Dyslexia in adulthood is often something the individual does not know they have. If you grow up with this lifelong condition you have no way of knowing your reading processes may be different. Typically, dyslexics may end up with low self-esteem and believe they lack intelligence because they could not keep up with their peers at school. As an adult with dyslexia, every application form or instruction manual becomes scary.
Dyslexia has very little to do with intelligence. If you have dyslexia then yes, the condition presents different challenges that you have to adapt to. Don't let it hold you back though. Many successful people who have similar problems like Winston Churchill, Albert Einstein, Richard Branson have refused to let go of their dreams. Dyslexics are just as likely to become as successful as highly skilled readers but they may have to do some things a bit differently.
Symptoms of dyslexia are not limited just to reading, but also affect other processes such as writing, spelling, comprehension and several more. As an adult, diagnosis may be more difficult as many dyslexics learn how to compensate for their problems over the years.
Recent popular opinion is that dyslexics are more creative and will excel in this field. However, published scientific evidence does not seem to support this theory. Such a viewpoint may be due to the media mentioning it frequently. Proportionally, creativity in dyslexics is probably similar to a non-dyslexic population.
A popular and supported theory when diagnosing an adult dyslexic, is the observation of much slower reading speeds; both in silent reading and when reading out loud. Having a professional diagnosis is the best way forward, as until you know what your specific problem is, you will not properly understand what has been happening or be able to get the proper help. Honestly, it's a bit of a 'lightbulb' moment. If you are put off by a one-to-one assessment, don’t be. Yes, it will be hard and it is likely to feel embarrassing, but doing this will help you move on. If you prefer. to take an online dyslexia test for adults first. If you are worried you don't have dyslexia this can give you a strong indication that you are likely to be dyslexic without the embarrassment. To get a decent test, you will need to pay for it though. You should then follow this up with the formal test in the knowledge that you are very unlikely to be wasting anyone's time or money.
Not only can you get treatment for dyslexia that is related to your specific difficulty, you can get extra help in terms of extended exam times, financial help for educational equipment such as computers and get help in finding your best learning style of which there are many. Even if you weren't dyslexic, many people could benefit from ideas on personal learning styles.
You can find out a lot more about an online dyslexia test for adults as well as a range of other symptoms of dyslexia at www.testfordyslexia.org.


