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i have always had trouble writing down words. not comprehending and reading, but when i write a word down, a lot of the time i skip letters. like if i write the word "soccer" out i might accidentily write ‘soccr" or if i write out the word "learning" i might write "learing". like, its like, in my brain i know how to spell it, but when i write it out a lot of the time i write it wrong! i dont know what to do! is this a type of learning disability?

Hi cate; You need to be tested in order to find out what the difficulty is. There isn’t anyone on YA who can diagnose your problem. I hope you get this looked at soon because it must be enormously frustrating for you. If you’re old enough to come on YA and ask for help, you can certainly ask for help through a school counsellor and ask to be tested. Best of luck. P.S. I know what that’s like. I was diagnosed as retarded in elementary school because I had a lot of problems in my home. I’ve had my I.Q. tested as an adult and I have an high I.Q. Hang in there.

I have been recently diagnosed with adult ADHD. I really need help with planning and remembering for work and personal. What would be the best planner to use and what should I have in it. Is a moleskine planner good enough for someone with adhd? I’m a family man as well as a business manager, so all of work and personal will go in.
Thanks.

I would think that what ever kind of planner you feel comfortable with should do the trick. You may also want to consider something electronic. At work I use Outlook Calendar on my computer. It is great since I can use repeating tasks and appointments. You can also get palm-tops that fit in your hand and will synchronize to your work and home computer.

Doctor states child is autistic, school says chld has autism spectrum disorder?? What is the difference? Can medication help with any of this?

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a general term that includes Autism, Asperger Syndrome, PPD-NOS and others. The reason they used different terms is that the Dr. gave you a specific diagnosis of Autism, but the school can only determine eligibility for special services. Sometimes schools refer to it as "autism like behavior).

Medication is sometimes used to help an issue caused by the autism, say anxiety, but there is no pill to cure it like an antibiotic will cure an infection. It’s closer to say that individuals with autism learn to manage their condition. This is done through learning the skills needed to overcome their individual deficits. IMO unless there is a physical danger, it’s best to save medication to control behaviors as a last resort. Much better to teach the person through therapies, love and patience more appropriate behaviors.

Right now the best thing you can do is to educate yourself about autism and the different treatment/therapy options that are out there. There is no one size fits all treatment plan. Every person is different. You are a full member of your child’s’ team and the best expert on him there is. You need to help the development of an appropriate plan because you are the constant in the different areas of his life (school, home, activities) and get the big picture.

Best of luck- it is an interesting, exasperating, exhilarating e-ticket ride!

mom of 2 on the spectrum

As an Orlando chiropractor my practice includes pediatric chiropractor because I believe in the health benefits of chiropractic for children, and I think we’d all agree that giving children the very best foundation possible for their mind and body is vitally important. After all, growing into adulthood is difficult at its best, without having health issues to contend with. I meet a lot of parents who, among their other parental worries, are concerned about the height of their children, that is to say, if their children are short. I’ve been asked if chiropractic adjustments can help a child to grow taller. Well, the answer is both “yes” and “no,” depending on the reason for the child’s short stature. But, whether or not there’s a corrective solution, parents of short children should stop worrying. Here’s why:

A new study shows that short children are no more likely to be depressed, unpopular with their classmates, or have other social and emotional problems than their taller peers. Good news concerned parents! Apparently, the “traumas and dramas” of childhood happen to children of all shapes and sizes.

The study, published in Pediatrics, analyzed data on 712 sixth-graders. Twenty-eight children were classified as having short stature, i.e., they were below the 10th percentile on a growth chart; the remaining children were non-short stature (10th percentile and up). Average height was considered between 25th and 75th percentiles.

The social and emotional well-being of the study group was measured through a number of questionnaires answered by their teachers and the children, themselves. Short children reported slightly higher levels of being victimized or teased by their peers, but there was no difference on other measures of depression, behavioral problems, or popularity.

As soon as a baby is born, pediatricians start monitoring that child’s height and weight by percentile. Although low numbers may create anxiety in parents, that anxiety is likely unwarranted, the researchers write. The short children in the study “reported marginally higher levels of peer victimization … this was not associated with poorer adaptation,” said Joyce Lee, MD, MPH with the department of pediatrics at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and colleagues.

So, listen up parents of short children because the researchers concluded that short children may interpret the everyday teasing as more significant because their parents “verbalize concerns about their child’s height and its possible negative impact on social functioning.” The best thing that any parent can do for their children is to encourage them to feel confident and secure about themselves and to measure their “growth” from the inside out.

