Have you ever heard of the “David and Goliath” story? Wait! I’m not talking about the relic of the prehistoric period around 1000 BCE. However, I’m specifically referring to a case from 2016, where Meseret, a dyslexic, took on Starbucks in a legal challenge.
Did Meseret Kumulchew succeed in her lawsuit against Starbucks for dyslexia discrimination?Β Yes, much as how David, a young shepherd lad, defeated the powerful warrior, Goliath, Meseret too, stood up against Starbucks.
What’s the social reality?
Here’s how the incident plays out! Starbucks accused Meseret of fabricating documents. Fortunately, the tribunal’s perception of her blunders changed after they realized that they were the signs of dyslexia. Her difficulties with reading, writing, and time management, were entirely attributed to her being a dyslexic. The case attracted headlines because it showed how a Dyslexic woman fought for her integrity. The world first learned about workplace inclusion and prejudice towards people with dyslexia after this lawsuit.
Margaret Malpas, a former chair of the British Dyslexia Association, talks about the discrimination faced by dyslexic students. She adds that many of them decide to move on and keep their dyslexia a secret. But during all this upheaval, do you want to find out something fascinating? Well, here’s it for you! ππΊπ΄ππ¦πΉπͺπ’ πͺπ΄ ππ¦π¨π’πππΊ π³π¦π€π°π¨π―πͺπ»π¦π₯ π’π΄ π’ π₯πͺπ΄π’π£πͺππͺπ΅πΊ πͺπ― ππ³π¦ππ’π―π₯. Amazing, isn’t it? However, Ireland is unquestionably an exception.
What is life like for people who have Dyslexia?
Let’s delve into a story!
Sam’s startup was looking for employees. Sarah, one of the few candidates chosen, struck Sam as incredibly brilliant and full of interesting ideas. As they were a small team, he began to notice that she seemed to take forever to examine documents and deliver reports. Her messages often came littered with errors. She seemed to struggle and mumble whenever he gave her instructions.
She mixed up dates and times, and as a result, she missed meetings. With everything going on, Sam naturally concluded that she was a scatterbrain. He was perplexed by her hasty completion of the task at hand without thoroughly checking everything. Wouldn’t we all feel the same way if we met someone like Sara?
Is it dyslexia or is it scattering brains?
Sara eventually came clean about her dyslexia because she was at her wits’ end. She listed a few simple things that to her appeared like impossible herculean jobs, including:
- It takes a lot of effort to read the digits on her alarm clock. To try to see the digits, she had to squint and strain her eyes.
- It was challenging to read menus, instructions, or signs. On the page, letters sometimes appear to be dancing. She had to read the sentence several times before she understood it.
- Even more challenging was writing. She would spend hours staring at a blank sheet of paper before she could put logical sentences together.
- It was incredibly challenging for her to put her thoughts in writing, prioritize tasks, fulfill deadlines, and keep track of minutiae.
- She was prone to forgetting deadlines, skipping appointments, and arriving to class late.
- She struggled with recalling names, remembering instructions, and completing multi-step processes.
- Driving, following directions with maps, and participating in team sports were all tough on her.
Sarah’s self-esteem suffered as a result of these challenges. Everywhere she made a mistake with left and right, she felt foolish and lethargic, as if she weren’t trying hard enough. It was a relief for her when she finally received her diagnosis. This way she understood that her difficulties were caused by dyslexia rather than a lack of effort or brains.
3 of the most used tools for proactively overcoming dyslexia’s difficulties.
- Sarah was able to overcome several of her obstacles with the support of assistive technologies like the Orton-Gillingham and Wilson Reading System.
- Phonics programs, such as Sounds-Write and Read Write Inc, which involves teaching the sounds associated with letters and letter combinations helped her a lot.
- Assistive technologies, such as text-to-speech software and speech-to-text software, helped her in reading and writing tasks.
She received honors in college, inspiring other people with dyslexia to never give up on their aspirations. She still fought with dyslexia daily, but she believed she was capable of reaching her objectives.
Hearing her story, Sam realized that dyslexia is merely a learning difference and not an indication of IQ. With this viewpoint in mind, he started by outlining Dyslexia’s strengths and weaknesses to assist her.
4 unique strengths of Dyslexics:
1. High levels of creativity:
Dyslexics may think outside the box, approach problems in unique ways, and excel in areas such as art, music, or design.
2. Strong visual and spatial thinking skills:
People like Sara can visualize concepts and ideas in their minds and can excel in activities that require spatial awareness. For example, puzzles, building models, or architecture.
