Dyslexia often goes hand in hand with other invisible challenges. One in three also have ADHD this makes those individuals six times more likely to be diagnosed with a mental illness. This does not account for many others who struggle without any recognised diagnosis and therefore no support. Dyslexia comes with many challenges, but many feel like their struggles are unseen.
Because dyslexia itself isn’t visible, individuals with dyslexia often feel unsupported, unwanted, invisible. From the child at school struggling to keep up with the rest of their friends, to the office worker feeling like they don’t belong.
Today marks the start of neurodiversity celebration week, we want to do just that by sharing some insights from our newest associate consultant business psychologists Jeremy Lyons revels in overcoming barriers having been presented with many primarily navigating unforgiving spaces with ADHD and dyslexia, which is why he hopes to provide insight into normalising neurodiversity in the workplace. In an interview on the Time to Talk podcast about student mental health, Jeremy Lyons spoke of his experiences overcoming the challenges he faced at school as a result of his neurodiversity being dismissed as just an ‘excuse’.
"I remember for GCSE English I was bottom of set 7, a teacher even told me my work looked like it had been written by a foreign child. So I decided to learn the same way as the students for whom English was a foreign language and write down any words I could not understand in a separate book. When it came to the exam I watched the film of our book instead of struggling to read it and that same teacher had to ask if the school could use my paper to teach as I scored an A* in literature and an A in language."
This experience has taught him that thinking differently can be exactly what sets you apart from the rest. This really became apparent when he was able to get a diagnosis for Dyslexia and ADHD, as now he had the key to further understanding his difference and the ability to empower others to do the same. During his Master’s degree in psychology, Jeremy was able to do just that and founded an initiative for student mental health with our partner charity @Shawmind. He now has two master's degrees and hopes to continue to raise awareness acting as an advocate and trainer. Showing work emphasises the importance of understanding neurodiversity, which cannot only prevent poor mental health but also bring out hidden strengths within our workforce.
Resources:
National Autistic Society
Website: https://www.autism.org.uk/
British Dyslexia Association
NHS – Living with ADHD
Stamma – Support for Stuttering
Ambitious about Autism