Living with a disability can be very hard, especially regarding school and social life. Having a disability is very common in the U.S. and around the world. In fact, according to the United States Census
When you are someone that has a disability, it can be very hard for both your family and others around you. It can also be hard for the person who has the disability since it affects their everyday life. In my personal experience, the way other people view a disability can influence your own view of your disability. This was true with my own disability, which is ADHD inattentive type.
I was diagnosed when I was in third grade when my teacher pointed out that my grades were slipping and it seemed that I wasn’t focused or paying attention in class. I had previously had other teachers try to convince my parents that I had ADHD as early as Preschool. There were times when my parents would get upset because they didn’t want to believe that I had a disability. However, by third grade, my parents came to terms with my disability and eventually put me on medication.
When I was in first grade, I faced a lot of bullying. Other students teased and bullied me to the point where I would hide in the bathroom to avoid class. The students bullied me because they saw that I acted differently. I would daydream and would often interrupt or change the subject when another student was talking about one subject. I would focus too much about one subject. Being bullied had a huge effect on the way I saw my disability. I started to see it as a weakness and something in which defined me.
In fifth grade, I went through a very hard time with my grades. Even though I was on medication, I was struggling academically. I had just switched from public to private school and the students in my private school were at a higher level in their education. I was flunking all my classes and I was under a lot of stress.
I will never forget when my parents went to a conference with my math teacher. When my parents sat down with my math teacher, she told them that I had gotten the right answer on a question of the test that nobody in the class had gotten correct. She told my parents, in an accusing tone, that she had no idea how I had gotten the answer right, as though she thought that I had cheated on the test.
I’m not sure if she thought I couldn’t have gotten the problem the right because she knew I had a disability or if it was because I was previously from a public school. Either way, her attitude affected my success in the classroom and my personal view of my disability. People with disabilities face stereotypes from teachers and from other students which in turn affects their performance academically in school.
For years, I hid disability from others. I learned to keep it a secret from my friends and other students. Even with my medication, I struggled with finding ways to learning how to cope with my disability while trying to achieve high grades.
In high school, I did everything I could to try to fit in. I was conscious of my behavior around others. I was so focused on hiding my disability that I never realized just how wrong I was about my disability.
It wasn’t until my parents made me attend a class outside of school that was intended for teaching students how to handle ADHD that I started to gain a better understanding of my disability.
When I went to the class and met other students that had ADHD, I realized that I wasn’t alone. There were many students that were struggling much more than I was in school and with handling their disability. I realized that even though they acted differently, they weren’t afraid to be themselves and they didn’t try to hide their disability.
I realized that a disability is not something you should be ashamed of or something that defines who you are, but rather something that makes you unique. People that have disabilities see the world in a different perspective. My disability allows me to be creative and create ideas that are outside the box. I also brainstorm through daydreaming to find new ideas or possibilities.
In addition, negative opinions about other people that have a disability can affect individuals who struggle with their disability and with fitting in. Therefore, if you are someone who doesn’t have a disability but knows someone who has a disability, you shouldn’t judge or underestimate them. They are just as capable as you are of completing or accomplishing new things.
One thing to keep in mind if you have a disability is that you shouldn’t be ashamed of your disability. Having a disability makes you have to work harder to either succeed academically or accomplish new goals. However, that does not mean that it should stop you from succeeding. When you learn how to embrace who you are and to see your disability as something that makes you stronger rather than as a weakness, you will be able to accomplish anything you set your mind to.
