Dyslexia, My story. (Running In Lead Boots)
“You don’t have any idea how powerful you are and what you can achieve. You literally cannot give in to your fear. You literally have got to walk over it, step on its face, and keep moving toward where you want to go and eventually, if I can get there, there’s no reason you can’t get there.” Henry Winkler
(Dyslexic, actor, producer, director, author, comedian)
I want to share a story from my life, from “The Old Days,” back when I was a young child. Despite what my kids insist, no, I didn’t wake up to the sunrise and trek into the great plains to hunt down another mammoth for the rest of the cave. Still, I was doing something that felt about as titanic and massive: navigating the education system of Houston, Texas, in the mid-1950s.
I was considered one of the “dumb” kids in my class, a status given to me by my peers and alluded to by my teachers due to my reading, writing, and spelling difficulties. Think about that…think about your school experience. Do you recall that kid, or were you the child everyone knew was the smartest or the dumbest? The labels, we all remember them.
Back then, “intelligence” was measured mainly by literacy. If a child could read, the more words they accurately identified and used in written form, and if they spelled those words correctly, the “smarter” they were. Sadly, I was not at the head of the pack, and the pack let me know it. My teachers would use my writing as an example to the rest of the class of what NOT to do.
At my school, we were ranked by reading ability, and those meeting the greatest standards, those who soared academically, were called the “Eagles.”
I was not an eagle.
I was one of the “Turkeys”. Turkeys struggle to fly. Being considered a turkey sure wasn’t great for a young kid’s self-esteem.
When I was in first grade (the first time), my class was given a five-word spelling test around Thanksgiving. Our teacher stamped a turkey beside each correctly spelled word. I spelled two words correctly and received two turkey stamps. Our teacher was so proud of her students that she decided to show the principal what a great job everyone had done on that particular spelling test. She lined us all up to parade in front of the smiling school principal as we proudly (?) held up our spelling papers with all those turkey stamps. The first group to march past the principal were the heroes, the gifted-soaring eagles, the ‘five-turkey’ stamp group. That included almost everyone in the class…except for three students. I was one of those three students. I prayed the principal would get tired of seeing all those turkey stamps before my turn came to hold my spelling paper up for him to see. At the end of the long line, you guessed it, came the two-turkey stamp student (me), then the one-turkey student (a special needs girl), and the zero-turkey student (a Hispanic boy who was beginning to learn to speak English). I felt humiliated that I was not in the five-turkey group but took solace that at least I was in front of the two last students. No student should ever feel like the zero, one, and two turkey children felt that day. At that time, neither my teacher nor my parents knew anything about why I couldn’t progress like other children; they knew nothing about dyslexia or dysgraphia.
It wasn’t long before it wasn’t just the principal, teachers, and my classmates…but everyone seemed to know that “Clifton can’t read.” Unbeknownst to me, as with many people with dyslexia, I had begun to compensate for my unidentified learning disability by building strengths in other areas. People thought I was witty and charming so that I could get by socially. I may have been “dumb,” but I was friendly and entertaining, and strangely, I discovered I had a pretty good memory.
It was in fourth grade that one day, I suddenly could read. I opened a book, and it made sense. The words and symbols on the pages suddenly had meaning. It felt like magic, and my life literally changed overnight. I realize now it was a pre-adolescent growth spurt where neurological connections are made in the brain due to physical growth. I didn’t care why; I just knew that I could suddenly read that day!
I didn’t realize that reading silently is much faster than reading aloud (because we speak when reading aloud, which slows down the reading). It was only later I figured out why other classmates seemed to finish assignments about 3-4 times more quickly than I did. I read silently at the same pace as I read aloud due to my dyslexia. That slower reading pace continues to this day, and I’m in my seventies.
In fifth grade, a teacher placed my desk beside a cabinet of encyclopedias (that had pictures). I read and reread those books many times. In that process, my reading speed improved somewhat, but I also realized I could memorize things easier than other people seemed able to do. Once I got through the long reading process, I could recall or quote what I’d read. I could recall where a paragraph of needed information was located in a book. When people told me things, it stuck. Dyslexia forced me to become an auditory learner. It seemed that I developed above-average recall ability regarding stuff I heard. I was surprised when others were surprised at my ability in this area. It later became an unexpected strength in the profession I chose as a counselor. That same compensation is seen in many actors and actresses who have dyslexia. It is also seen in the minds of entrepreneurs, investors, and people who ‘think out of the box.’ Dyslexics must ‘think out of the box’ and often find unique or creative solutions because the brains of people with dyslexia don’t process information as others do.
