By Guest Blogger Susan Reynolds
I remember that day in elementary school very well. I was taken out of class and brought to the office to answer a bunch of questions. I was told that I was being tested; for what, I didn’t know. One of the tests asked me to provide synonyms for words such as big, hot, cold or small; I have never forgotten that. After the test was done, I felt pretty good, but confused. Why would I need to take a test like that?
Then I got my answer.
Shortly after that day, I was diagnosed with a learning disability (LD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). I didn’t fully understand what I was being told, but I did know that it made me different. Who wants to be different as a kid? For that matter, even as an adult, being different can add challenges to life.
For years, I struggled to fit in; to accept myself. With every success, there seemed to be a setback. Fighting against who I was only made my life more difficult. Through a lot of hard work, lessons learned and acceptance, I started seeing the positives of being LD/ADHD.
One of them is that I am incredibly creative. I don’t mean that in a fine arts kind of way, such as painting or writing music. I am “life creative.” I can problem solve in a matter of seconds. I see the big picture, and the small parts that make up the big picture. All of my life I have been creative because my learning style is completely different from most of my peers. I believe it helps me stand out.
My heart and mind are open to anything and everyone. I remember feeling judged and excluded as a child, and even later in life. I didn’t like that feeling, and try not to make others feel that way. I want to reach out to my community and do something positive. My open heart and mind allow me to push aside pre-conceived notions and truly give back.
If you like enthusiasm and spontaneity, then sit by me. My husband tells me every day that his life became more exciting the moment we met. I always ask why and he says, “Because I never know what’s next; I just know it will be fun.” I am so excited about everything. I am life’s biggest cheerleader and I am always looking for a fun, daily adventure.
Energy…I have so much of it. Oh, and I can hyper-focus on multiple projects, which affords me the ability to accomplish great tasks and give back to my military community.
My disabilities became my abilities; and I have put them to good use.
I advocate for military families, military pediatric healthcare and for myself. I take on incredible tasks and demand change. Armed with enthusiasm, spontaneity, creativity and energy, I can do anything!
On January 22nd, I was named Pope Air Force Base Military Spouse of the Year with a chance to compete for the next round – Air Force Spouse of the Year! This opportunity will open doors for me and for military families. I get to be a part of the solution and I can’t wait. You can vote for me by visiting http://msoy.militaryspouse.com/profile/92 today, February 5th!
I learned to see my disability as my ability and I have never been happier. Using my energy, quick thinking and creativity to advocate for military families as part of the Military Special Needs Network (MSNN) and through other activities is just what I was meant to do. I could have focused on the negatives about having LD/ADHD, but why do that? I chose to honor that little girl that didn’t understand why she was being tested.
My path to accepting my disability hasn’t always been easy. I still struggle some days, but that’s expected. As long as I remember my purpose, I know I will be okay.
Oh, and my response to the synonym test for the word small – it was petite. 
You can read more about Susan’s story at http://usodep.blogs.govdelivery.com/2012/12/05/my-story-susan-reynolds/.
Hi Guys,
I am only 11 years old and I had heart surgery and I got my trachea reconstructed all when I was two. I am now a everyday athlete as a gymnast. I have no problems anymore and I have a cousin named Evan and he has down syndrome. Yes, he has a disability, but I don’t see that – I see his ability.
-Genevieve M.
WONDERFUL article! I too have a learning disability – dyslexia. In fact I just typed a b instead of a d for dyslexia. When I was growing up they hadn’t named anything, I just knew that I struggled with Math and writing. My grandmother, who had been a one-room-schoolhouse teacher at age 16 in the 1920′s, used to check my math problems after I did them. Finally she would just tell me how many were wrong, and I had to find the mistakes.
I was never told I was stupid, in fact I was always praised for being a great student. But the self-talk every time I couldn’t do the arithmetic part of a problem, or wrote the wrong letter, was that I WAS stupid. It has taken me many years to accept my challenges. I could do molecular chemistry and spatial geometry (3-D) in my head, but couldn’t add 7 with anything and get the right answer consistently.
But the support of my family, who told me I would just have to work around the difficulties, has helped me to continue to strive to grow and learn to excel in life. It led me to a 20 year career as a Navy Hospital Corpsman, then on to college at Penn State, graduating with honors. Today I’m a computer analyst who can find your extra space in a sentence, or that extra period or comma, even when I can’t find my own mistakes.
