Overcoming Dyslexia Stigma - Hannah 24

"I started to feel like a failure."
When I was diagnosed with dyslexia at eight, I didn't understand what it meant. But as I struggled in school, falling behind my peers in reading and writing, I started to feel like a failure. I felt like I wasn't good enough and that something was wrong with me.

"The stigma I went through"
The stigma and discrimination I faced because of my reading disorder only worsened things. Teachers and peers often told me I would never succeed academically, and I felt like I was constantly being judged and criticized. I started to internalize these negative messages and began to believe that I was lazy, unmotivated, and stupid. As a result, I began to fall into a deep depression. I felt isolated and alone like no one understood what I was going through. I found it challenging to make friends and felt like I didn't belong anywhere. The constant negativity and pressure I faced in school only worsened things, and I began to lose hope that things would ever improve.

"The support I needed"
The guidance and counselling teacher, who also happened to be my English teacher, noticed my isolation and started paying closer attention to me. She asked me to see her for a talk after one of the lessons. She was so friendly and empathic. She organized a meeting with my mum on how they could help me improve.
Until then, I started to receive specialized instruction and attention for dyslexia from an expert, that I began to build the confidence and skills I needed to succeed. With the help of my parents and supportive teachers, I learned new reading and writing strategies and started to progress academically. This gave me the confidence to start speaking out against the stigma and discrimination I faced, and I became an advocate for disability rights.

"Advocating for disability rights."
Over time, I overcame the depression and negative self-image that had plagued me for so long. By challenging the stigma and discrimination I faced and advocating for disability rights through a Facebook page I created where people express their experience with stigma, I can refer them accordingly. I was able to turn my disability into a source of strength and inspiration.