I just want you to know that having DLD is so hard, it's a battle š¤¼āāļø, but I just never give up. If you think about languageĀ š¬Ā it's EVERYWHERE, I canāt ever escape from language itās everywhere. The amount of times I have to explain things to people,Ā is SOĀ much, itās soĀ exhaustingš©.Ā At the same time, I am masking all the time š¦¹āāļøš¤”š„øĀ and also processing all the information, and trying to understand it.Ā whichĀ it feels like itās attacking me with anger, š” and I struggle to find the words š¤ - I know the word, butĀ IĀ just canāt think of it's name when I need toĀ š¤Æ.
I feel like I can never properly relax because there is always more explaining and communicationĀ around the corner which makes me full with stress, anxiety, and frustration š±. I am always tense inside, and nervous. I have a lot of upset stomachs š„“ and get overwhelmed all the time. Normal life is SO exhaustingĀ š„±...
At some of my schools, they hadnāt even heard of DLD. (They say they have, of courseš¤„ ) - but they just do not get it at all???š¤ā¦. Iām always quiet, well-behaved, patient, polite š. The teachers š§āš do not help, they do not know how to help and my needs are not being met. I wish they would just admit they do not know what to do š¤·āāļø - and listen to me, or get some proper training! When they try to help itās like they donāt know what to do with meš„ŗ. I feel like Iām suffering in silence and nobody at school is noticing,Ā šĀ they just think Iām quiet. I feel totally invisibleĀ š«„. Nobody can seeĀ whatās wrong because I maskĀ š¤”Ā -Ā and Iām so good at it because Iāve masked for years and years.Ā I have had to mask to get through lifeā¦Ā I want to stop, but itās become such a natural habit, and way for me to behave, that itās difficult to not mask now š.
Everyone should be able toĀ get their voices heard š£. We need to speak out on what needs to happen to make it easier for people with DLD. I do drawings cos they are easier for me to do, and I can show people how I am feeling without having to do loads of explaining, plus drawings are more powerful than wordsā¦. But most teachers even ignore my drawings too š!!!Ā A lot of young people with DLD seem to be good at sports šš¾āāļøš¤½š¼āāļøš (like me) - cos it is physical and practical and you do not have to do loads and loads of talking š£.
Two children in every single classroom have DLD, which means it is absolutely HUGE!!! Plus - there are all the young people and adults who donāt even know they have it too š©āš©āš§āš¦šØāšØāš§āš¦šØāš§āš¦šØāš©. Everyone needs to be heard and noticed š„ šŗš½šÆšØš¾āš¦½š¤øš»āāļø.
I still personally don'tĀ know anyone with DLD,Ā cos it seems that hardly anyone gets diagnosed with it šš”. WHY ?? DLD needs to be heard about and known about like Dyslexia or Autism š£.
Siouxsie (Student, aged 17)