And I am creative – with way too many projects going on for most of my friends and family to keep up with. I absolutely insist on enjoying life, and need more than just 24 hours in a day!
Susan, and all who read this, please keep encouraging others, and working with the military and the school systems. Now we know what LDs are, we need to keep working to teach those with them that they aren’t “stupid” as I once thought I was, even with straight A’s on my report cards.
Hi Gretchen,
I too struggled with a learning disability when I was young. Like yours, it didn’t really have a name at the time, although I was later told it was a form of dyslexia. I flipped letters that were mirror images (like d and b), couldn’t tell my right shoe from my left and had trouble with spacial reasoning. In elementary school, while learning long division, I kept drawing the symbol the wrong way. My math teacher thought I was doing it to be difficult, so she sent me to the principal’s office. He realized something was up, and had me tested.
Once my learning problems were identified, teachers were able to give me tools to work around them (like teaching me cursive early because there aren’t any mirror image letters in cursive). It wasn’t really a problem again until I took geometry in high school and was always solving for the wrong angle! My geometry teacher made my parents promise that I would never be an engineer, because people would definitely get hurt
(so I’m jealous that you can do spatial geometry in your head!).
While math could be tricky for me, words were always my friends. I loved to read and write, and began a career in communications after also going to Penn State (WE ARE!). Most of the time, I forget I have any issues at all, until I am trying to learn my way around a new place. If doors look exactly alike, but go to different places, it is very frustrating for me (I get turned around very easily!).
I think it’s very important for children with learning disabilities to get tested so they can be diagnosed early. Not so they can be “labeled,” but so they can find help and ways to get around their learning disabilities, like I did. It’s also important to keep encouraging them and telling them they are smart. It can be very frustrating when you don’t learn the same way most people do. Understanding teachers and parents are critical.
How great and awesome your story is. Thank you for sharing. Our 38 year old son has had life-long learning disabilities. However, he went undiagnosed for years until we noticed in 4th grade he had dyslexia. This was after I had read an article about the Vietnam Baby lift, oxygen deprived and resulting behavior problems and difficulty learning when they got closer to being teens. We decided to have him tested. He was considered Dyslexic with Hyperactive Disorder before it was vogue and before Ritalin was being used. Even though he didn’t finish his formal schooling, high school, he has the knack of of being in charge and seeing the big picture. I was not always around due to my lifetime military duties. His mother and grandparents were very supportive. He has been a supervisor, foreman, and laborer for several construction companies, even put in the Trex PROJECT IN DENVER. Worked on Airport runways, preparing ground for large building constructions. Until now, reading this article and your reply, I hadn’t heard about ability vs disability. I will need to let him know. This was an awesome story and reply.
You are so amazing! I’m so honored to have you respond with such praise and encouragement. Thank you!
When I was born the doctors did not get air to me. I am epileptic, meaning I pass out. It is under control whith medicine. I too was made fun of all through school. I had to fight my way though life to say I am as good as others. A year or so back, a machine hit me. I was down and had a pinched nerve in my back. They gave me shoots to calm my nerves down. After a while, they did not work anymore. My mother was dying of cancer and after she died this summer, I got my back operated on. They cut it half way up. I go to therapy and hope to get better. Jay
Jay, I know you will get better. You have fought hard and always gotten back up.
I’m sitting on my couch, tears running down my face and in absolute awe of you. As a mother of a 9 year old son with a reading/processing LD, this piece just allowed me to understand how he perceives his daily life. Thank you so so much. Keep being a wonderful women, wife, advocate. I am in constant contact (battle) with our school district in regards to making darn sure kids with LD receive the education they deserve. I will be passing along this link to school district members to remind them that a LD cannot be ignored, that having a LD will not stifle the greatness within.
I love that last line, “the greatness within.” How true! Look into the CEO and founders of fortune 500 companies that are LD. You would not believe it! They never gave up, nor settled for second best. I know that being LD is why I can do what I do! You keep up the fight too…your son will always appreciate it.
I read something somewhere, so long ago I do not recall the periodical. The subject was either a famous personality or successful individual that accomplished their goals in spit of their disability. They excelled in what they knew. One of these persons was Bruce Jenner after his decathon gold medal win in the Olympics. The article mentioned he had Dyslexia. YOUR POST REMINDED ME OF THIS.