How does having a mental difference impact your life?

#1

I have ADHD,dyslexia, a number processing disorder, and anxiety. Almost every one of my teachers didn’t believe I was struggling and my used to go home crying because everything was so stressful.

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leighc_ avatar
MyOpinionHasBeenServed
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The number processing disorder is likely dyscalculia, but I don't blame you for not being able to think of that word. The struggle is very real.

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#2

I have really bad anxiety, have suffered from depression, and I have trouble with self love. This all makes school really hard because I am so afraid that if I make the tiniest mistake, people will think bad if me. It's also difficult for me to have friends because it's hard to talk and I constantly am anxious that they don't actually like me. Also going to bed takes a long time because I have to go through a whole routine of checking everything in my room to make sure nobody is waiting to hurt me in the night or could break in.

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#3

I have autism, although I am high functioning it has impacted my life deeply, i struggle to understand when people are talking to me, i zone out, i struggle looking people in the eyes ( especially when they’re blue idk why), i struggle with putting emotion into my words, heaps of other things I can’t think of right now. But yeah

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#4

Paranoia. I am so paranoid, it's crazy. I also have bad anxiety. And I'm not saying I have depression or anything, but these things really make me sad a lot. I just really hate it and I sometimes wanna give up.

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#5

Yes, hello, hi. I have a lot of mental disabilities. I have Asperger's Syndrome, ADHD, dyslexia, dyscalculia, anxiety and a high chance of depression. Primary school was a nightmare because I'm 2E, or twice-exceptional. I have a disability that makes you "smart" (Asperger's Syndrome) and one that makes you "dumb" (ADHD). This makes it very hard to find someone that can teach me, as different subjects need different teaching styles. High school was better. I've been called stupid and dumb because I'm not the best at maths, or because I have to ask my friends which one is p on a keyboard, or have to ask how to spell the simplest words. Very stressful. Some people get surprised when they hear me speak because I have a large vocabulary and like using big, nerdy words, compared to my handwriting which is messy with a lot of misspelled words and incorrect grammar.
I get scared of everything and no day is complete until I have a mini panic attack.
Sometimes I need to say things. As in if I don't them my head feels like it will explode. Like even if it's weird or the person already know it, I just need to say it. I get very attached to little things like lolly wrappers and I need everything to my neat and in a proper spot. If you touch of mess up something I've reordered I freak out and yell. I don't try to but I do. I get hyper when I'm happy and that sucks. I'm on medication for my anxiety and am thinking about going on an ADHD one as well. There is a lot more but I think it will be too long.

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#6

I have ADHD, anxiety, and misophonia (if you want to know what the last one means, just ask), and I can barely go to school. ADHD causes me to be unable to focus, anxiety makes it even harder to focus, and misophonia makes lunch so difficult

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#7

I have complex ptsd with possibly ADD (we are investigating that now). I got the ptsd from when I was very young. I am also emotionally neglected when I was a child. This led to a life full of anxiety, no self-confidence and not feeling safe anywhere. Because of this I started doing drugs and hanging with the wrong people. Wich led to more traumatic experiences. Now I'm 6 years clean. I have a beautiful son, who saved me actually. I still have panic attacks, I feel depressed most of the time, still no self confidence but I have gain self respect, I'm scared all time about everything, always tired, feeling a bad mom, I'm always busy (trying to forget things), I never finish things, I always forget things and I can't have relationships, (I can't be intimate with people, like hugging or touching etc), I don't trust anyone and I feel like I always live trough my life and don't experience it. Sometimes I think why I go trough it all. I'm working on my ptsd and hope to go back to school after so I can help other people. I do love my son. He's the only one I can show love to (and my cats, yes I'm a crazy catlady haha). We cuddle a lot, I can really laugh with him, we always do a lot of stuff and I try to do everything for him. I Guess he is the only person in my life I can really trust and feel safe around. It does give me hope that one day I will feel that way around other people.
I tought I lost the abillity to love other people and my self a long time ago untill I had my son.

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#8

Depression
Pretty much took my teen years away from me

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#9

I have Anxiety which makes me nervous very very often at little things. I also might have a subset of Anxiety called Hypocondria where you worry about every little thing your body does and thinking that it could be harmful. I get nervous when I have a random ache or when the skin on my fingers peel. I also have ADHD which makes it hard to focus and Aspergers which makes understanding other peoples emotions and social situations in general a lot harder.

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#10

I have anxiety and depression and they have caused me to be very impatient with my younger brother. He has ADHD and sometimes I get upset with him when he is being hyper.

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#11

I haven't officially been diagnosed with anything, yet, but I'm pretty sure I have dyscalculia and perhaps something else trauma-related.

For dyscalculia, it has always impacted my life. It makes it difficult to recognize timelapse, handle time-management, remember and see numbers in their correct order ( I tend to have to make a double, or triple take), remember number sequences, remember how to do math equations and convert different systems. Mind you, it doesn't make these things impossible, it just takes more time to really think and figure out, and it just comes less easily.

There is a lot of shame and bad experiences. When family try to teach me counting back money or anything that involves math, they're usually curt and impatient. I can't think of the task at hand and can only focus on the tension, so I get upset.

I've gotten on the wrong bus, thinking I saw the number for my route but it wasn't.

