Helping neurodivergent people thrive requires encouragement and acceptance | Letters

Helping neurodivergent people thrive requires encouragement and acceptance | Letters

PhD candidate Luke Young reflects on cognitive strengths and teaching, while Susan Chipping wishes she had experienced more tolerance in the workplace

In your article (ADHD: does medication work?, 3 June) I was struck by the line about adults having more choice over lifestyles and occupations that “play to their cognitive strengths”. My own experience of school was riddled with detentions for chatting in class or being unable to control my impulsive behaviours when I couldn’t grasp or didn’t enjoy the content.

I couldn’t sit down to memorise verb endings or mathematical formulas – there wasn’t enough stimulation for my liking. But when I opened a book (or what I eventually learned to call a novel) I suddenly felt myself immersed in worlds full of life and emotions and events that could keep me engaged. I could sit still reading for longer than anything else. One of my English teachers helped me to see how the words on a page opened up a world of possible interpretations, and with it a lifetime of excitement. None of my other teachers expected much of me at school.

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