Hello,
Recently, I have begun to notice that I may have a learning disability of some kind. I never noticed it all through high school, mostly because I didn’t do the work, so there was no way I would have been able to pick up on it. It seems to be a processing disorder of some kind…it affects both visual and auditory learning. The first problem I picked up on was reading. I started studying on my own, and realized I wasn’t learning anything, despite my best efforts. No matter how hard I try, I can’t retain what I read for more than a few seconds. I can retain bits and pieces, but that is all. Thinking back over my adolescent years, I was never able to pick up any information through reading. I just never really realized that I had a problem. I thought that maybe since I couldn’t learn through reading, I could learn through listening to the material instead, possibly by using books on tape. But I’ve come to realize that I have the same problem with listening. If someone reads something to me, I can’t retain hardly and of it. I’ve been attending some lectures, and I have a problem recalling anything I learn from those lectures, even right after the lecture is done. I do better with auditory learning, but there is still a problem. I’m not sure if the auditory problem is normal, or if there is an actual problem. My biggest concern is the reading because I am planning on attending a technical college where the teaching is based on reading books, and I don’t know what I can do to make it through college. I’ve tried to find a diagnosis of what I may have, but so far I haven’t been able to find anything that fits me and I’m wondering…is there a diagnosis that I am not finding? I really would like to find a diagnosis so I can find a way to learn with this disability, and I’m afraid if I don’t get some kind of help I won’t be able to do college. So, does anyone out there have any information about what my problem could be? I would really, really, appreciate any information you could give me. Email me at [email protected] if you can give me any help.
Thanks!
Christian
Christian,
Your problem sounds like a memory issue, possibly working memory. Google strategies to improve working memory and see what you can find. Do you have trouble pronouncing the words when your read or do you have to concentrate so hard to pronounce them that you forget? You may also consider if you have an attention deficit disorder which can greatly affect working memory as well as remembering what you just read or heard. Ask your doctor if you would meet the criteria for that.