Where do I start? Being A NVLD photographer is tough. You create your vision the best you can, but you find the spatial issues, technical lighting and settings to be really complicated. Sometimes you feel limited to what you can create because of your disorder and what your brain can come up with. You compare yourselves to others in your field and wonder if they would’ve done a better job than you. Sometimes you’re scared to admit your struggles because you are worried about what others may think.
I know I am. It’s an isolating disorder that people cannot see.
There is nothing that frustrates me more than reading that few people with an NVLD or a similar disability are fully included in sports during the high school years. As my Cross-Country and Track coaches proved 20 years ago, in a sport like running we can have inclusion since it is all about doing your best and supporting all runners. So as you read this I hope you understand why I strongly believe this percentage needs to be so much higher.
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This past summer, after encouragement from a good friend who had helped my son with issues surrounding executive functioning, my 14 yo son was diagnosed with ADHD, NVLD and depression. The first half of his freshman year has been successful because of him receiving a 504 for the ADHD and with prescription for Adderall, he has been able to receive the support he needs academically. He finished his first semester with a 4.25.
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One of the hardest things about having an NVLD can be participating in Physical education, especially at the secondary level. What is often overlooked is that accommodations/modifications can be made for NVLD students to make gym class more enjoyable, and if done correctly, their classmates don’t even know it. This can be done by having a meeting with your gym teacher ahead of time to choose activities you can do for each unit so you won’t be faced with having to choose between two activities that include so many gross motor and hand-eye coordination skills, such as volleyball or Badminton.
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I emphasize NVLD in the title because I want to make this dx stand out and be recognized. Buried behind the more mainstreamed Special Education services criteria or diagnoses like Autism and Social communication Disorders, or ADHD I am not sure if these 4 letters have sunk into the conscience of enough educators and clinicians so here I am, “again” NVLD, NVLD, NVLD do you hear me, do you see me, can you help me? I feel like those are all of the things my son with this Dx would like to know.
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Christmas is hands down, one of my favorite holidays. The twinkling lights, the delicious food, the coziness of watching classical Christmas movies. However, part of having NVLD is feeling overstimulated. Every year, I become a grinch at the thought of family gatherings because I know how depleted and overwhelmed I’d feel.
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Overcoming NVLD, my most challenging years were 7th grade through the beginning of 10th grade. I was becoming more and more aware of my disability since my sister’s achievements were around me quite regularly. For example, she was a starter on the basketball team, so the highlights often included her, and she was Vice President of our school’s service club, so her picture was often in our local paper for that. Due to this, it was hard for me to understand if my teachers and coaches really liked me or just felt sorry for me because I wasn’t gifted like my sister. I struggled to understand that each student has their positives and that each educator and coach enjoys the individual for a different reason.
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I was diagnosed with NVLD at age 19. It was like a lightbulb went off because now my family had answers to all of the questions of why so many things were and still are challenging for me. Ever since I’ve been diagnosed, I’ve been trying to make those challenges not seem so big, and some of them have gotten easier to deal with. I’ve gotten better at reading social cues and body language by asking my parents what they mean when I see them in a TV show. I have also gotten better at doing math in my head by doing addition with easy groupings that equal five, ten, or 15. I have tried to make many, if not all of the challenges easier for me because I know they can be, and I want them to be. Read More
My son was diagnosed with NVLD at 9. We jumped right into educating ourselves with a lot of books and a team of amazing teachers. He had a special Ed teacher help with math and spatial challenges, an occupational therapist who helped with fine motor skills and keyboarding, and a truly amazing SLP who worked with him on social skills. We had several IEP meetings every year with teachers and principals; he had great counselors and, for a time, a psychologist who helped our family understand what he needed from us and how we could work together. It was all going really well until he graduated from high school.
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I was diagnosed with NVLD when I was quite young. A speech therapist I saw figured out I had it from doing social skill classes with her. I first talked at 18 months and had typical autistic traits like creativity and dire interests in history facts even in kindergarten and first grade. Another trait I had at a very young age was love of music and being able to properly sing the ABC’s. That’s when my mother thought about getting me a music teacher and finally started at 8 years old.
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