3. Strong problem-solving abilities:
Dyslexics have critical thinking skills, adaptability, and the ability to approach challenges from different angles.
4. Heightened intuition:
They can see patterns or connections that others might overlook; innovative thinking and creative problem-solving.
7 Tweaks that help Dyslexics work more efficiently:
- For instance, Sam advised Sara to use Mind Maps, Flow Charts, and diagrams. Since she was a visual learner, she could highlight the key ideas in documents.
- He left her instructions on her voicemail and followed them up with an email or instant message. She started using digital voice recording devices for taking notes or recording meetings.
- Sam gave Sara printed materials with backdrop colors and contrast she was comfortable with. This reduced Sara’s visual stress and improved her reading accuracy. He also offered colored overlays or tinted glasses.
- He arranged for a workshop on dyslexia for everyone in his office. With understanding came acceptance, and others in the office soon started supporting her.
- He advised her to use a visual wall planner, an electronic appointment diary with an alarm feature, and to-do lists to assist her get things done throughout the day.
- He enrolled her in mindfulness meditation classes, to reduce stress and anxiety and increase her attention and executive function.
- Since yoga could help with positive self-esteem, and give her the belief that she’ll win, despite setbacks, he advised her to take up yoga classes.
A 2-minute chest lifting, open and expansive ‘power pose’ can boost the subjective sense of energy, and improve one’s self-views.
A recent study shows that whenever you maintain an upright posture, it makes you feel powerful, dominant, confident, and in control. A slouched body posture with arms across the chest, concealing the upper body has the opposite effect on you.
Yoga poses, especially expansive, ‘power poses’ with a lifted chest, can boost a sense of power, confidence, and personal control in you, after just a 2-minute practice. It also lowers your cortisol levels, the hormone associated with how you react to stress.
MyFat Diet recommends the following 6 chests lifting ‘power poses’ to help Sara and people like she improve their self-esteem and subjective energy:
Child’s pose:
On your inhale, breathe deeply into your rib cage and sense the expansion. Do not slouch your shoulders, instead open your shoulders and your chest. Stay in this pose for 5-15 slow, full breaths.
Butterfly Stretch:
Pressing the soles of your feet together, bring your feet in towards your inner thighs. Allow your knees to fall to either side, pressing towards the floor. Keep your spine as long as you can, open your chest, and hold your feet with your hands. Stay in this pose for 5-15 slow, full breaths.
Fierce Warrior:
Step your feet 4 to 5 feet apart and keep your arms at shoulder height. Exhale and slowly shift your weight to your left leg and raise your right leg off the ground. Take a big breath in, open your chest, and hold the outside of your right foot with your right hand after you’ve gained your balance. Rep on the other side. You can also use a chair as a support.
Low Lunge Stretch:
Step the right foot forward from the child’s pose and lower the left knee to the mat. Keep both hands on either side of your front foot. Inhale deeply, keeping your spine tall and your chest up. Exhale and return to the child’s position. Then, to finish the round, step your left leg forward.
Cat-Cow Stretch:
Lift your head and open your chest as you inhale. Allow your back to arch and your ribcage muscles to relax. Make sure your neck and head are naturally curved. Hold on for a second or two. Exhale and round your spine, drawing your belly button towards your spine.
Half Cobra Push-Up:
Lift your upper body 6 to 8 inches off the ground while looking up at the ceiling. Allow your rib cage to open in front of you for greater chest opening and upper-body stretch. Hold for a second before lowering back down. Slowly perform the move 5 to 10 more times.
Neurofeedback (NFB) for dyslexia
Neurofeedback (NFB) therapies for dyslexic kids seem to improve their cognitive and academic performance. Animal-assisted treatments (AAIs) have been shown to improve social, emotional, cognitive, and physical skills.
Children with SLD aka Specific learning disorder, who receive onotherapy had higher academic achievement and self-esteem. In a study, 16 dyslexics were divided into two therapy groups at random. While the first group had standard neuropsychological group therapy without onotherapy, the other group received AAIs and therapy donkeys.
The donkey instruction raised self-esteem and reading scores in particular. As a result, we can draw the conclusion that AAIs for dyslexia may be a practical and successful method to speed up rehabilitation, boost self-esteem, and improve cognitive and linguistic abilities.
As a result, we can draw the conclusion that AAIs for dyslexia may be a practical and successful method. It can speed up rehabilitation, boost self-esteem, and improve cognitive and linguistic abilities.
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