dyslexia

  1. Learn more about dyslexia. The more you know the better you are equipped to look for further help.
  2. Inform your child about your suspicion: Why you think certain this happen to him/here, or why they behave in a certain way.
  3. Let them know it's quit normal because everybody is different, and concerning to learning not everyone has the same learning style.
  4. It's a great help if somebody knows how he or she functions. Not only to the person with the learning disability but also to his or here parents, teachers, partner, in short to everybody who has to live or work with them. Furthermore, this will give confidence and less frustration to all of them. I experienced it myself.
  5. Inform your child about the famous peoples with dyslexia. These peoples are a great example for others with a learning disability and this knowledge will boost their confidence and self-esteem.
  6. Bring more awareness to the dyslexic of the purposes of words. You find more information on the bottom of the following page "What dyslexics experiences".
  7. Since you are well informed about dyslexia you can make a choice with confidence in the different approaches available; regarding to the testing and to the programs that alleviate the disadvantages.
  8. Inform the child about the different approaches used
    1. Such as the underlying base of the program.
    2. What it will alleviate.
    3. In short how it all works.
    4. This as well as for the testing and as for the programs that alleviate the disadvantages.
  9. Try to make the choice together with the child. They will be more motivated and committed to the program if they participate in the whole process. This will give them a sense of being in control which will contribute to their happiness and motivation.
  10. However if the child feels no need to alleviate the disadvantage, it's difficult to motivate him.
  11. For dyslexia there is no unanimity about it cause. Therefore, you will find a broad range of testing and education approaches to alleviate the disadvantages. However, by being knowledgeable about dyslexia, you are better equipped to examine the different approaches and to make a choice out of the large offer of institutions and programs.
  12. Keep in mind that it’s not uncommon to have more then one learning disability in one person. For example, dyslexia and ADD are often founded in one person.
  13. Tips on "how to look for a testing or assessment program"?

Why some people stay undiagnosed

  • There is still a lot of unawareness about dyslexia or other learning disabilities, and about their symptoms.
  • As for dyslexia there are still people who think somebody has to be "word blind" to have dyslexia. Therefore, they don't look at all the other symptoms.
  • If somebody has just a small problem with words he or she can easily stayed undiagnosed.
  • Dyslexia has many symptoms, not all dyslectics have them all, nor in the same degree and not constantly. So the symtoms are not always as obvious.
  • A denial of the parents and/or teachers.
  • Unfortunately some specialist concentrate only on one symptom, without see the big picture.  
  • If a person has more then one learning disability. There is a possibility that all the attention goes to the learning disability with the highest intensity, while the learning disability with the lowest intensity is not noticed at all.
  • There is no unanimity about the cause of dyslexia so neither about the testing, so all depends a bit how you are tested.
  • According to Ronald Davis the symptoms of dyslexia are caused by disorientation, and are not a constant state. So, it could happen that you pass a certain test because you where orientated while the test was taken.