S2E28: Building Resilience and Self-Confidence in Dyslexic Children, with Bridgett Burrick Brown

If you're feeling the frustration of watching your child struggle in school and feeling like there's no way out, then you are not alone! Maybe you've tried extra tutoring or pushed harder, but the results just aren't showing. It's time to explore a new approach to supporting your child with dyslexia. Let's find a better way together.

In this episode, you’ll be able to:

• Discover effective strategies for supporting children with dyslexia and helping them thrive.
• Explore the impact of dyslexia on self-esteem and learn how to empower your child to build confidence.
• Uncover practical learning strategies tailored to help dyslexic children succeed academically.
• Gain insights into dyslexic awareness and education to advocate for your child's needs in school and beyond.
• Learn about the benefits of specialized schools for dyslexia and how they can provide personalized support for your child's learning journey.

My special guest is Bridgett Burrick Brown.

Bridgett Burrick Brown, the founder of Beyond Beauty Project, is a prominent dyslexia advocate and mental health enthusiast. Her personal experience as a dyslexic individual, coupled with her role as a parent of a dyslexic child, provides a unique and empathetic perspective on the challenges associated with dyslexia. Through her work, Bridgett offers practical insights and strategies for navigating the impact of dyslexia on self-esteem, making her a valuable resource for parents seeking to better understand and support their dyslexic children. With a focus on fostering awareness and education around dyslexia, Bridgett's contributions to the dyslexia community are both informative and impactful.

Transcript:

00:00:00
Welcome back to Word Blindness. Dyslexia Exposed. I'm Juliet Hahn, here with my co host, Bridgett Sopol in October 2024, Dyslexic Awareness Month. Oh, look at you go. Yes.

00:00:13
And so we're setting up. Go, go, go. Do you want to say then do you want to say the next part? B Boy Bob Boat. Bridgett Burrick Brown.

00:00:27
Yes. So Bridget will love that. So Bridgett Burrick Brown, our October Dyslexic Awareness Month 2023, we're bringing her back for the last episode, wrapping up Dyslexic Awareness Month. And she's with Beyond Beauty. Beauty Project.

00:00:43
I know. There's so many bees. Way too many. Hang on, is that five beast? Bridgett Burrick Brown, Beyond Beauty.

00:00:51
Yeah, five and P. Right. So the last is P. Yep.

00:01:00
So enjoy. I wonder what you are. Bye. Welcome back to Word Blindness. This is still Dyslexia Awareness Month and we are bringing guests to share their story.

00:01:14
And I'm so excited to have Bridgett Burrick Brown. I always like, stutter that. Way too much for me. Way too much. So sorry.

00:01:23
Too many bees. Too many bees. And then Beyond Beauty Project, which Bridget is the founder and that is a movement to help improve your self esteem, conf and body image through mental health. And mental health is something that Bridgett is. I mean, it's what he embodies and what he is teaching and speaking through his foundation, the Bridgett Sopel foundation, which is the dyslexic foundation.

00:01:46
But it all stems from this mental health. And so when I was thinking of guest for this, I all of a sudden said, I actually said to Hahn, I was like, oh, my God, I think Bridget would be perfect for this. And Hahn goes, wait, what? I didn't know Bridget was dyslexic. And I go, what are you talking about?

00:02:02
I go, remember, like we've talked about this. And he's like, oh, I kind of do remember this. And I said, that was one of the things that we connected after we connected, connected. And then we really started talking about it. And I have to say, Bridget is literally one of the most beautiful souls inside and out that I've ever, ever met.

00:02:22
And I could actually get choked up about it because what she's doing in this space. But her story, she's been on my podcast and her story, every time I think about it, I actually get emot. Because what she has been through and the warrior that she has come to the other side and the people that she helps with her project and the people that just get to be around her is really A beautiful thing. So welcome to Word Blind. Word blindness.

00:02:47
Another bee.

00:02:51
That message that you just said. Yeah, I'm not going to cry. I'm hardened soul. But that inner beauty is the most beautiful thing. And that's, you know, that self esteem is everything for me, you know, and yeah, it comes.

00:03:06
Starts from the inside out. And that self esteem, that self confidence. So, you know, when. When I watched some of your stuff and she told me what. What you're doing, I'm like, that.

00:03:16
That's. That's exactly. I'm Mr. Negative. You'll.

00:03:19
You'll learn that quickly here, you know, Mr. Ms. Positive over here. But it's, you know, it's amazing. It's.

00:03:25
I always say, you gotta fall in love with yourself. You look in the mirror and you gotta say, I love. You know it, feel it, and believe it. Yes, 100. I couldn't agree more.

00:03:35
Thank you guys so much for having me. I'm really excited to chat. I'm. I'm excited too. And I love.

00:03:40
I love this stuff. No, I know. And. Well, that's what I. I said.

00:03:43
And I. And also. And as I've gotten to know Bridgett, and he always says he's negative. He's a realist. He.

00:03:48
I don't consider him negative. Change it too now, though, huh? Come on. I know in the beginning I was like, oh, exactly. But he is a realist, and it's because of his story and what he's been through, and he's another one.

00:04:03
And I'm gonna say he's a beautiful soul too, because he really is. And he does not. Like, people don't see that because they see this ice hockey player, right? This Canadian ice hockey player. But when you get to know him, it's like, oh, my gosh, this man has so much to share, so much beauty inside and outside.

00:04:20
Even though he doesn't feel it, but he really is, again, doing what he's doing and what his whole mission is to help children not feel the way he did going through school and life. And that right there is like, can punch you in the gut because it is truly what he embodies and what he wants to do. So we're really excited to have you on. I love where that comes from, Bridgett, because I was just on this, like, mastermind group before we jumped on, and people were talking about why they do what they do. And this one guy just started kind of riffing about how when he first started, he didn't have, you know, maybe all the education or all the credentials, but he has the passion and this like, higher calling.

00:05:08
And as he started going, I was just like, that, that's mine. Like, I don't have, like the college education. I don't have, you know, the expertise and marketing or whatever, you know, I'm dyslexic. I have ADHD that I just found out about. But, like, I have higher calling that I cannot ignore.

00:05:29
And it gives me chills every day, you know, because I'm like, that's, that's my, my why, you know, And I. Love how you're using the word why. You know, we use that word a lot. Yeah. I'm like, did you guys talk before this?

00:05:46
Because there's always a. There's no such thing as a class clown or a boy. There's a why, you know, But I didn't find out until I was 32. I was dyslexic. So my education probably doesn't take me past grade eight.

00:06:01
You know, Canadian hockey player just passed me, you know, found out, you know, got my daughter tested. Oh, that's me. Dysgraphia, dyscalculia, adhd, dyslexia. Should we keep on going on? What else could we hang on?

00:06:14
You know, thought I was dumb. You know, I still wake up every day today thinking that I'm dumb. And people, God, just don't think that way. I'm like, well, you know, that's kind of how it's deep, you know, and it's trauma. And that's why I am the realist, because I'm not the only one.

