Hello, I’m Alexander, 36 years old, and I’ve known I have NVLD since I was 20. For years I wanted to pay as little attention as possible to this disorder that complicates my life, but now I feel the need to talk about it and possibly also create some awareness around it. My NVLD has long defined my life, something I have only recently realized. Now I want to take my life into my own hands again. Read More
Excerpt from the book Misnamed, Misdiagnosed, Misunderstood; Recognizing and Coping with NVLD (nonverbal learning disorder) from Childhood through Adulthood
Throughout my childhood and early adult years, my parents, teachers, friends, and others would get mad at me for the things I did without knowing any better. Thankfully, before my diagnosis, I had figured out ways to not only cope but remediate some of my difficulties, which I’ll talk about later on in the book. Read More
I was diagnosed with ADHD at nine years old but I suspected of more disorders as I’ve gotten older. I was eventually diagnosed with several disorders at age seventeen, including nonverbal learning disorder and borderline personality disorder. Before my borderline diagnosis, I’ve already done so much research regarding the disorder so I was already expecting it, but before my nonverbal learning disorder diagnosis, I knew about the disability before but never thought that I would have it. When I finally got a diagnosis, it gave me relief affirming me that I knew now what for sure was different about me. Read More
It’s been speculated that one third or more of people with borderline personality disorder also have a learning disability. Many people with borderline personality disorder struggle with their relationships and suffer from low self esteem which is also common for people with nonverbal learning disorder. This can be due to our poor interpretation of social cues and other impairments we experience. Read More
The Importance of Having Same Resource Room Teacher and Requesting Teachers Ahead of Time, by Eileen
One of things I learned during my high school years as a student with NVLD is that having the same resource room teacher all four years was so helpful. My resource room teacher had such a clear understanding of my NVLD and it made it easier to truly reach my goals. Another thing I learned was that by speaking to your school counselor ahead of time to request teachers is so helpful too as regrettably not all teachers are so accepting of students with disabilities. Some districts do this automatically and others don’t so it is important to speak up especially if you are a hard working student. Read More
Hello I am V.M., I’m in my mid-30s and have NVLD. Like many people I was misdiagnosed with ADHD as a child, but always suspected the diagnosis was incorrect, as I did not not have any of the symptoms. I began to conclude I had NVLD in college after I researched LDs that seem to be math specific and the college psychometrician assessed me. Reading social cues and performing complex processes in the correct sequence is a struggle for me, but I use the approved compensatory methods to mitigate the symptoms. Read More
There is little mental health support in school, and this is one of the reasons why a lot of high school students struggle with school and their mental health. They sometimes bring things into the classroom that can affect their work, like things going on at home. Also, there needs to be extra support for, not just mental health, but general well-being, so that people aren’t exerting themselves too much, having too much on their mind, and causing harm. Read More
Having NVLD is hard, and I don’t think my teachers get it. I wish my teachers knew that I just learn differently and can still do the work as long as I have accommodations. I wish my teachers knew that I’m just a normal kid, but sometimes I have to advocate for what I need. Read More
Welcome back to my blog – after a long absence I’m happy to be back. Today I want to talk about anxiety and panic. And since 2023 started I’ve had my fair share of anxiety/panic attacks and I do believe with NVLD we are prone to these attacks… however, there was one attack that really scared me – so this happened mid-January and I woke up around half 2 in the morning and my heart was racing and I couldn’t figure out why. Read More
As a student with an NVLD I was very grateful to be in a school district that valued inclusion and that they received all their training from Syracuse University, a renowned leader in inclusion. However like others I am sure, they misunderstood the differences between partial and full inclusion especially for the secondary level. Read More