The Difference Between NVLD & Other Learning Disabilities (Facebook Live w/ Sheldon Horowitz, Ed.D.)

[@manamoon9149]

As somone with NVLD I want to thank you guys for bringing more awareness to our disability. Just one note for me personally I have more troubles with reading the tone of others then facial expressions. And there is something more we have in common with the autism spectrum and that is the meltdowns.

[@eabyars]

BIG SAME

[@kathleenwatts1568]

Why is there no government aide for people with NVLD? My adult son has been fired from 7 jobs because of things he’s said that someone else perceived as wrong. I can’t keep supporting him forever. I’m on a fixed income and am drowning financially. Please help!

[@sarayoung9395]

Apply for social security if in the US.

[@roolyh4775]

I can see this happening in the future with us also, as help is not readily available. Good luck with your son x

[@compulsiverambler1352]

He will meet the criteria for ASD if he has NVLD, so get him diagnosed with that, cos NVLD has all except one possible symptom of ASD (the nonfunctional routines), which you don't need for diagnosis, it just has dozens of additional symptoms on top of the ASD. 80% of people diagnosed with ASD have NVLD when anyone bothers to ask us about the symptoms specific to it. The other 20% are much less impaired and are probably the same 20% who learn to drive, keep jobs, etc. They don't get lost easily, or speak and chew too fast and sloppily, they are not slow at everything except speaking and chewing, they learn and remember motor sequences fine, etc. I dated one and he was competent at everything non-social and actually had no sensory abnormalities like stimming whatsoever like I do. I hate that people think ASD is worse cos NVLD is ASD plus far worse impairments on top.

[@1997Jeep]

Thank you for making these videos. I am a Dyslexic AuDHD & I have found that asking for help makes things worse. Coworkers are not your friends, if you point out your difficulties they will be used against you. There tends to be two likely outcomes. 1) the disability is recognized & directly attacked. 2) the person doesn't experience the disability themselves & is unable to comprehend the experience. In my experience the second person is more dangerous.

[@mistytwilight5638]

Agreed, teachers and mentors will say "there aren't stupid questions". I swear I hear the essences of the universe going "Challenge Accepted. Go ahead, Ginger, ask those questions you have and don't worry we'll be sure its 45 minutes later after someone just tried to verbally explain it to you and you've tried to put whatever you were told to do into application"

[@EmEsjay1]

This gentleman hit the nail on the head.

[@elizabethbrown504]

Re: Driving The Source for Visual-Spatial Disorders by Carol Stockdale includes some strategies specifically for teaching driving. There are some with NVLD who's Visual Spatial processing is so weak that driving is not possible. But with intervention it's possible.

[@Ha-ppi-ness]

Congrats to Dr. Sheldon Horowitz for his advice on what to do if I get diagnosed as an adult: Self-know yourself, find the ways in which you struggle, and find what is what you need to succeed. Document it. Ask for accommodation. You've entitled to those under the ADA American Disabilities Act.

[@Historian212]

Good luck with getting accommodations. For most people, it’s not that simple. It turns out that the ADA favors the employer, and that having the right doesn’t mean much if the employer doesn’t value diversity of ability. Seriously, I wish you luck.

[@NeighborhoodOfBlue]

"self-know yourself" requires a level of self-awareness and examination that many of us lack. I'm aware I struggle and need help, but can't specifically tell you what I need. If I could do that, I could accomodate myself. I cannot.

[@FATMAN162x]

As soon as this guy started talking about computers I immediately caught on to what he's talking about, it LITERALLY will affect your every waking moment unless you actually understand yourself. Glad I love computers but hate windows 10 lol if I hadn't hated windows 10 like I do though, I still may have not quite caught on. But I guess the message to us is that we must understand first how we learn, then accept the fact that this does not end, the idea is to manage it like everything else.

[@angelafrancis1317]

Good afternoon, this video was extremely helpful for me towards building a network for myself that can assist me as I am aging with Non-verbal Learning Disorder. I find that I do meet other criteria such as Aspergers as well as ADHD and Autism. I find that my condition does reflect on much of the spectrum but I do admit that since my language and auditory skills are pretty unique compared to many around me this creates for much difficulty for me as I travel through my life journey in many different spaces, places and amongst different social groups. Currently I am 50 years old and am balancing the feelings of wanting to be alone most of the time, I find that many people are rigid in their form of thinking and feelings about changing their paradigm of normalcy and wanting to accommodate even the slightest. This makes my life outside of my home extremely difficult and causes me to become fearful and less likely to participate with many outside experiences. At this stage of my life I would prefer as much as possible to stay away from people, most people do not have good intentions when it comes to communication effectively with me or at least in a manner for which I would be able to function within the scope of the interaction with them.

[@jennifergolay2307]

Thank you so much for all this information. Good information

[@ericablaschke3497]

Island of weakness; I have NVLD but my mother only saw the areas of weakness. She was fixated on testing evaluations remediations. My life focused around these testing making me feel abnormal creating a vicious cycle and creating more problems. She focused and fixated on what I couldn’t do not what I could do. In the 1980’s and early 90’s NVLD was not conceptualized

[@tikipharm5957]

Fyi I really think that NVLD is heritable. I found that I have it shortly after I discovered one of my children has it. I always knew what that child's issues were instinctively. I did not dump my issues outward. Instead, I tried mightily to keep up. My child did dump his issues outwardly in the context of misbehavior. My other children have elements of it. My parents both had elements of it.