00:06:32
You know, we all have trauma. It's funny because whenever I'm. I will totally geek out on like self help stuff. And any time I do an exercise, that's sort of what's the story you tell yourself? Like, what's your limited belief that holds you back?

00:06:52
The very first thing that I say to myself is that I'm stupid. Well, you're stupid, you're dumb, you're not smart enough. And I've learned a lot from my daughter as well. Like, so I don't know if you guys want me to start telling my story. Tell your story?

00:07:09
Should I just die? I know how Juliet does these. She's like diamond. So I grew up with a dad that couldn't read or write because he was severely dyslexic. So that just was kind of always known in our household.

00:07:23
And then both of my brothers were severely dyslexic as well. And then I sort of now, in hindsight, skated by because I wasn't severely Dyslexic. So cut to now. I have a daughter who's dyslexic and she has dysgraphia and dyslexia and ADHD and, you know, blah, blah, blah. And since I've started my project because I worked as a model for a really long time, that can also add another complex onto that.

00:07:53
You're stupid. And so as I started, actually, I always was like, I am smart. Even though I would also tell myself that I'm stupid. It's like I knew. It's like I knew I was, but then I.

00:08:06
No, no, because, like, you know, people have been telling me, or, I don't know, a combo people and myself telling. Telling myself that I'm stupid. But now that I've started my project and had to actually write and read and do all these things, I'm like, wow, I am smart. I am smart. But I still will go back.

00:08:34
I regress all the time. Like, I can be in a room with people that all have a college degree and I'm like, oh, God, I'm so stupid. I'm so stupid. You know, it's just like. It's like a constant, like, healing process, you know, getting out of that.

00:08:47
We all went. We all went to D1 school. School of hard knocks. Yeah. Yep.

00:08:54
You know, it's made us who we are. Good, bad, or indifference. And, you know, I never think I'm smart. You know, I always hated when people said that because what's the opposite of smart? Dumb.

00:09:07
That's what we were told for in four years, you know, And I'm the Canadian, you know, kind of like the model. I'm the dumb hockey player. Been fighting, knocked out. I got no idea what I'm talking about. And it's just our brains are so different.

00:09:22
People look at me like, dude, you're a whack job. I'm like, I know I am, but I'm the only whack. Am I the only one job here? You know, so it was always isolating. I never connected with anybody, you know, was I the class clown?

00:09:39
Yep. Was I the bully? Yep. You know, they laughed at, you know, we can go on and on of that trauma and why I have a million defense mechanisms and. Yeah, well, sober I was.

00:09:55
Almost all the drugs I did, alcohol, I love it. Escape from this body in my mind. Yes, please. Yeah. And I listen to Juliet, you know, call me crying because she hates school and her kids are always five minutes late to only school.

00:10:11
It's true. Only school, five minutes late. So Bridget, you know, it's interesting is there's so many things now that. Doing this podcast, but also even starting the podcast, you know, your next stop. When I started that, and then talking about my story, my life, right?

00:10:27
And I was always like, oh, I'm good with that. I've healed. You know, I'm doing these things. But again, yes, we. We give ourselves that narrative when we're in certain situations, right?

00:10:36
We give that narrative that we're stupid or we become that class clown again. I was always the funny one. I was always the funny one. I still. I mean, I am funny.

00:10:47
I'm hilarious. He's the funny one. We all have to have one. I'm pretty funny. You are funny, right?

00:10:56
So. But it's interesting, even in our adult world, when we're put in situations where all of a sudden it's like, oh, wait, what are they talking about? I'm going to, like, I'm going to skirt out or I'm going to change the subject or I'm going to do something. And it's so interesting to feel it as we go. And every year during school, like, the beginning of school, I get this massive anxiety.

00:11:18
When Montgomery was in Southport, I didn't. But every time, I get this, like, crazy, crazy, crazy anxiety. But I don't kind of always correlate it with school and my traumas, right? I always think, like, I just want it to be. I want the teachers to understand.

00:11:33
I don't want him to get, like, shit on, right when he gets. And I also get the anxiety for the other two. But it's very different, right? It's this whole thing. And this last year, Bridgett had called me, like, right before school, he's, how you doing?

00:11:45
And I. I like. I mean, hormones were involved, too. Let's. Let's be frank.

00:11:50
But I literally. And I was like, oh, I'm so sorry. I literally just lost it. And I was like, I just want to protect. I mean, he's a senior in high school, and it's like, I just don't want.

00:12:02
My senior year was a tough year because I was. I was getting recruited for lacrosse, and I couldn't get my SATs up. And it was all this, like. The guiHahnce counselor was telling me, you're not going to go to school. You're dumb.

00:12:11
You know, all these different things. And it's like, God, I really thought I was over that. I'm going to be 50 this year. What the F. Right?

00:12:19
But it is. And so. And it was funny because Bridgett's like, you've been Doing this all the time. He's like, I've. I could feel it.

00:12:25
Like, every time I talked with you, I could feel. Because he's also super intuitive. I could feel your anxiety starting to, like, brew. And I'm like, yeah, I just kind of figured it's like, September, but September takes me down. And I know it's not over.

00:12:38
You know, if Montgomery goes to college, it's going to be that. That time. So it's these things. And every. Every guest that we've had on for Dyslexic Awareness Month, Bridgett, right.

00:12:48
It's. We. We all start talking about something, and then we all can relate. And it's really cool. It's actually so cool to see, but then hearing, you know, someone else tell their story.

00:12:57
Stephen Key, who was. Was on our first guest, he actually was the first time he really openly talked about his dyslexia. And he's this wildly successful inventor. I mean, like, and has written for, like, Entrepreneur magazine and Forbes, like, thousands of articles. Right.

00:13:13
He was one of the people behind Teddy Ruxpin. I mean, like, this man. But hearing him speak about his trauma and how he's really never dealt with it, and then being able to express it, it is these things. It doesn't matter how confident we get ourselves, because we talk about innate confidence in different things. But then you put yourself back in a situation where you're like, oh, my God, I'm sitting in math class, right, in seventh grade.

00:13:38
And it's like, what the fuck? Totally. Yeah. The PTSD around it, you know, that's what you're having, PTSD every time your kid goes. Kids go to school in September, and then it's like they go on to the workforce after college.

00:13:55
But I think some of that comes from our coping methods, like you were saying, Bridgett. Because I know if I can control my situation, then I can sort of protect myself and hide, and I can appear smart, even though I am smart. And I'm really trying to, like, embody that lately. But it's like, as soon as I'm in a situation that makes me feel uncomfortable, it's like all of my shields and my coping mechanisms have, like, disintegrated. And I feel really raw and vulnerable, and I'm freaking the f out.

00:14:37
Like, I'm like, oh, God. Oh, God. I'm having, like, a full panic attack. My word. I will, like.

00:14:41
I don't know if you guys do this with your dyslexia, but I switch my words as I'm talking. Yeah. Flip them. And then I Forget sentences, paragraphs. People like, what the hell is this?

00:14:54
Probably don't even realize. But then I will listen to myself and I'm like, oh, my God, I just did it. Now they know, and now they think I'm stupid. And then that story starts running that I've been working on getting rid of, and I'm like, oh, God. I was.

