Who Will Help My Son?: A Family's Journey with Dyslexia

Abstract

It may seem unusual for a nurse to intervene and assist a child with a learning disability, but a mental health nurse who knows the warning signs of dyslexia is able to help families who are going through a difficult time. The current article details the author's experience regarding her son's dyslexia diagnosis. For her family, a nurse was a valuable resource. The impact the struggle had not only on her son, but also her family, and the changes brought about by getting a diagnosis and treatment, demonstrate the impact that nurses can have when family-focused care is provided. [Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services, 55(8), 27-30.].

Understanding Mental Health in Developmental Dyslexia: A Scoping Review

“…Sample sizes ranged from one (a case study) [ 42 ] to a study incorporating findings from four databases totaling 23,799 children [ 36 ]. In terms of the age and the stage of development of participants, the researchers of 46 studies focused exclusively on primary school-aged children (≤12 years; 46 studies); 17 on adolescents (≥12 years); and 27 included samples of young people whose ages ranged across these developmental periods (childhood–adolescence).…”

“…Certainly, the importance of having parents who understand dyslexia and provide both emotional and academic support was highlighted by many studies in our review, see for example [ 14 , 73 , 117 ]. However, when interviewed, people with lived experience of dyslexia (especially parents/teachers and older adolescents/young adults) also raised school/community-level concerns such as: teachers’ misunderstanding of dyslexia; a lack of accommodation and support for reading-related challenges; and experiences of stigma, shame, and discrimination in learning environments, see for example [ 11 , 14 , 42 , 47 , 121 ]. Findings such as these suggest that children with dyslexia and other learning difficulties may be vulnerable to low levels of “school connectedness”, a concept that describes perceptions of being understood, supported, and treated fairly at school (by peers and by teachers alike) [ 142 , 143 ].…”

Parent experiences of specific learning disorder diagnosis: A scoping review

“…Initial concerns were generally identified when the child was in preschool/kinder prior to starting formal education or in the early primary school years (Denton et al, 2022;Earey, 2013;Kelley, 2022;Miesch, 2020;Sahu et al, 2018;Silverstein, 2015). A variety of initial concerns were reported across studies, with the main ones being early language delay (Miesch, 2020;Porter et al, 2020;Washburn, 2014;Woodcock, 2020), difficulty with academics, including reading (Denton et al, 2022;Earey, 2013;Levi, 2017;Miesch, 2020;Moore, 2021;Paisner-Roffman, 2018;Poon & Ho, 2015;Porter et al, 2020), and secondary symptoms of anxiety, stress, school refusal and child report of feeling dumb (DeBrew, 2017;Miesch, 2020). Some parents knew something was wrong but did not know what (DeBrew, 2017;Miesch, 2020;Owens, 2021;Woodcock, 2020).…”

“…A variety of initial concerns were reported across studies, with the main ones being early language delay (Miesch, 2020;Porter et al, 2020;Washburn, 2014;Woodcock, 2020), difficulty with academics, including reading (Denton et al, 2022;Earey, 2013;Levi, 2017;Miesch, 2020;Moore, 2021;Paisner-Roffman, 2018;Poon & Ho, 2015;Porter et al, 2020), and secondary symptoms of anxiety, stress, school refusal and child report of feeling dumb (DeBrew, 2017;Miesch, 2020). Some parents knew something was wrong but did not know what (DeBrew, 2017;Miesch, 2020;Owens, 2021;Woodcock, 2020). Having another family member diagnosed with an SLD was also perceived by parents as an early sign that their child might also have an SLD (Kelley, 2022;Levi, 2017;Miesch, 2020).…”

Dislexia

“…Nessa perspectiva, no que tange às dificuldades, normalmente resultam de um déficit no componente fonológico da linguagem que muitas vezes, é inesperado em relação a outras habilidades cognitivas, as dificuldades são mostradas na ortografia, pontuação, caligrafia, compreensão reduzida, memorização alfabética, recitação de versos infantis comuns, além disso, concluir o trabalho no prazo se torna um empecilho a essas crianças que podem descobrir que necessitam de mais tempo para testes e outras tarefas escritas (DEBREW, 2014(DEBREW, , 2017MARTINS, 2014).…”