I am 27 years old from NYC with NVLD. My childhood/adulthood was very rough. By the time I was 18, I went to 5 different schools. The bullying because of what I had was tremendous. The one thing that kept me sane and gave me a sense of escape was music. Through music I was able to perform in front of my peers and write my true feelings. I also was able to make friends and played in several bands and then ventured into the production chair. However, sadly my mom did not make me feel accepted as a person who has NVLD.
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One of the hardest things about overcoming an NVLD is that you have significant weaknesses and unique strengths so you need to figure out how to manage the two. Due to this you should remember when making some decisions about your IEP it is okay to say no at times. While having too many services and taking less challenging courses may seem beneficial, it can do more harm than good. Since it can negatively impact your self-esteem as you are reminded of your disability too much and you can feel you can’t achieve as much as your peers.
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My first time stumbling upon this website, I was relieved. Hearing the stories on the main page reminded me of my own experience. I’ve always known something was off as if I did not fit in with the society around me. I always had a poor memory and I only excelled in subjects that interested me nothing else. Except under pressure I can finish a 7 page essay 1 day before the deadline.
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In my previous piece I wrote about my biggest disappointments growing up in the small town of Ogdensburg. That was while inclusion was so important, there were always pieces missing. This is because they generally went for partial inclusion rather than full inclusion.
For example during my high school years we had C courses which were the least challenging and just for resource room students for English and Social studies. They included support of a resource room teacher, teacher’s aide, and sometimes a speech therapist. Due to these classes being limited to resource room students these students weren’t full inclusion students and for some students this was a mistake.
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One of my biggest disappointments growing up in the small town of Ogdensburg was that while inclusion was so important, there were always pieces missing. Inclusion is so much more than just putting us with regular peers; it is giving us equal opportunities to achieve our full potential and to connect with others.
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It all began when we loaded up my dad’s car and my car. My car was shipped from PA to Florida. My dad drove down to Florence, South Carolina. It took about 8 hours. During the drive, my mom and I slept most of the time. I greatly appreciated my dad driving. We stayed at a hotel in Florence for one night and then my dad proceeded to drive to the Homewood Suites in Palm Beach Gardens. That took about another 8 hours. We stayed there for 12 nights until our apartment was ready. Read More
While forming relationships with your teachers is especially important for an NVLD student, or any learning disability for that matter, it is equally as important for these students to have a relationship with a coach. As a coach and athlete, the relationship in many cases is more casual and you can have more heart to heart conversations about what you’re going through. The level of attention you receive is also so greater as your coaches have less teammates than teachers have students. Read More
Growing up, I would occasionally become confused about why it was so important to my parents for me to be so connected socially with others as those with similar challenges seemed okay just doing the journey by themselves. Now in adulthood, I understand it completely as having significant personal connections makes the journey easier and is a major self-esteem booster. Read More
I have fond memories of my childhood. I was a dorky little kid with glasses who found excitement in playing with Hot Wheels cars. I was different.
Fast forward to 7th or 8th grade at Catholic school. One day, all the other boys in my class were going to the sub shop on the other side of town to get subs and spend time at one of the popular kids’ houses. Everyone was invited except for me. I was crushed. I cried bitter tears. My troubles with NVLD were beginning. Read More
I have been mislabeled autistic multiple times and one person even thought that NVLD meant that I couldn’t speak. Not to mention I struggled a lot with visual-spatial concepts. I have heard other people share similar experiences regarding their NVLD experience. My goal is to share how I have been able to overcome many of the diagnosis restrictions. Read More