00:15:07
You're all smart. We're all smart in our own way. You know, you're both beautiful. You're both smart in their own way. It's.

00:15:16
And so is everybody else in the world, you know? Yep. Somebody that's good at algebra, Somebody's good at history, even though history is bullshit and we'll get down the rabbit hole later because nobody was there to see it. And, you know, so everybody's smart in their own way, and that's okay. We all have strengths and weaknesses.

00:15:36
It's okay. Yeah. It's just getting to be okay with it. That's why I love that you guys are normalizing this, because there's so many of us walking around feeling like this and we shouldn't, because it's. It's like, what.

00:15:51
I talk a lot in my project. Like, we don't fit in a box. None of us fit in a box. So let's. Like, you guys are breaking down the walls of that box and saying, like, we're all smart in different ways.

00:16:03
We have different values in different ways. In our self worth isn't defined by this box of, like, you went to college or whatever. You know, you got a certain score on your sat. Like. Like that stuff is going bye, bye.

00:16:19
And this is conversations with no Satan. By the way, people with ADHD are freaking smart as hell. And dyslexia and dysgraphia. Like, my daughter will do a math problem and everything's flipped and upside down. And then she'll tell me the answer, and I'm like, that.

00:16:41
I don't even know how you did that, but you did that. And like, no one else could do that if those numbers were all flipped. That's not somebody that's not smart, you know, so there's this lack of education around it, too, that. I'm glad you guys are getting out. Yeah, we're going down a lot of rabbit holes.

00:16:59
You're touching on every single rabbit hole that her and I go down. You know, I always say that we go in the side door. You know, I got, you know, she's. You know, I can predict things that are gonna happen. People like, what the fuck?

00:17:17
How'd you know that, you know, it's just way things are said. What was said? What was the terminology? You know? And now the question to both you is, does anybody fit in the box?

00:17:30
Because each one of us are special. We're people. So really, if we want to take a, you know, a 10,000 foot view of the world, does anybody fit in a box?

00:17:43
I would say no. But I think people that want to fit in a box think they should fit in the box, have been brainwashed to try the box, or you won't be accepted, come close or try to. But I would say that they're probably not happy. No, totally, no. And I just want to say, you know what's interesting, because this is raising now three kids, one with dyslexia, you know, adhd, dysgraphia, all the dyscalculias, you know, all of that, and then two others that really don't.

00:18:17
Like, maybe there's slight stuff, but nothing like the first. And I have always said, and I just recently, and Bridgett knows this, I've recently had to go back and be like, let me talk to the other two. Because I've built up like, you don't wanna fit in a box. Those people are boring. We're way more fun.

00:18:33
Like dyslexia, adhd. We're fun. People wanna be around us, right? But it is. It's like, we can be that energy.

00:18:40
And so I have had to. And I've actually just recently. And they both were like, you're doing a good job, Mom. You're fine. But I'm like, I just don't want you to feel like, because I'm saying this, that you don't feel like you're worthy because it's only cool to have these things.

00:18:54
Like, and they're like, no, we're aware what you've been doing all these years to lift Montgomery up, you know, and we appreciate it. But I've had to, like, stop. Because it is like, if you meet people that have. And we talk about this all the time, and Bridget, you know, I probably even talked about this when you were on the podcast. The grit.

00:19:13
The grit and the, like, what we get from the struggles and the way that we. All the coping mechanisms. I mean, it is really, really cool to see what we can. Once we're past and we'll get into this, once we can get past that self esteem, right? Like, once it's like, okay, I do accept myself in this body, and I know, okay, I have strengths and weaknesses and limitations.

00:19:36
But then once we get kind of past that and then you really think about how we go around things and we go backwards and on the side, in the side, do and turn our heads upside down. And then we create this thing and it's like, yes, it is really, really cool to see. And it is. It makes for a more well rounded human once they get past and once they're okay. I know.

00:19:58
Bridgett's rolling his eyes at me right now.

00:20:03
What do you have to say about that? What did your daughter say? What did she come back and say earlier? Well, I'm not dyslexic, so I guess I'm not cool. Is that what she said?

00:20:12
Something? Yeah, I mean, it was like it basically when she was little. No, I think it was Truman. He came to me or one of them and said, I want to be dyslexic. You said, everyone that's dyslexic are really cool.

00:20:23
And I was like. Like, this is when they were little. And I was like, oh. And then I was like, oh, I got a backtrack. It's so cute.

00:20:30
But then I was like, oh, no, you're not dyslexic. So. Right. What is that message I'm giving to them? So it was like this kind of mind f.

00:20:38
Right, that I was like, okay, how do I lift this one kid up, but then also lift the other two up? Because they' they're wonderful in their own way. Right. But I'm trying to lift this kid up because of all of the just pounding that he's getting left and right. And I know what that pounding is because I've been there.

00:20:54
So how do you do it? And it's been interesting. And as I said, just like probably a couple days ago, I went to the other two and they were like, yeah, we're very well aware, Mom. We're all good. Yeah, mom, you're a whack job.

00:21:04
You're okay. You know, it's. It's. I always call relatability. You know, relatability is something that I, you know, speak on a lot and on a lot of different, you know, levels.

00:21:14
You know, going to therapist or counselor, you know, whatever. I always say you've got to go to somebody who's had a couple of your major traumas. Yeah. Because if not totally, you know, you're going to counsel, you know, counsel out of page 122, and then you're going to sit and get pissed off. I call it gaslighting because there's no relatability.

00:21:37
You know, it's. Yeah, we all hit. We can Hear. And we can. We can laugh and smile and.

00:21:42
But we all relate, you know, and you sit, talk about our struggles. Everybody's got struggles, you know, that's what makes you who you are. And your modeling career, you made it because your struggles. Nobody makes it on their wins. You, you.

00:21:57
What's the terminology? You need to learn more from your losses and your wins. Yep. What we do every, you know, every day is people take for granted how often we read. Now try struggling every goddamn time and see how you feel at the end of eight hour school day.

00:22:18
Yeah. Yeah. And that's why I hope more awareness is, you know, brought to this too, because I think some people, if they don't have Juliet as their mom, can hide because they don't want to lose. And if we don't lose, we don't move forward. If you don't try ever, like, if you want to move forward, you gotta lose.

00:22:44
It's gonna happen. You know that from hockey, it's like. But if you don't have the Juliet as your mom, that's tough. You know, it can. It can be tough in school still.

00:22:58
I love the other day I was in the car with my daughter and somebody said, why do you go to a different school? And she said, because I have dyslexia. And she said it very like. And I was about to say, oh, because her brain works differently and she has to. You know, I was going to go down this rabbit hole of, like, everyone learns differently.

00:23:17
And she learned, you know, and she was just like, I have dyslexia. So I go to the school. It's really good for me. So that brings up a very good point. You know, so we've Talked about the me, Mr.

00:23:30
Mr. Negative. You know, you two obviously were exposed to dyslexia at a very, very young age. You obviously. Your dad's had it.