What I didn’t know then, and wouldn’t know until I was an adult, was that I was running the race in lead boots. I have dysgraphia, one of the weird neurological disorders that make up a blanket diagnosis, “Dyslexia.” My brain doesn’t interpret text correctly. When the signal from my eyes reaches my visual cortex, the letters, and punctuation don’t orient themselves in the proper spaces; if I look at the words “though,” “through,” and “tough,” my brain takes longer to spot the differences that come immediately to most folks. I recall one of my college English professors drew a picture of a witch in the margins of my written (pre-computer) homework assignments because I’d used ‘witch’ repeatedly rather than the word ‘which.‘ Thankfully, this professor was a gifted speed reader, appreciated the logic in my compositions, and knew about dyslexia. I love whoever created spell-check because they at least gave me a leg-up as I ran in lead boots.
Even though the term “Dyslexia” was first coined in 1887, it wouldn’t reach the mainstream until 1968 and wouldn’t be a topic of major research until 1972, when I had already (by the grace of God) made it through High School.
This meant that, as a child, I had the perception that I wasn’t as smart as I needed to be and worked twice as hard to catch up. I developed study habits that compensated for my slow reading pace, and I put effort into my memorization. It saved me time to remember important information, rather than try to re-read and find it again, and I needed that saved time to finish the reading. I had to adapt, and it was HARD. Now, we have the terminology. I wasn’t an idiot the entire time; I just had dysgraphia! If resources had been available, maybe I wouldn’t have spent so much time memorizing my textbooks in the library. Alas, I had to adapt. It was frustrating, and if given the chance, I’d have hunted the mammoth instead.
Here’s the point of all this: We don’t know what we don’t know! As a kid, I didn’t have the terminology to describe what I was going through. Even if I had, those teaching me probably wouldn’t know what to do with it. The modern age is no different; we discover more and more daily how the brain works, and tomorrow’s kids will run into their own difficulties. I can’t go back and tell my teachers they should be more patient or tell the other kids not to be cruel. What we can do now, however, is look back and realize how much more kind we could be.
People with dyslexia may feel they are running with lead boots but should realize they can also be highly gifted and bring insights into our world that others would never even dream of or consider! Those lead boots they feel they may be wearing when they are young might end up running circles around others once they’ve identified their unique strengths.
October is Dyslexia Awareness Month, and, well, now you’re aware. If dyslexia, or having any disability, sounds like something that you, or someone in your life, has experienced, resources are available to help!
More to the point, we can develop a sense of empathy in ourselves; my teachers didn’t know what I was going through. My family didn’t know what I was going through. I didn’t understand why I was different. We don’t know what someone else is suffering from, either. We can (and definitely should) approach the problems that our kids (or adolescents, adults, or older people) face with kindness, support, and understanding. We can be kind and patient to ourselves, and talking to people can help us better understand ourselves and the resources and support available.
Community matters, and some people and resources can help.
We may be unable to remove the lead boots, but we can help each other keep up in the race.
