An illustration of how brains are different for people with LD, one thing famous people with learning disabilities want you to know in the same movie? Well, probably more often than you think. Since many people with LDs are creative and unconventional, it’s common for them to become movie stars, entrepreneurs, or athletes. Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley, for example, who both appeared inBut the road to success is rarely easy, and an LD adds another dimension that can be a struggle.
Orlando Bloom has used his own experience to advocate for children with dyslexia: “If you have kids who are struggling with dyslexia, the greatest gift you can give them is the sense that nothing is unattainable. With dyslexia comes a very great gift, which is the way that your mind can think creatively.”
Oscar-winning director Spielberg goes on to say that finding out that he had an LD was “the last puzzle part in a tremendous mystery that I have kept to myself all these years.” For over 20 years, I have been around or worked with individuals with LDs, and I’ve heard what they want others to know. First is that they don’t want your pity. Instead they want you to take the time to become informed and knowledgeable about LDs. Here are some of the other things they would like the world to know:Individuals with learning disabilities have at least average and often above-average intelligence. In fact, many individuals have the dual diagnosis of being both gifted and LD.
Your chances of knowing someone with an LD are pretty good, so become informed and shift your perspective if you need to. Don’t assume that learning disabilities are always a bad thing. For many individuals, an LD gives them a distinct advantage. As actress Salma Hayek says, “I may take a really long time to read a script, but I only read it once.”
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