00:23:39
Juliet, your dad just brought out, you know, all his files. Bridget. He had his, like, file of, like, all of his. Really? I was like, oh, my God.

00:23:49
I think I was. Well, but I was also like, I think maybe you have some stuff you haven't worked through. So you guys, therapist, you've had understanding of what dyslexia is. You've able to expose and be a positive influence on, you know, on your kids, you know, more than I was for my daughter, because I didn't know what it was, you know, being in Canada, you know, I think less than 20% of the world knows what it is now. Never go back, you know, 20, 30 years ago, I didn't Know what the fucking word was?

00:24:24
So was I there to support my daughter?

00:24:31
No. Because I didn't even know what it was. I didn't know how to support her. I was just. I was still playing like, oh, what's that?

00:24:36
They're like, oh, that's you. I'm like, oh, I don't play. I don't know. I don't care. I don't need to read and play hockey.

00:24:42
But you guys inside your house have had the confidence and the understanding of what it all is and what it all means, you know? You know, growing up so that you can share that confidence in having it, you know, with your kids, more than I have and did with, you know, with my daughter. And it's just recently where I've put a lot of the understanding together. Now, if I could go back 20 years, I almost would almost feel like in place where you guys were or was at that age to exude that confidence so that your daughter. Kids sit there confidently and say that.

00:25:24
Yeah, well, you know what I'm going to say to that? I'm going to say that we all do the best that we can and what we have. And that makes sense. What you're doing now is, like, very inspiring. Yeah.

00:25:40
Does that make sense? Just because your listeners. I always like to take, you know, take a different angle, you know, trying to try and expose all angles so we're not alone. There's nobody else. And how many parents call it crying?

00:25:54
What do I do? Because they just got diagnosed or they didn't know? Where do we go with you? So this is where her and I became the negative and positive for the longest time is, you know, innate confidence, as you like to say, you're born with, but your mom, that's a whole different rabbit hole. But it's.

00:26:20
I didn't have. I didn't. I didn't be. I wasn't okay with my strengths and weaknesses. I wasn't okay till, you know, till just recently.

00:26:28
And, yeah, I've been sober almost just over seven years, and I had to get sober to sit back and feel my feelings. I'm like, I gotta play sober golf and have sober sex the rest of my life. What's this bullshit, you know? Yeah, but it's sitting with those feelings, being okay with it, and having strengths and weaknesses that you guys have passed down to your kids, you know, in ways that are amazing. Oh, well, thank you.

00:26:56
I think Juliet actually taught me the whole strengths and weaknesses as well from your podcast. Do you know that? I do. Like, that's such A good way to look at it. We're not all good at everything, which you kind of know.

00:27:11
But I think we probably flaw ourselves more in society than we should. Like, we think going back to the box, like, we should all get really good grades in school and we should be athletic or we should. And I think with academics, it's really a pressure cooker in a lot of towns where I think the athletics can be like, oh, he's just a talented hockey player. Where it's like, oh, you don't do good in school. Why, you know, are you stupid?

00:27:44
But it's funny how they call you and saying, hey, I didn't know you're dyslexic. How many people you messages you get? Just, just recently. And I was like, I've been talking about it forever. But, like.

00:27:54
And it was a lot of the kids in class, right? So it was like, I had a lot of calls from high school people that were in class together and they, they basically reset. They're like, I guess now it makes sense. We were in the same class, right? But we didn't realize until the podcast that, like, I didn't realize, okay, how, you know, how much you struggled in school.

00:28:14
Because I again, I played sports, I hung, you know, I was popular. I had this. But then I was going to all the lower level classes, so I was with mostly boys that were in trouble. And it was like, oh, here comes Juliet again. You know, so it was like, you know, I was like the dumb girl jock.

00:28:32
Which when I look back at now, that kind of was like, all right, you know, we all had our labels. And I was like, I don't. I don't really like this label, but like, you know, what do you do? I was, you know, the class clown, dumb girl jock that, no, she's not very good in school, but put her on field, you know, so that's what my teachers would say to me all the time. Like, just if you worked and focused like you do on the sports field or like you do with your friends, you would be successful in school.

00:28:57
You're not putting the effort in. You're not doing it. You're not focused. I would get that all the time. You're not focused, you're not focused.

00:29:03
Yeah, but so I have something for Bridget, though, because this is like when she was explaining, because I know my younger sister went through something similar, but she's not dyslexic. But she struggled in school, but she didn't struggle as much as us. So she was always like, oh, you're fine. Right? You're fine.

00:29:22
And like, later in life, she was like, mom, I wasn't fine just because I wasn't failing. So how did that. Because both of your brothers and your dad. And it was like. It probably was a breath of like, oh, my gosh.

00:29:33
Okay. She's okay because she's not as dyslexic. But it was like, how. Because that can eff you up in many different ways, too. Because it's like, okay, I'm not struggling as much as them, but school's still hard for me.

00:29:46
Yeah. So I think that because my brother had such a hard time that my mom was like that. Like, oh, she's fine. She's fine. And I somehow I did okay.

00:30:01
I got very scrappy. I'm not going to say there wasn't cheating, was never involved. Like, I got real. I was. Because I am.

00:30:12
It's funny, even though we started this by. I say, the first thing I go to is, I'm dumb. I also have this, like, innate belief, like you said, that I am really smart. I'm smart in those ways of, like, reading the room. I'm crazy intuitive.

00:30:25
Like, I. I know exactly what's going on in two seconds, you know? So I think those sort of, I guess, innate skills that I had really helped me in school. But I was just talking to my twin brother because I was home this weekend, and I was like, you know what? Cause he used to always be like, you cannot focus for anything.

00:30:46
And every. It was always in my house. Like, I was the stupid one. Even though I could read, which is a joke. I could joke with you guys, but it was like.

00:30:56
Because they. Then my brothers were really smart at math and I wasn't. And I flipped my numbers a lot now that I've learned. So I would come to math and I'd be like, what the heck? You know?

00:31:07
So I was kind of still a little bit like, oh, Bridget. Like, you know, or she can't focus or she doesn't know how to do math or she doesn't know how to do computers. Like, we had gotten computers because I'm, you know, at the age where you didn't have computers when you're little. And so I just told him. I was like.

00:31:24
And it felt so good, to be honest. I was like, you know, I just recently finally got an actual ADHD diagnosis. So all those years that you've been making fun of me. But I will say so to answer your question. Sorry, I'm going on a tangent.

00:31:39
No, you're good. To answer your question, I think that if it's not severe, I think you can fly under the radar, especially if there's multiple kids. That's exactly what happened with me. And I think I got scrappy and I started almost having this, like, dirty little secret. Like, you know, like I have a dirty little secret that, like, I got a good.

00:32:06
You know, I got a pretty good grade point and I got a good grade, but I was like, I have no idea how in the hell I got that in a way, at the ending. And what happened over the years is I had this internal dialogue where maybe people on the outside might think I'm smart or put together, but I'm actually really stupid. I'm really dumb. You know, I don't know how to do it. And I think that's how it started affecting my self esteem.

