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Anxiety is a mental health condition that affects as many as one in five of us – but these numbers veer to the side in those of us who are neurodiverse, and the figure is assumed to be more likely around half in the neurodiverse community. And although it takes many forms and can have myriad stimuli, many unrelated to educational experiences – and not all anxiety has stimuli or trigger points at all - a lot of people with dyslexia begin talking about their lived dyslexia experience by describing how they felt anxious in a school environment.
The world is changing, and thanks to powerful advocacy messaging, better information and the digital learning revolution, assistive technology and reading support is becoming a much more accepted and accessible part of classroom life. Changes are happening in the workplace too, and although it’s a long road and we’re likely not even halfway there, things are moving in the right direction and we’re really beginning to understand just what amazing skills neurodiverse people can possess.
But this still doesn’t account for how we support the mental health aspects of dyslexia too – text-to-speech tech, screen reader apps, reading windows and in-person support might be great at helping people read with more confidence, but what do we do about the impact that reading struggles can have before they’re diagnosed and supported? And what do we do if that anxiety persists past intervention, or even happens as a result of interventions – nobody likes to feel different or singled out when they’re in school or college, and having an adult sit with you to assist with reading, or having to take exams in a different environment can for some young people lead to anxiety around relationships with their peers.
Education and Dyslexia’s ‘Shadow Side’
As we saw yesterday, we still need to work on how we address the ‘shadow side’ of dyslexia in education. This is the mental health and anxiety side of dyslexia that often gets forgotten about in talk of reading supports and text-to-speech tech, but is no less important in the lived dyslexic experience and needs the same amount of consideration and support.
Adding reading aids into the mix at any age or level is a fantastic way of opening doors to world of reading and the world of education in general, and it’s amazing to see it becoming more widespread and accepted all over the world, not just in our home countries. It’s also great to see that tasks like reading aloud to the class and on-the-spot spellings are being acknowledged as unfair to people who are neurodiverse, and phased out in favour of supported tasks, collaborative work and even gamified learning.
But more attention needs to be paid to the underlying mental health of people with neurodiversities too, especially in education – anxiety can be a powerful and potent force to overcome especially in education systems that rely on standardised testing, and it can be just as disruptive to learning as the on-paper difficulties in reading and writing that dyslexia can manifest as.
What can be Done in School?
Some educational establishments consider a mental health check-in system a vital part of their neurodiversity support systems, and this could go a long way as to ensuring that students with dyslexia who do struggle with anxiety have the ability to talk to a trusted professional, whether this is an in-house SENCO or they’re referred to an external councillor or a therapist. There are also therapy specialists who focus on the idea of neurodiversity and can go some way as to exploring root anxieties, and how best to manage them whilst somebody is still in an environment like the classroom where the stressors are a presence. This is a strategy we might expand to the world of work, too – mental health support is important at every part of the life course, and making sure that neurodiverse employees feel supported and secure external to their physical reading ability is important too.
Reading alone may feel intimidating in general to a student with dyslexia, and that’s why it’s important to give them as much choice in their solo reading style as possible. Create reading-for-pleasure environments where books are up-to-date and interesting, but don’t force students towards them. And if possible, make sure that there are different kinds of reading supports on offer – text-to-speech technology is one thing, but items as simple as a reading window, a bookmark or a Toobaloo phone can also make all the difference, and it’s important for learners to know that they can pick from a wide range of options to find the one that works best for them. And try to have staff on-hand to help out, as well – reading alone fosters independence and helps build confidence, which can provide a boost when it comes to beating anxiety, but sometimes a helping hand might make all the difference too.
Another way of shining a light on dyslexia’s shadow side in education is inviting neurodiverse learners to take part in the dialogues on procedures that directly have an effect on the way they study, and identify any anxiety pain points. This allows education decision-makers to explore other angles and make sure that a certain element of everyday learning isn’t a major stress site for neurodiverse students, and manage anxiety in ways that reduce the external stimuli that can prompt these feelings of anxiety. If a certain teaching method- such as having to present to the class, or reading aloud- is causing anxiety, then it can be worked around if students have a forum to make their concerns known in. Not all students feel confident or have fun in the same things, and it’s important to not take a ‘one size fits all’ attitude towards activities.
A further way to help manage anxiety in dyslexic and neurodiverse students is making sure that their points of contact- their teachers, classroom assistants, SENCOs- are confident in exploring mental health with them. It’s also helpful if it’s ensured that these staff aren’t time-poor and are available to step in to assist neurodiverse students without this having a compromising effect on their ordinary workload, too. Mental health support in education is a two-way street in that students need to be confident enough in their support network to reach out when they feel like they need support, and staff need to feel that they’ve had adequate time, experience and support on their end to go forward into these conversations with their students. This means training and professional development are the order of the day, and ensuring that staff are in a position to be able to have these conversations, and pick up on when extra external assistance might be needed.
Mental Health Matters
The thinking at the core of all of these ideas is creating an all-school focus on mental health and taking it seriously. Promoting ideas of mindfulness and create an environment where students are comfortable coming forward with their feelings is important. And making sure that staff are equipped and able to offer them the right kind of guidance is important too, and usher them with parental support towards medical professionals and therapists if the situation requires it.
Dyslexia and anxiety have a complex relationship. It’s an unfortunate fact of life that feeling different in any way can have an impact on somebody’s mental health and be the cause of stress and anxiety in a school environment, and when it’s something as intrinsic to our daily lives as reading, it’s a powerful force for some of us with literacy differences. It’s important to remember that just because a learner now has access to a reading support, it doesn’t mean that they’re feeling supported in all the aspects of living with and managing their early relationship with their dyslexia. And that’s where anxiety- both reading-related and generalised- might begin to take root.
But there are actions we can take, and as a society, we’re slowly taking them. We live in a world that’s waking up to the importance of mental health considerations, and it’s fantastic to see that so many schools, colleges and universities are taking steps to promote a healthier relationship with our minds – and although we’ve still a way to go, it’s likely that each generation that goes through the education system will be better supported than the last in their neurodiversities and differences.
