FAMILY DYNAMICS
The emotional energy that comes from parenting a child with dyslexia is captured, right here, in this section. It is the demonstrative side of the book. It is about issues that affect the immediate family. Parents speak out about their spouses, their non-dyslexic children, and school run-ins. Siblings talk openly about their parents, their dyslexic brother or sister. They are the family dynamics and fall into two sections:
1 Parent Interviews
2 Sibling Interviews
Parent Interviews
How do parents work through this LD maze? How does it impact the immediate family? And where does school fit in all of this? I couldn't include all of what parents said. That would have taken up three volumes. What I've come up with is a smorgasbord and I've grouped the interviews as follows:
Crisis Strikes
When parents first find out their child has dyslexia, some are in shock, anger, or in denial; others are confused or relieved. Only a few anticipate it!
Working Through It
Here, stories touch on family feelings and, in particular, who is on-board and who is paddling a second boat. This is followed by turbulence in school, with stories that outline what is being said by educators, and how either a common meeting ground or deadlock develops. Finally, there are a couple of stories on cultural roadblocks.
We Finally Made It
This is definitely the warm-and-fuzzy section, but the stories aren't without trauma. Parents talk about the long journey-kindergarten through high school-and then college.
The following parent interviews give you an idea of how parents handle the breaking news, how they cope or don't cope with this "additional" baggage, and if there's light at the end of the tunnel. Parents have powerful thoughts on their spousal reaction to dyslexia. Some partners are united, others polarized, and still others bury their heads in the sand, hoping the "D" word will go away, that the bad dream will soon end. Parents also have strong opinions about their teacher-parent relationships.
Sibling Interviews
"Are you younger or older than your dyslexic sibling?" Siblings' responses reveal that attitudes are absolutely dependent on birth order. Some say: "My sibling has dyslexia and it worries me" while others say "and that's OK." Age and gender also contribute to their responses. Here, children and young adults have strong opinions about the way parents handle the LD situation, and how the family structure adapts to the learning-difference child. I hope you can relate to these stories and learn from families. For now, though, let's turn to the parent interviews in "Crisis Strikes."