00:32:36
And it started affecting me, like, even socially and stuff. Because as I would talk to people, even about politics or whatever world event was going on, it's like, I got really, like, what if I don't know all the data and what if I flip it in my head and you know, So I think, yeah, I think I love the school that Scarlett's at now because I only knew severe dyslexia besides myself now. And there's kids that just. And I'm like, oh, God, if I would have gotten the help that they're getting you guys, I could be the President of the United States. Wow.

00:33:20
I know, I know, I know, I know. Yes, she could. Yes, she could. I always joke with my husband. I'm like, if I would have gotten a dyslexia and ADH diagnosis when I was little, you would.

00:33:33
It would just be out of control. This would be out of control. No, but you know what you just said, which is so funny because I've. My tagline is that I could interview, like, what? I love that you said this is now.

00:33:44
Everyone said it. We're so intuitive and so, like listeners, when you're listening to this, they're gonna be like, oh, my God. Okay. And we do not talk before, like, so this is like what it is the majority of. Like, if you do a cross section, super intuitive.

00:33:57
Could read rooms. Really good at communicating in many aspects. And I would say, like, I used to interview for jobs because I was also like, super competitive. I'm like, I'm gonna get fucking that job. I'm gonna go get it.

00:34:08
And I would go interview and then I would get into the job and I'd be like, oh, my God, I have no idea. What I'm doing, okay, now I need to find someone in the corporation, just like I used to do in class, that's gonna be able to support me because I'm not gonna be able to do this. And then as I was kind of thinking I was getting found out, I'd be like, I'm gonna go move to the next job. And I am going. And I'm going to be interviewing.

00:34:28
And I used to say I could interview to be the President of the United States. Even though, like, who wants to be the president? Says I don't know who, but like, but I could do that. I could literally interview and then be in the role and be like, okay, no idea. Because I know how to read people.

00:34:42
I know how to read a room. I know how to sell myself in a good way. Not on the corner.

00:34:53
I mean, I probably would be pretty. Work on the corner. No, it's funny, I just wonder like, gosh, where would I be? Like, where would my confidence be? Like, I've had to work really hard in my adult life to cultivate a confidence that kind of I think I had when I was younger.

00:35:12
It's like you have that like 8 year old confidence or that kid confidence. And as I grew older and I started sort of feeling like, oh, like, don't let anybody, like find me out kind of. I think my confidence got beat down. Got beat down. And so I always just wonder like, gosh, where, you know, would I have had that bout of depression?

00:35:35
The what if games. The what if games, yeah. So I think anybody listening, like, sometimes it's hard to like say that our children need help, but it's the most beautiful gift that we can give them is stopping and saying even if they need a little bit of help, I just think it's a game changer. Every kid needs help. We all know all we, we all need help.

00:36:02
And you know, you talked about getting, you know, skating by and getting figured out, but there's so many different levels to dyslexia. You know, some don't know our lefts and our rights, fine motor skills. You know, there's just so many different levels to this. And when you talk about confidence, either, you know, my highs are so high and my lows are so low. So in hockey, you know, I'd have four or five, six, seven great games.

00:36:36
But one thing that I'm down for weeks, or, you know, there's an email on my email box. I'm afraid to open it up, I'm afraid what it's gonna say. Text message I'm afraid what that's gonna, you know, say. So it's, you know, my self esteem getting never connected with anybody. It was, you know, and I never really.

00:37:02
Nobody's ever kind of reached out to me from school because I was a jock, you know, I put my name on it and I'd, you know, 50% was passing perfect. My mom did all my homework, so I didn't get, you know, found out or I got called stupid all the time. But, you know, I was, I was the jock. But there's so many things that go into dyslexia that we can. Our defense mechanisms are amazing.

00:37:30
Absolutely amazing. You know how we can get around Juliet, Would you say that red pencil. You'd break off the red pencil in Latin class. That's the only way I. Because I failed every foreign language.

00:37:43
I mean, now we know that dyslexic should not be taking foreign language that came from Yale. And so I fight for that for my kid. But I literally, in Latin class, because it was the last one, my older sister took it, who was really good in school. Not my oldest, but my sister that was adopted was really good in school. And she's like, it's so easy.

00:37:59
I literally went in there and I was like, oh my God, how am I going to do that? So I basically, you did your test and then the teacher would give you a red pen to correct it. So I'd break the red tip off, break a regular pencil off, put the regular pencil in the red pen, and then write the answers. And that's the only way. And I think, but however, I only, like, passed.

00:38:19
But I only passed with the D because we were talking about this the other day. I think I passed. But I could have, I think during family circumstances. My one sister gave my parents a really hard time. My parents had gotten divorced, and so I didn't want to upset the apple cart at one point.

00:38:37
So I think I like, cheated just enough because I looked back and I was like, well, clearly I didn't cheat well enough. Like, I did not have very good grades. Where, like, I know some people that were like, oh, I cheated my whole way through. And they had like A's and B's. And I'm like, I had seasonds.

00:38:50
I guess I like, kind of cheated. I don't know. But I was very creative in it. But that's. Wouldn't that be staying under the radar?

00:38:57
Well, maybe that's what I was doing. Let's say that instead of I like under the radar better, I was like. I Didn't cheat all the time either, because I was, like, not gonna be that risky. But when I needed to, I figured out a way. Right.

00:39:13
Like looking at your friend's paper and then realizing that you can't see and being like, tell me the answers. I can't see. I can't see. They're, like, covering their paper. I hated that.

00:39:23
See, it's funny. You guys talk about school. I don't remember any. Any. I don't remember any.

00:39:27
Anything. You know, it's. Did you black it out? Yeah. You know, your brain is the most powerful part of your body.

00:39:33
You know, you can make it tell you whatever you want. And do I remember certain things? Yeah. I remember my traumas. You know, picking up a desk in grade three and throwing at a kid, you know, grade nine, getting laughed at, you know, in front of the class.

00:39:47
Well, I don't remember much about schools. I don't remember cheating. I don't. I remember my mom doing most of my homework, or I'm doing a headstand in the kitchen while she's doing it and. And telling me that, you know, focus, because I just don't want to do it because it was the most painful, agonizing thing.

00:40:03
I'd rather break a million bones that I did. You know, I stay awake for surgeries. There's no pain. You know, I've played back out of place there. Every bone I broke in hockey, I finished a game.

00:40:15
You know, there was no pain that was that severe compared to the internal pain that I felt all those years in school. Yeah. Wow. That's a powerful way to say that. You know, it's.

00:40:32
It's like what's inside of our head can just really.

00:40:37
That's a beautiful place.

00:40:43
Thank you, God. You got Juliet to speak. You positive? I was gonna say it can be a very beautiful place. Right?

00:40:49
Yeah. I mean, yeah, our head is. Can be a hard place to live in. You know, the self doubt. Did your mom or your parents growing up, did they not know about ADHD or dyslexia?

00:41:04
He never even heard the word until he was 32. He was like, what is this? Yeah. So remember God? God's country school?

00:41:11
Never, I guess, is Canada a little less. Are they a little behind when it comes to. We had an igloo and sled dogs. Yeah. So it's okay.