I've left daycare once, thinking for sure I was late for school and the staff left without me to drop off the kids because I was so certain the clock said 8:45, but was 7:40 (something like that. I don't know if that was the time I saw, just an example to get the point across) and couldn't remember which is the minute hand and which is the hour hand. Got to school only to see I was not late. I got in trouble for that.

When I was much younger, in Grade 1, I was relentlessly harassed and bullied. A group of older kids back me into the wall, circled around me and shouted out simple math sums demanding an answer. They wouldn't let me go. A boy came, one day, and grabbed them, started beating on them, but they fought back. He regretted it but I was thankful.

Grade 3, we had an amazing teacher and great math class, where we learned decimals and counting money using mats that helped us see how everything was broken down. Visuals is how I learn best. We learned the times and division table in a way that suited me. This was the only year I did exceptionally well in math and enjoyed it. In Grade 4, new teacher and 2 months of relaxation she wanted to give us a refresh lesson but, instead of regular division I had learned, she jumped to long division. She taught in such a fast, confusing way I was lost from then on. I needed extra tutoring and went to Sylvan's Learning Centre to try to catch up.
My poor mom tried to help with those dreaded flash cards and those fun practice books. Even when I got the hang of it, I couldn't retain the knowledge.

To this day I rely on calculators, my fingers, digital cash registers, clocks and timers. I have been late for my shift and breaks for mistaking the time many times, and very fortunate to be at a company that gives chances. My ex-bf would berate me and scoff, treat me like a crazy person if I had gotten information mixed up or wrong. People know this about me so I'm at high risk of gaslighting abuse. But I am aware of this so I take extra precautions.

I can't remember people's names very well, nor phone numbers. It offends some people, for some reason, when I have to ask for their name again. This affects my social life, for sure, and my job. I've had supervisors get mad for me being too slow and having to redial phone numbers.

When having to enter codes that are long, especially when they are printed so tiny, it stresses me out and I have to make so many attempts. My eyes, or my brain, can't see all the numbers and if there are more than 2 of the same numbers together they look like they wave or shift into each other. Or the numbers will look opposite, for example, 868 may look like 686 in my head. I don't actually see numbers moving, though.

Dyscalculia doesn't keep me from hating math and numbers, though. There are some math skills that I did well in, such as geometry, spatial recognition and logic problems. But it's hard to explain that to potential employers. I should probably get an actual diagnosis and assessment so I have the proof and be protected from discrimination.

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phinecolella avatar
Phine Colella
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If you live in Chicago, henry Davis is an awesome math tutor. I also have discalculia and I’ve gotten so much better at math

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#12

I have OCD and selective mutism caused by severe anxiety. I’ve also struggled from depression in the past. It’s very hard for me to do anything that requires decisions because I will obsess over every little detail. Then, if you expect me to make a decision, I’ll have a sm attack. Sometimes I hit myself with a jump rope.

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#13

I have autism/aspergers, adhd and dyslexia, i cope much better now im older but had a horrific time in school with teachers screaming at me for being stupid and weird 😣im not stupid just a bit slow, i hope kids with autism are treated better in school now and get the help they need. What people think of autism actually affects me more than my the condition, when people know i have it they talk to whoever is with me instead of me or talk to me like im a very small child even though im an adult. How it affects me is i dont really like loud noises or crowds and being touched i need personal space 😅 i have auditory processing disorder or something so it can be hard for me to make out what someone is saying if theres background noise and it always takes a few seconds longer than usual for the words someone has said to reach my brain. I can talk about random things like dinosaurs or bugs for hours if people dont mind. Holding something like a tiny soft plush animal hidden in my pocket makes me feel much better in busy places

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#14

I have anxiety, ADHD depression, and narcolepsy, but my quirkiest one is an apparent hyperactivity in the part of my occipital lobe that processes motion. The result is that I frequently see things moving when they aren’t. The walls are breathing, carpets slither, and looking for shooting stars is a complete waste of time, since there’s always something moving up there. Once when I was at work (I’m a psych nurse), someone commented on a kid’s increasing psychosis saying that he reported seeing the floor crawl, and I almost replied “yeah, but we all see that,“ before I caught myself.

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#15

I have ADHD, and as a child it really make my school year REALLY difficult. I get distracted easier, I have trouble to focus quickly it take me time.... When I forget my pills, is WORST, I can't work without my pills, I am hungry ( A LOT ), I said silly things.... All these things get me tired and people obviously find it weird.

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phinecolella avatar
Phine Colella
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I was on adderall and I couldn’t eat anything but I switched to vivance and now I am really hungry a lot of the time (which is a good thing for me)

#16

I have PTSD, depression and anxiety disorders and I am bipolar. These are crippling for me. To even take a shower is a huge accomplishment for me. I could just sleep my life away or at least stay in the bed forever whether sleeping or not.

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#17

I'm fairly certain I have anxiety but it's undiagnosed so there is always 2 voices in my head the one saying "everyone is judging you, no one cares about you, you'll regret this and every desicion you've ever made" and the one that says "stop you're just doing this for attention". These pretty much make any fun activity just stressful and it's hard to be around people. It feels like I'm always guilty.

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Phine Colella
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You should probably talk to a therapist or your doctor about that. I understand how that feels and talking to someone who won’t Jude you really helps

#18

I keep feeling weird or unclean is that a thing ?
Please give me advice on what to do ?

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Phine Colella
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Do you feel it like in your mind or on your body? Are there specific places or time you feel like that?

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