[@marcellahayward4064]

Now after watching this I understand exactly what's going on with me. It was noticed when I was around 5 y.o. I would only walk up and down stairs, not alternating my feet. I would step down/up the step with my left foot then bringing my right foot up/down onto the same step my left foot landed on. Was weak on my left side in hockey to this day I still feel akward doing crossovers to the left stuff like that

[@marly-5995]

I had the exact same thing when i was younger! as I got older i got rid of it and i dont even notice it now ^^''

[@SandraPanda11]

why is NVLD not included in the dsm-5? How do you get full support and resources for children who have this disorder in school?

[@cindyeisenberg8367]

I can drive a car. But, crossing the street is very difficult. So, I wait until I have enough time to get across. People will honk at me. I get confused between left and the right. I get lost easily. I wasn’t good at judging space during sports. I don’t remember things people tell me. I can read. But my spelling and math is terrible. I am not street smart. But, I am better. I talked way too much. I asked if I was on the spectrum. But, was told that I have some cognitive problems due to my schizoaffective disorder. I don’t have the trouble that my high functioning nephew has. I also have adjusted to my learning problems. I have problems with my memory and following directions. As my disorder progressed my memory has gotten worse. So, sometimes some of these learning disabilities can be caused by schizoaffective disorder or schizophrenia. I get stressed out easily when there’s too much going on at one time. But, all of this is part of the delusions and hallucinations I suffer. In the 60’s and 70’s teachers wouldn’t help or wait on you. I still got my associates degree. My schizoaffective disorder causes anxiety that has nothing to do with my learning issues. I was diagnosed with depression for a long time, then bipolar 2 and bipolar 1. Finally in 1999 I was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder. When I have to learn something at work, they have to go extra slow. I was told many times that they couldn’t slow down for me. When I was told that I would be fired. I told my boss that I have schizoaffective disorder and he could get into trouble if he fired me. So, I learned the job. We were all layed off. I cannot find a job now. Because it is too high in stress and nobody wants to go slow to teach me and allow me md appointments say “I am not a good fit.” They want someone to learn quickly and handle stress. My parents gave me the confidence to learn to drive and go to school. However, they didn’t push me to go on I95. I used to bang the car up. A person may need a lot of practice, so as not to bang up the car.

[@zombiemistress52]

How does one get a diagnosis, what doctor do you go to?

[@TheNVLDProjectOfficial]

For a diagnosis, you should go to a neuropsychologist for an evaluation. Check out our website - nvld.org - for more information.

[@chriscummings4202]

As some one with nvld I’m just wondering ranges. Of the disability cause there’s some things. That hit spot on. Like issues with math and science but than. There other things that kinda make me go what that’s not me I have never struggled socially makeing friends and. Reading social cues has always something. That. Has been easy for me as well. As the coordination I’ve always excelled at sports. I even got. A scholarship to play hockey in university but organization has always been. A struggle so it’s like some things. Hit spot on. And thers others that just don’t make sense I’m just really curious about the ranges and is possible for it to differ from person to person thanks

[@Floweroftheprairie2720]

I don’t really understand why these are called learning disabilities when they encompass all of life not just learning. Wouldn’t it seem ridiculous to say that someone on the spectrum “only” has a learning disorder?

[@NeighborhoodOfBlue]

It seems more like a developmental disability and should be included as a neurodiversity. I have ADHD and autism, but it never quite explained some things that I'm not realizing are NVLD.

[@lorraineh6460]

There's the ADA and then there's what happens in the real world. Employers are not obligated to hire disabled people and if they do, they are only required to make "reasonable accommodations," for their disabilities. "Reasonable Accommodations," is so vague as to be ridiculous! And employers can fire a disabled employee if they decline and cannot perform the duties they were hired to do.

[@elijahschwarz5829]

Some interpret NVLD as a form of Asperger's Syndrome or Autism Level 1. Many people with NVLD also have AD and vice versa. Sometimes a person with NVLD will be considered to have Asperger's Syndrome if a different expert looks at their data. Personal bias can influence a diagnosis. Getting a second opinion might be useful for some people, especially those with the sensory processing issues associated with the autistic spectrum. "Messy handwriting" is a sign of NVLD, however, "messy handwriting" can sometimes be the result of a CBT or ABA instructor forcing a child to write with their non-dominant hand. "Lack of spatial awareness" and "accident-prone" can sometimes be a convenient excuse for abusive parents or instructors. Not being able to see these details and only looking at the general concept is a weakness a lot of neurotypical people have. www.aane.org/aspergers-disorder-non-verbal-learning-disabilities-two-disorders-related/

[@tikipharm5957]

I am going to address my lack of visuo-spatial capabilities, including height sickness, with neuro-optometry. I hope it helps.

[@TheNVLDProjectOfficial]

We are hoping it will be included within a year. We have funded research to have it included. You can email us at [e-mail] and we can try to help you find some resources.

[@juanrodriguez1003]

can someone with nvld go to college and finishe it?

[@eabyars]

I did! I wasn't diagnosed til yesterday at 34. This is the first video I have watched about my disorder :)

[@eabyars]

@Rosalie Côté I drive pretty well! I'm fortunate that I have athletic abilities. It's very difficult for me to focus enough so I can use them, but driving is one of those things. Message me if you wanna zoom and talk about it!

[@MartianInDisguise]

Yes, I have a Master's degree and am currently pursuing a second Master's.

[@MartianInDisguise]

@Rosalie Côté try the DriveFocus app. It was created by an occupational therapist and helps you by teaching your eyes to prioritize certain items as you drive (e.g., by clicking on a pedestrian before a stop sign, because it is more important to notice a pedestrian before a stop sign). drivefocus.com

[@marcellahayward4064]

I'm going back again for a second time to college for vet tech and hoping to bridge over to full dvm