00:41:22
Yeah. Like, where did you live in Canada? No, I speak Canadian. I mean, listen, with my brother, it was still very, like, you know, he had to go to the special classroom and, you know, they handle it much better. Now, but they.

00:41:39
So the school never said anything. So I just, you know, I'm from, you know, Montana, North Dakota border, you know, go north, you know, Saskatchewan, God's country. It's snowing there right now, so minus 15 in the winter. Amazing place. I watch your dog run away for three days.

00:41:56
But it was. I went to school, kindergarten to grade eight, you know, all in one. So there's no middle school or junior high that you have. And, you know, the only computers we played Oregon Trail. And I hated when my wheel broke and I got, you know, I had to get, you know, little deer.

00:42:12
That's only food I could get. But there was no. No understanding, like, there was no computers is, you know, calling cards. So it's. It's still, to this day, majority of the people that I speak with think dyslexia is just flipping your B's and D's and I'm like, that's 5% to it.

00:42:34
So in Canada, the whole world's behind, you know, way behind on dyslexia. No clue, you know, being the second most popular thing. So it's. You know, we don't blame my parents. I don't blame the school I went to.

00:42:49
I. My path is my path and got me here, you know, today. But like Juliet said, I didn't know what the word was. I never heard the word till the neuropsychs, you know. Yeah, you said that.

00:42:59
So I'm like, what is this word? I'm like, yeah, spell that where I know the spelling. Yeah. I was so curious, like, you know that. Yeah.

00:43:11
But so. And then Bridgett didn't, like, he was still playing, so it was like, okay, well, I don't need to worry about that. Right? So he never really dealt with it until after the Lee. Like, after he left and then watched his daughter, you know, of course.

00:43:25
What does she need? What does she need? But myself, no, I was still playing hockey. And, you know, I played. So I.

00:43:30
18 years pro till I think I was 39 years old. And then. Then walk away from the gan. I'm like, holy. Now what?

00:43:38
So it was, take care. Make sure my daughter's great. Make sure whatever help she needs. What do we need to do? Is it neuropsych?

00:43:44
Wilson Reedy? JorHahn Gillingham? You know, what was it? You know, ot like, got it for her, you know, she's a senior in college right now, you know, doing. Doing amazing.

00:43:53
But I didn't care about myself, you know, and it sounds bad that way. I wasn't. That. That wasn't a part of my life till I was almost 40, where I needed to use that because I had hockey. And that was again, not writing.

00:44:10
And that's why hockey saved my life. You know, when I was on that ice, I didn't have. I knew I didn't have to read. You know, I've never read a book. I knew I didn't have to answer that mass question so I could just go out there and be there for hours and hours.

00:44:23
That was the only thing I get my self esteem from. So I never got, you know, never left it. So I never cared about focusing or trying to understand it for myself till I almost died with all the amount of drugs and alcohol, had to get sober. And then, then it's like, huh, all right, this is fun. Like, all right.

00:44:44
Thank God for hockey, right? Yeah. Give us. I say it every day. I'm alive because of hockey.

00:44:52
And that's that self esteem that I am so passionate about. So focused on, you know, is that guitar? Is that acting? Is that, you know, and you know, like video games. A lot of parents out there, you know, listen to this.

00:45:08
Self esteem kids get. Some kids like ourselves just like get their self esteem from video games. So can't look at that video game as a video game. So it's analyzing, knowing the situation, knowing your kid. You know, is it basketball?

00:45:22
You know, Kobe Bryant for an example. Kobe Bryant's dyslexic. You know, everybody talks about him working so, working so hard and working so hard because he was dyslexic. He saw it differently. You know, it worked harder than anybody else because he didn't have friends, because he didn't relate with any of the guys.

00:45:40
Just like everybody thought I was a whack job. They all thought Kobe Bryant was same exact, you know, same thing. We didn't relate. We didn't connect with anybody. So what'd we do?

00:45:51
Work. That the only thing we're good at. You guys should have my brother on this show, by the way. Yeah, he was a professional UFC fighter. I feel like Kim and Bridgett would.

00:46:02
Like, oh, you didn't tell me. I do remember now because he. Because I was thinking of him when you were. When you were talking just now, because he really just dove into martial arts and then getting in the ring when he could. And then he went on.

00:46:17
He was like the Sanda world champion kickboxer. And then he went on to the UFC. But no 100. We would love to have him on. Yeah.

00:46:24
You know, in the anger. How much anger did your brother have? You know, you know. A lot of anger. Yeah.

00:46:33
Beat a lot of people up. So guy miss it so much.

00:46:39
I think, like those extreme sports. Sometimes I don't know if there's any data on it when it comes to dyslexia, I would say with adhd, I don't know if my brother has adhd, but there's got to be something with extreme sports. There has to be some sort of connection. Do you guys know anything about that? Well, it's an anger, though, which you, when you talked about it, you know, extremes, you know, how many.

00:47:07
Juliet, how many people, how many guys get in fights, you know, and if we correlate those back, you know, people that like to fight, you know, okay, there's a re. Why there's a reason why, why, why there's an anger in there. You know, there's that class counter bully. So if we actually kind of did the backtrack of it, guarantee, you know, it's that anger that I. I don't connect, that I'm weird, that I'm like this, like that, you know, so it's.

00:47:34
And then all of a sudden you start winning, you know, and it's, oh, I did it. All right. Boom. And then you go a little bit more, and you go a little bit more. And then only I'm finally good at something.

00:47:47
Oh, my God. And then you just keep going and you keep going and there's nothing else. Like there's television because everything else sucks and it hurts and it's pain. So I'm just going to stay down that path of what I'm good at.

00:48:04
Absolutely. I mean, and that's where the strengths and weaknesses, right? I mean, that's where like what we talk to parents about is really finding that thing and not doing all of the after school tutoring. Right? Your kid struggles, but you're like, oh, I can't have them do any after school stuff because I have to get them like, you know, okay in school.

00:48:23
And this is like a lot of times before, obviously the child is diagnosed with dyslexia or any learning disabilities. And I just always think like, that's killing that child. Right? That's killing that child. You have to let them have.

00:48:34
You have to let them run free. You have to let them sometimes walk to school. Right? You have to let them run around the house before they go, have to sit for all those hours. There's so many different things that can be really small that a parent can do.

00:48:47
And especially like if a parent doesn't understand. We talk about this all the time. A Lot of times I have friends that the. You know, it's the husband that has dyslexia or adhd, and they'll come to me, and they're like, I just don't understand it, and it's so frustrating. How do I get this kid to do this and this, and how do I not get frustrated with them?

00:49:04
And, you know, we all have to give ourselves grace, right? Because there's times where we're going to get frustrated, and you can't help it. But it's like, just take a breath and pause and just think, okay, what can I do? Your kid's not gonna ever want to do the homework, right? So, like, how can you make it?

00:49:19
Talk to the teacher, Figure it out. But, like, that's where it's like, we have to do better for these kids because it's just like, we're throwing all of this stuff on them, and everything is about their weaknesses. How do we make you stronger? I mean, I used to go into every IAP meeting. I mean, my.

