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You Are Not Just One Thing: The Science & Spirit of Identity

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I regularly say I am dyslexic, and some would say that that is incorrect. That I am more than my challenges, however, that is based upon their interpretation of my words rather than what they mean and represent to me. I am dyslexic because I process everything through my dyslexic brain. It is this which is my first filter for all my experiences and my reality. Within psychology, when we are discussing identity, it is important to understand that we have a BIG I or big identity, which has multiple small i's or small identities that make up and contribute to our larger or BIG I concept of self. Let us bring a more spiritually based aspect into this discussion: we are all starbursts. Each one of us is a little star; we are little balls of light in the world. Some of us are brighter, and some are a little dimmer, and those who align with the dim light might need to do more shadow work within themselves to brighten their light. The way I base my identity through what I assess is the asp...
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Dyslexia, Sex Differences, and the Brain Continuum: What Research Got Wrong

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Gender has more to do with dyslexia than just the representation ratio of 4:1 (men to women). I want to introduce a different concept to think about when discussing male and female brains: we do not have a male brain and a female brain. What we do have is a continuum between the two aspects of male- and female-like brains. Moreover, at the other end, we have a more feminine-presenting brain. When we are born with our external sexual differences (being represented as either a female or male, that does not mean that our brain structure and processing style were aligned with those external genitalia. If we honestly think about everyone we know, we will most likely be able to come up with examples of men who think and process the world more like a woman. Moreover, we know that some females present more like a masculine brain.  However, in psychology, research examines gender classification and external sexual representation when discussing participants. Within the study of dyslexia, it...
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The Science of Dyslexia and Emotion

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 One of the first studies I came across after my first diagnosis was by Virginia Sturm and her colleagues, titled "Enhanced Visceral Motor Emotional Reactivity in Dyslexia and its Relation to the Salient Network." In this study, the researchers examined how phonetic dyslexics responded to visual images that evoked emotional responses.  In this study, they monitored participants' skin temperature, facial expressions, and brain activity, and found that phonetic dyslexics showed increased emotional behaviour. To further this, they shared that those who had increased emotional behaviour also showed higher social skills and symptoms, along with symptoms of anxiety and depression.  Emotional behaviour is how our faces express what we are thinking – it is our facial expressions. Phonetic dyslexics showed increased facial expression when exposed to or expressing emotional experiences, compared to the other participants. These results further the belief that dyslexics are hypersen...
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Location: Sherwood Park, AB, Canada
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Neurodivergent vs Neurotypical: Who Says What is Normal?

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Neurotypical, in general terms, is defined as anyone who thinks or processes information like the average person. Here is the issue with the way of thinking: there is no brain to compare every brain to, so how do we even know what is average or typical? Others may state that this difference lies within the DSM-5 diagnostic criteria, but again, who says that this information is doctrine? The DSM-5 is a book that certain professionals use for diagnosis, and its information is based on the research the committee decides is relevant. What this means is that when we look at the DSM-5, the information is stated in a way that the committee believes to be true, not necessarily based on research that's readily proven by current scientific research. As such, there could be readily available research showing characteristics of dyslexics that the DSM-5 does not use to change its narrative or diagnostic criteria, and so it is not used by those diagnosing professionals.  Neurodivergent was first...
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How Dyslexia Shapes Our Relationships, Beyond the Classroom and Into Real Life

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Let us get dyslexia out of the classroom, out of the workplace, out of the learning realms, and bring it where, in my opinion, it is really needed: the social world. When I was first diagnosed with dyslexia, it was life-changing, as I ended up with a label or descriptor that I could control. However, what this meant was that I needed to learn and research what this label really was. The negatives were easy to find; it was the positives that I had to search hard to find, but they are there, and they are powerful. When I first began researching dyslexia in the social world, I was horrified. No matter where I looked, the information I found had dyslexia being an issue within relationships. However, once I took a deeper look at this information, I realized the common perspective these articles were written from was the neurotypical or non-dyslexic point of view.  Dyslexics have big-picture thinking, so if you are looking for finite, detailed, fact-oriented, stuck-in-the-facts conversat...
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Positive Psychology Waves & Dyslexia

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Positive psychology is the science of wellbeing; it is about what makes our lives good and what allows us to live the best life, with purpose and joy. It looks at what fulfillment is and how it influences us as individuals.  There are four waves or forms of positive psychology that most people are unaware of, and most have only ever heard of the first wave. The first wave of positive psychology was led by Martin Seligman, focusing on what makes a good life a purposeful one. This wave focuses on what is right, sound, and strong within the individual. The next wave of positive psychology, or Positive Psychology 2.0, was led by Dr. Paul Wong, who believed that positive psychology should also acknowledge what is not right with a person to raise wellbeing. Another way to look at this is through the symbolism of yin and yang: what is not good and what is good create the whole, allowing us to see the whole picture. Positive psychology 2.0, with its focus on bringing the whole into improve...
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Models of thought that shape how we understand dyslexia

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When we look at dyslexia, so many of the descriptors come through the medical model of what is wrong and what can be fixed. Which is important to understand, as so much of the dyslexia information and society's understanding stems from dyslexia being a learning difference, learning challenges, reading challenges, spelling challenges, because, in society's eyes, those can be fixed. Furthering society's beliefs that once those are fixed, the person is no longer dyslexic. However, here are the facts: the dyslexic brain has not shifted; just the ability to conform has. The medical model of looking at what is wrong and what can be fixed does not really fit in well with what dyslexia really is and how it presents to the person, as their brain does not change over time with learning ways to overcome their challenges, nothing has been fixed. I have heard and read people sharing that they were dyslexic but are not anymore. What they do not understand is that the dyslexic brain is st...
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