My daughter’s dyslexia: My search for a solution

From a photo by Daria Shevtsova

It all started with my daughter. Until the second grade (according to the English system), she had no problems with academic performance. There were some “oddities”; for example, sometimes she read well, with expression, and sometimes – very badly. Or she memorized the spelling of words for the dictation, and then immediately forgot them. I attributed this to her age -7 years – and fatigue. Still, she was in the middle of the class.

But in the third grade, a serious regression began: reading completely went wrong. She read the simplest early reader books and made tons of mistakes in every word. She counted only using her fingers and made mistakes. She struggled to learn the multiplication table by 2 many times, each time starting from the beginning.

I didn’t understand what was happening. And then one day, the teacher hinted to me that my daughter may have dyslexia. I started looking for information about dyslexia and it shocked me! Problems remain for life, that it is completely impossible to get rid of symptoms, and you need to learn to live with it.

I could not believe that my girl, so clever in everything else that does not concern her studies, would not be able to master the basic skills of reading and counting. How will she live? Must it turn out that educational opportunities are closed for her? Her anxiety also began to increase against the background of a decrease in self-esteem.

But I could not give up and give up! I searched, searched, searched — how can I help her? The main methods that the Internet told me were based on repetition. We tried them, they wore us both out, and the effect was practically nil.

When I accidentally stumbled upon a 30-hour dyslexia correction program on the Internet, I was very skeptical. But, like a drowning man grabbing at straws, I decided to read about the method. The method of correction is described in detail in the book by Ronald Davis “The Gift of Dyslexia“. And the more I read, the more I fell in love with this book!

I liked everything: the detailed psychology of problems, the very postulate that dyslexia is a gift, a gift of creative three-dimensional imagination! I immediately went to my daughter and checked:

  • If you have such a good imagination, as described in the book, now I am standing in front of you, can you imagine how I look, for example, from the back?

My daughter was very surprised by the question and answered:

  • No.

That surprised me very much! I began to think that maybe everything works differently for her, but then my daughter added:

  • Mom, when I miss you at school, I sometimes imagine you upside down!

It became clear that imagination – creative, three-dimensional, as described in Ron’s book – was available. The only thing left was to find a specialist to carry out the correction program …

Elena Nikulina – photo from www.fixdyslexia.com

I attended the correction program with my daughter. I enjoyed every moment and every word! After that came the understanding that I also want to help children get rid of learning problems with the help of this same wonderful imagination!

I went to study with Davis Learning Foundation. This time became special for me. Such people of amazing kindness studied with me! We all gathered in this place in order to learn how to help people with dyslexia achieve academic results, strengthen their faith in themselves and their abilities, and give a chance for positive changes!

For two years I studied the theory and honed the knowledge gained during many hours of practice. And finally, in September 2019, I received the long-awaited license!

Since then, I have already helped many children. But so far, the most wonderful moment for me is the moment when I see how each child has changed after the program! How as the follow-up work is completed, each one changes and how those changes are reflected in their attitudes toward themselves, towards life, and towards their studies!

This article is a translation. For the original Russian version of this article, visit fixdyslexia.com