00:49:33
The listeners know, and Bridgett knows the story. I literally would be like, oh, my God, I'm gonna rip someone's face off if you guys talk one more time about his weaknesses. We all know his weaknesses. He's not going to be a mathematician or a scientist. Our dyslexia, which is kind of interesting, is more on the math.

00:49:48
I mean, that's dyscalculia as well. But our science and math works. Scarlett says as well, we're stronger in history and English, but it's when we're read to, right? It's like when someone can read because it's a story. I could learn a story in every day, but I would literally go in there and say to them, like, you have to, like, stop.

00:50:04
Like, you have to think about, okay, these are the strengths. Let's. Let's uplift them and be like, okay, the weaknesses are here. They're never going to be something like with dysgraphia, right? I remember them being like, he's got to do this.

00:50:15
He's got to do that. And I was like, okay, I've learned a little bit about dysgraphia. Like, my dad has it, and his handwriting is like, what it is. My handwriting is what it is. Like, can we just move past that and figure out another aspect?

00:50:27
Instead of being like, hey, you suck at this letter. Keep doing it. Yes, you have to practice. There is a practice to it, but it's like, you have to know when to cut that and be like, okay, we can do it a Little bit, but not throw it down the kid's throat. Totally.

00:50:42
And also, like, we type now and we use our thumbs for most things. More like our voice. To your point, there is mainstream school is they don't know to look first. Strengths or weaknesses. So, you know, I talk about this all temperatures.

00:51:02
You know, how many of the teachers are dyslexic. You know, how many, like, people don't even know what ADHD is. Dopamine, you know, it's a faucet. You know, we don't get it. You can't yell across the room, you know, so it's.

00:51:16
You're right. It's all about strengths and weaknesses. But in school and in all those classrooms, those people don't even know how to look at it that way. They look at it as, you know, okay, you're an A student, so you're. You got strengths they don't even look at as weaknesses or vice versa.

00:51:35
That's why I really talk about being okay with both, because we all do. If you're not okay with both and you can't, you know, level that off. Oh, yeah, my left leg's stronger than my right leg. Everybody's his. You know, it's.

00:51:49
That's just. We're all focused on one. And I always say that the education piece isn't there to build, to recognize both. And that self esteem, I don't give a flying fuck about a math problem. Close that book.

00:52:03
You know, I talk about self esteem as a gas tank. If it's half a tank, cheap and easy to fill up, but when it's on empty, it's fucking expensive and long to fill up. And sometimes it never, ever fills up. Yeah. Yeah.

00:52:23
Bridget, I would love to also, like, know your path with Scarlett now because I know we had talked kind of when you guys were coming to the realization and the findings, I should say that, you know, that Scarlett was possibly dyslexic and adhd, and we talked about different schools and different methods. Do you want to just like, kind of talk, talk about where you guys are with her right now and where she is? I mean, because anytime I see any pictures that you. I mean, she's just. She just looks like such a free spirit.

00:52:52
Oh, my God, she's so cute. Just this free spirited, happy go. Lucky kid. Which we all know what school can do when you struggle, right? I mean, I have my moments.

00:53:01
My mom remembers, like, a day that I came home and I was like, smushed. And I can remember, like, you know, school shrinking me. But then again, Being that fiery kid that was like, no F, you guys. I'm not going to be smushed again. You know, I'm going to.

00:53:12
But not everyone can do that. So can you give us a little kind of where you guys are with that? You know, what you're comfortable with sharing? Yeah, yeah, of course. So I'm really grateful that I moved her to Windward, which is a school that specializes in dyslexia.

00:53:31
For those of you that don't know, in the second grade, I mean, I think so. I think her confidence was starting to get beat down. And so second grade, you know, we switched schools. We found out that she was dyslexia. As she's been at Windward, we've now found out that she has dyscalculia, too.

00:53:55
And it's worse. She's. The math is much more of a struggle than the English is. Same with yeah, same with. Yeah.

00:54:01
Same with me. And. But I. This is a cool story. So, you know, we definitely struggled last year just with things.

00:54:09
I think there's a lot of anxiety that can come with these learning issues, too. That's probably. We need more awareness around. Because kids, at the end of the day, most of them want to be happy. Like I always say to, like, her counselors, her therapists or teachers, if she's having anxiety or she's upset about something, I'm like, what I can tell you is at the end of the day, Scarlett's happy.

00:54:34
Scarlett's main goal in life is to have fun and be happy. And that's something I just love about her, you know? But she struggled last year with some anxiety, whatever. But. So then cut to the end of the school year was her Hahnce recital, and she loves Hahnce.

00:54:50
I was a big Hahncer Hahncing. I always say, Bridgett saved my life. I always say. Cause it was the thing. I almost went professional.

00:54:56
Like, I just threw myself in there through anything, like bullying, anything that was going on. And so I see her on stage, and this is another thing I think people don't realize when they just think, oh, dyslexia is just flipping your B's and your D's. Dyslexia goes into how you learn choreography in a Hahnce class, how you like, how you do sports. How the hell do you do that? All that processing, you know, how did you hear that?

00:55:23
No, I didn't hear that. And then I'm looking around like. Like, so I see her on stage and multiple other moms, my friends, her people that knew her came up to me and just were like, she was Shining out there. And I watched her in this Hahncer's idol and I just had like, tears in my eyes because I'm like, she's confident. She.

00:55:46
She feels confident right now. It's the first time I had seen her in a really long time because she's been really struggling since she was 3. Feel like I can go out there and I can do this stuff. So. Yeah.

00:56:02
So we're in year two of having this really hands on help. Super lucky. We live by the school. And I think it's incredible. I'm so grateful that I knew about dyslexia to Bridgett's point.

00:56:19
Like, I knew about it for my family. I'm learning a lot about myself. I've learned so much about myself through all of her diagnoses. But she's doing good. Like, I think she's gonna have a road, but I think hopefully if I can keep guiding her to.

00:56:38
Like you said, we have strengths and weaknesses and you're dynamite. You don't have to be the best. I hope one day. She likes to read because I never got. I like to read, but reading is really hard for me.

00:56:52
So now I listen to audiobooks, but I think reading is just such a. It's such a. It's a great way to escape. Like, we all escaped into our sports, right? And it's like, okay, so now that you're older, you're not on the, you know, you're not going to a game and playing or lacrosse or I'm not Hahncing and forgetting that the world exists for those however many minutes or whatever.

00:57:15
And I think, like, movies and books are great ways to escape and they're a great way to learn. So I'm hoping that's my goal. Like, not my goal, but my wish for her is that she just enjoys a book one day. Right now she's like, don't like school, Hate school. Yeah.

00:57:31
Does Montgomery say. Yeah, well, he's. We used to do a lot of audiobooks. So he really young loved, like, and this is his college essay is basically like, I couldn't wait to go to school to learn to read myself because we read to him so much. And then when he realized, because he said he was like, it was like a fantasy.