Some resources:
What is dyslexia? - British Dyslexia Association (bdadyslexia.org.uk)
Dyslexia | National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (nih.gov)
What is Dyslexia? | Dyslexia Help at the University of Michigan (umich.edu)
Famous Dyslexic Entrepreneurs: 10 Business Leaders Who Overcame Dyslexia - LDRFA
Do you have dyslexia? Then you’re just one of some other famous people who have it. :)
Albert Einstein (Physicist)
Steven Spielberg, Guy Ritchie (Film Directors, Screenwriters, Producers)
Jennifer Aniston, Salma Hayek, Keira Knightley, Ann Bancroft, Lindsay Wagner (Actresses)
Caryn Johnson (is Whoopi Goldberg, actress, comedian, author, TV personality)
Tom Holland, Tom Cruise, Orlando Bloom, Henry Winkler, Patrick Dempsey, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Steve McQueen, Lee Marvin, Keanu Reeves, Mark Ruffalo (actors)
Gavin Newsome (Governor of California)
Jim Carrey, Jay Leno, Robin Williams (Actors, comedians)
Pete Conrad (Astronaut)
Erin Brockovich (Lawyer, Advocate)
Scott Sonnon (Martial Arts World Champion, Author)
Greg Luganis (Olympic Diver)
Ted Turner (Media, Entrepreneur, TV producer)
Anderson Cooper (TV show host)
Muhammad Ali (Boxer)
Charles Schwab (Financial investor)
Cher (Singer, songwriter, actress)
Leonardo da Vinci (Artist and Polymath)
Tommy Hilfiger (Fashion designer)
Walt Disney (Animator, entrepreneur)
Pele (Soccer Star)
Bill Gates, Steve Jobs (Tech giants, entrepreneurs)
Thomas Edison (Inventor)
Magic Johnson (Basketball Star)
Henry Ford (Automotive manufacturing giant)
Agatha Christie (Writer, Author)
Jamie Oliver (British Chef)
Richard Branson (Entrepreneur, owns 400+ companies, Virgin Airlines)
Ingrav Kamprad (Founder, IKEA)
William Hewlett (Co-founder of Hewlett-Packard)
Orville & Wilbur Wright (Brothers, Inventors of the first manned airplane)
Lewis Hamilton (Professional racecar driver)
Ben Fogle (British broadcaster)
Ozzie Osbourne, Carly Simon, Gwen Stefani, Tina Turner (Musicians, Songwriters)
Molly King (British singer, songwriter, actress)
Read some of their famous quotes: Inspirational Quotes by Famous People with Learning Disabilities - LDRFA
October is also “ADHD Awareness Month” and “Mental Health” Month; we’ll have more information on those topics soon. (Links will be active once articles are available).
”You can’t stay mad at somebody who makes you laugh. I think high self-esteem is overrated. A little low self-esteem is actually quite good. Maybe you’re not the best, so you should work a little harder.”
Jay Leno
(Dyslexic, Comedian)
“I didn’t succeed despite my dyslexia, but because of it. It wasn’t my deficit, but my advantage. Although there are neurological trade-offs that require that I work creatively [and] smarter in reading, writing and speaking, I would never wish to be any other way than my awesome self. I love being me, regardless of the early challenges I had faced.” Scott Sonnon
(Dyslexic, Martial Arts World Champion, Author)
“Creativity is the key for any child with dyslexia, or for anyone for that matter. Then you can think outside of the box. Teach them anything is attainable. Let them run with what you see is whatever they need to run with. Dyslexia is not due to a lack of intelligence, it’s a lack of access. It’s like, if you’re dyslexic, you have all the information you need, but find it harder to process.”
Orlando Bloom
(Dyslexia, Actor)
“Those with dyslexia may feel as if they are running in lead boots compared to other students but should realize they can also be highly gifted people whose brains work differently. Because of that, they bring insights into our world that others would never even dream of or consider!” Clifton Fuller (Dyslexic, Author, Happy Husband, Father, Grandfather)
“My attitude has always been, if you fall flat on your face, at least you’re moving forward. All you have to do is get back up and try again. My interest in life comes from setting myself huge, apparently unachievable challenges and trying to rise above them.“
Richard Branson
(Dyslexic, Entrepreneur,
Author, Business Investor).
“At my school, we were ranked by reading ability, and those meeting the greatest standards, those who soared academically, were called the “Eagles.”
I was not an eagle.
I was one of the “Turkeys”. Turkeys struggle to fly.
We can develop a sense of empathy and can be kind and patient to ourselves and others. That makes us all soar.” Clifton Fuller
(Dyslexic, Author, Counselor, Life Coach)
“As a counselor, social worker, and marriage and family therapist, my licenses allow me to help Texas residents with issues interfering in life and relationships. My clients experience changes over time in therapy, not just in addressing life changes and decisions but in understanding that they can be confident in who they are, what they can do, and how to make a plan for success.
Register & schedule for mental health counseling via our home page.)
As a certified Life Coach, I also work with clients (worldwide) to attain personal or work-related goals and live more peaceful and satisfying lives. Please contact my offices at 210-970-1511 for information about scheduling Life Coaching appointments.” - Clifton Fuller.
Read more about the difference between Counseling and Life Coaching Here.
Note: Clifton is the author of “The Marriage Vampire” (dealing with narcissistic personalities), available on Amazon.
Clifton Fuller
LCSW, LPC, LMFT
