Happy Mothers Day to everyone ,especially those with dyslexic children !!
Parents , especially mothers can often be affected quite profoundly and emotionally by the fact that their child has dyslexia.
Parents may face many difficulties due to their child’s dyslexia, which can result in producing very strong emotions….
Initially mothers and fathers may feel confusion about the nature of dyslexia and find it difficult to comprehend. Especially in Turkey, good information about dyslexia is limited.
Parents may suffer guilt as they can feel that they must have done something wrong which “made” their child have dyslexia.. Especially, if they are dyslexic themselves they could feel guilty that they have passed on dyslexia to their child.
Mothers and fathers will feel great concern about what the future will hold for their son or daughter .They may worry about whether their child will be be successful in crucial exams and achieve their full potential.. They may be frightened that if their child is unsuccessful at school their child may be drawn to other undesirable directions ie crime , drugs etc..
They may feel anger at the child’s school because they are unable to get teachers to understand and appreciate their child’s problems. They may also show anger towards other family members ,if they feel they are not helping enough or do not appreciate the problem fully.Very often the bulk of the work to support the child falls on the shoulders of the mother...
They may suffer frustration due to feelings of helplessness because they are unable to get their voice heard at school.They may also suffer frustration if they feel that they are inadequate to help their child satisfactorily.
They may feel anxiety when they see they child’s distress ,anger and frustration over events that have happened to them.
They may exhibit over- protectiveness towards their child due to a result of watching their child’s daily struggle with dyslexia.
They may suffer stress on a daily basis even during activities such as helping their child with homework tasks..etc. They could also suffer from stress due to the economical factors of paying for professional help for their child.
They can suffer exasperation because it is sometimes hard to convince professionals that they know their child well and often understand how dyslexia affects their child better than anyone else.
They may feel despair if they can’t obtain the appropriate help for their child and get their voice heard and also if they do not see any improvement in regards to their child's situation.
Dyslexia can also lead to arguments between family members which can produce great tension and upset.
Teachers and professionals need to be aware of these factors and act sympathically when dealing with parents.
Posts
2 comments:
When a child is identified with a learning disability, it affects more than just the child’s life — the whole family is impacted as well. As your post outlines, parents may have numerous reactions as a result of this identification. It is important to address these many emotions to ensure that children feel loved and supported by their families; this step is critical to the integration process and plays a key role as children fold the story of LD into their larger sense of self. This is a great time to have a family-wide conversation about learning disabilities, as they are often hereditary and may have gone unrecognized in parents or siblings over the years. Luckily for me, my parents approached my learning disability in a very practical and positive manner and immediately placed me in specialized reading and language classes and have remained supportive throughout my schooling and into my adult years. For additional resources to help parents of dyslexic children, check out the resources offered by both the International Dyslexia Association (www.interdys.org) or the National Center for Learning Disabilities (www.ncld.org). Another great resource for kids is Project Eye to Eye (www.projecteyetoeye.org), which offers mentoring and great messages about LD.
Thanks for the posting on the feels of the parents
Post a Comment