00:57:48
It was all these different worlds. And my mom was a big reader and I would tell these stories and everything was a story. So he could not wait to be able to do it himself. And then the realization that it wasn't coming is like, you know, such a kick in the pants. Now he.

00:58:00
I mean, he. I probably Shouldn't. I'm not going to actually say what I was going to say on. On this, but the things that he does to get around reading is pretty hilarious. And I actually am like, okay, kudos.

00:58:11
But no, he does not like it. But. However, Penelope is the biggest bookworm. And when she was little, when Montgomery was being diagnosed, she came home from preschool one day and I was like, honey, what is wrong? And she bursted out crying.

00:58:24
She was 4, and she said, I can't read. I think I have dyslexia. And she was seeing what was unraveling in our house where, like, we were stressed. Like, we're trying to figure this out. How can we help Montgomery?

00:58:35
And I said to her, you're not. Well, you're four. You're not supposed to read. There was this kid named George in her class, and she said, well, George knows how to read. And I was like, well, George a weirdo.

00:58:43
She goes, I'll never forget. I go, he's too young. Why does he know how to read? I go, that stay away from George. And it was actually hilarious because then I became friends with the parents.

00:58:54
But she became. She taught herself to read. From that day, she called my mom and was like, you need to teach me. And she is the biggest reader. And I'm gonna say, is here today.

00:59:04
And Bridgett knows this. This is actually hilarious. She comes out the other day. She's like, mom, my favorite book is coming out. It is coming out early.

00:59:10
Like, can I please stay home from school? And now she's a huge sports. And she's really good at it, but what she loves is reading. And I laugh. I like, talk to God about it.

00:59:19
I'm like, really? Because that's how we connect. And I hate to read. So I've had to learn because I'm like, to connect with my daughter. Sports.

00:59:27
We both play lacrosse. She doesn't want to talk about lacrosse. She does not want to talk about any of it. She wants to talk about the books she's reading. So I was like, I have to connect with her, so I have to figure this out.

00:59:36
So she got me involved in a bunch of her chapter books. But she's like, I know you're going to listen. And I. There was like, one that had six, and I literally became so engulfed. Like, I was fascinated by it.

00:59:47
And we would have conversations about it, but it wasn't. It wasn't like, you know, she knows that I have to listen. I can't open the book and read. They're like 500 pages. Like, the Books that she reads and that she can do with such ease is so fascinating to me and that she loves it so much.

01:00:03
Like, I. Well, I will put money on this right now. She'll be a writer and she will probably write like these most beautiful things. Like, she just. And it's fantasy stuff, so it's just really, really cool.

01:00:14
But so I have the extremes. I have literally the two extremes on either end, which is fascinating. Wow. Yeah, that's really cool. Books.

01:00:24
Get it away from me. 14th floor. Let me jump out, read a book. Never. Wait, what about.

01:00:32
What about audiobook? No. I've tried to get him to. I've tried to get. I've been like, you need to listen to this.

01:00:36
And he's like, you know, she's asked me this question many times. It's.

01:00:44
My scars are so fresh. Like, you know, it's only been a few years since I've, you know, found this out. You know, so you've. Guys, again, that's, you know, innate confident, you know, so you talk about school, you talk about reading, you talk about that. It just, you just.

01:01:04
I get. I get anger. So I'm not in a place to, you know, to do that. You know, I'll have conversations with anybody that know about mental health, addiction, drug, you know, what, anything. But to dive into a audio book or dive into a book, I don't remember.

01:01:30
I won't remember. Just my, you know, my anger blocks at all. So it's. I know I can't go there right now. Maybe it.

01:01:40
Maybe there will be a day. Probably not. But it's just where I am. I get that information. I live on the phone.

01:01:49
I'm always talking with the foundation. I get people. I put people in rehab, they don't even know who they are. People calling off suicide. Like, I'm always, you know, that's how I get my information is listening to people is to, you know, do things like this.

01:02:05
To be able to have conversations with parents of all types, dyslexic, non dyslexics, educate, you know, counsel thousands of people. So it's. It's just getting that information and, you know, in a different way and connecting. You're a connector. He is a big connector.

01:02:22
That game was. I hated that game. What was it? Didn't you have to Connect four? Connect four, Connect Four.

01:02:29
I love to Connect four. You know, we talked about this. You know, game games and board games is just nothing but anxiety for me because how am I going to struggle? Oh, my God, I would get so nervous when people Would be like, let's play Trivia Pursuit. I'm like, no.

01:02:48
Or Scrabble. Let's not play Scrabble either. Dictionary.

01:02:55
No, but it's. So do you want me to sing? I can't sing, but I'll do that. No, but it's so many different things that you think about, like, you know, just with figuring out and finding out when or what. And that's what Bridgett is really trying to push worldwide.

01:03:13
Right? You need that neuropsych. Because I've been saying this even before I met him, and I thought it was fascinating, but that he then started saying it. I was like, wait, this is what I say, that there's no clown. Such thing as a class clown or bully.

01:03:23
I was like, there's something going on. Whether it's at home or they're struggling school. Right. Like, why are people just being like, oh, let's push that kid through. Right?

01:03:31
There's something behind there. Every kindergartner wants to get the answer. Right. Right. Why?

01:03:36
Where every kindergarten wants to get. Who wants to struggle? Nobody in this world. I don't care who you are. White, green, block.

01:03:41
Nobody wants to. Can I please? Can I. Can I sit and struggle for eight hours a day? Oh, that sounds like fun.

01:03:48
Yeah. And so finding out. So true. Getting it done. I never thought about it that way.

01:03:53
Right. Like getting it early. There is no class clown or troublemaker. What's going on. And it would save.

01:03:59
So why. And it would save so many things with all the violence that's happening now. Like, I was saying this, like, years ago. Like, we need to. Something is.

01:04:07
There's a disconnect. And really what the disconnect is through the years, and we could go on for hours on this. But what the disconnect is is that education is also. They're not doing the remedial stuff. Right.

01:04:19
It's like, especially when you're in towns that are high level, they're like, oh, these kids are good. We don't need to go to the basics. So the kids that are struggling are actually struggling even earlier if they're not severe, severe dyslexia. Right? They can get through some stuff.

01:04:32
And then all of a sudden, it's like they're missing. I mean, I remember and I'm not going to say the town, but where we were. They like, literally missed all the stuff that Montgomery needed. And it was like, yeah, we're doing it at home, but you're doing it here. And now.

01:04:43
Now we're then moving it up and he missed all of that. And it was because they, I think they changed the curriculum or did something stupid and it was just like it really screwed us. But that's what's happening more and more. It's like they're not doing that like the ABCs the way they did it when we were younger. They don't, it's a business and.

01:05:02
Well, they don't. And I, you know, Bridget was just, you gotta educate before you can change. So thank you guys for joining Word Blindness. This is another awesome episode with Bridget Burke branch of Beyond Beauty Project. You know what I always say is that this, you might have listened to this and you might have been like, that's a great story.

01:05:19
But you do not know who needs to hear this. So, like rate, review and share and we'll see you for another episode of Word Blindness.