Technorati Tags: chiropractic, chiropractor, pediatric chiropractic

hi i have learing disablities. i was born per mature. and in most of my jobs that i have had all of which were in the resturant and food service. they have said that i am not quick enough for the job. most place’s i have worked at ether fire me or cut my hour back to just a couple of days a week. i was wondering if my have learing disabilities may have an effect of my work perfomance.

I think that you need to find a job in a differnet industry something that does not requre you to work fast. I had a sister who had learning disablities and she found out that she needed to work in a place where she wouldn’t have to be rushed also. so she started to work in a departement store in the childrens clothing department putting the clothes back that were left in the dressing room. As she got better at working there they would give her more responsiblity. See if your parents can help you to do something like that,

Not that I don’t appreciate it, but where have you been for the last eight years? And does anyone know where Sarah Palin’s newfound expertise in autism comes from? Down Syndrome and autism are apples and oranges, and I can promise you, Sarah Palin is never going to have to fight for services for her child.

My daughter is a special ed teacher who evaluates and implements individual instruction plans at an elementary school. She told me about Obama nearly 2 years ago when she volunteered to work his campaign. Her only goal in life is the betterment of kids who don’t have the same abilities as everyone else. Like she says, you can anyone, but it takes a bit more imagination to break through to some kids. Since she believe in children as much or more than anyone I know, I am following her lead on this.

McCain has adapted his words and campaign to what has been successful for Obama I’ve noticed. After the polls showed huge upticks with Obama’s "change", McCain decided to become a Maverick, etc. Of course, the GOP wants to cut school spending, it’s always been a party mandate.

My daughter is 10 years old, and is being tested shortly for dyslexia – although it is pretty definite she has it, we are having the proper testing done. However, how can I explain about dyslexia in a kind way so that my daughter does not think there is something "wrong" with her. She already struggles with her self esteem because of reading, writing, spelling and maths issues and has been bullied at school. How can I explain why having this test is a good thing and that dyslexia is only a minor part of who she is?

Tell her that everyone’s brain works differently. Some people are good at sports, others at math, others at reading, others at art or cooking. Some people’s brains have a more difficult time making sense of the signals that are a part of reading. Their eyes and their brains don’t communicate very well. The good news is, that once you understand how your brain works, there are ways to help you learn better.

I just found out at the end of last school (university) year that I have ADHD. I’m not taking classes now and am working on my parents farm for the summer. I am especially concerned with my social troubles, but do not have any access to social situations here (REALLY small town and all the people my age are gone for summer — plus I’ve never really had any friends to start with). What are some things that I can do now to make next year better?

There are tons of ways to practice social skills over the summer, even if you are in a relatively isolated area. One good way to do so is to by joining an online group or playing an online role-playing game. It may sound weird, but even this "virtual" interaction can help you practice conversation skills and other social strategies.

Here are some great articles about other things you can do:

http://www.additudemag.com/adhd/article/2998.html

http://www.additudemag.com/adhd/article/885.html

http://www.additudemag.com/topic/adult-add-ADHD/friends-relationships.html

Well I have to do a project and I want to include an activity to teach them some more about dyslexia eg. A dyslexia test or something suggestions please?

To do this you will need to do a bit of research and reading, so I have given you a few links to help.

I would start by giving everyone a list of some of the signs and symptoms of dyslexia, then maybe give them a test as set out below, (but make sure you tell them that this test etc is no way conclusive of having dyslexia), and whom they would need to see for a formal diagnoses, a Educational Psychologist, and I would then explain how dyslexia can affect a person, even showing them what a dyslexic may see when trying to read. I would then finish off with some strategies on how to support and manage dyslexia, I can give you a fairly comprehensive list if you need it.

Dyslexia affects people differently, and can vary in its severity. There is three types of dyslexia, and dyslexia does not affect a persons intelligence, in fact many dyslexics are highly intelligent people.

Dyslexia – causes problems with reading letters, words, number, symbols and spelling.
Dyscalculia – causes problems with doing maths.
Dysgraphia – causes problems with writing, spelling etc.

Dyslexia can be managed if we learn how it affects our ability to read, write and spell etc, parents and teachers can help by utilizing a number of strategies to assist their child/student both in the classroom and at home, such as having a list of spelling rules, homophones etc, or when writing on the board each paragraph is written in a different colour, coloured overlays may help with reading and so much more.

Both my daughter and I are both dyslexic, my daughter can read better than I, she learnt to read about 3, I learnt to read at 14, strangely I can write quite well, but my daughter has problems with writing (looks like a spider crawled across the page), we both have trouble with spelling especially similar sounding words, and we both have dyscalculia.

which are the high schools in bangalore who admit and support children with Learing Disabilities (Dyslexia)? What are the best educational options for such Children? Where can I get the contact details of Special Educators in Bangalore?

Go to the Bangalore High School and ask them.