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Living in a Dyslexic/ADHD Marriage – Happy Anniversary To Me

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While I’d love to go through the entire explanation, it would simply take too long. The short story is, after celebrating 20 years of marriage this fall, with my nonexistent medical degree, I’ve officially determined that my husband has ADHD and I have dyslexia (which yes, is very difficult for me to spell).

The other day, I was listening to a doctor explain that some people with attention deficit disorder function with the most clarity when they’re under pressure. The concentration those individuals lack when things are peaceful comes into laser focus when the heat is on. Later, the same doctor broached the topic of dyslexia. She described that it’s often helpful for people with dyslexia to do things slowly because they can easily become overwhelmed, and even depressed (!) if their lives require them to process a lot of things linguistically. (And, in my case, it doesn’t stop at linguistics.) Holy hell—this explains oh so much.

From my perspective, I think my amazing husband has been unknowingly over-committing himself (and us) because that’s when he functions at his peak. I, on the other hand, begin to unravel when things are too busy.

The other day, G invited me/us to start (yet another) venture—something I would have said “yes” to in the past. While saying no, I used a metaphor. “G, I already have all the books open that I can read at once. I have the kids, my work, a house project, a trip, our family and friends, etc., etc.—I’m not going to open another book right now.” Later we had a good laugh when we realized that he literally has easily 15 partially read books on his nightstand, while I have one book that I’ve been reading for the past 7 months.

The reality though is, this really isn’t a laughing matter to me. Before making all of these changes over the past month, I was suffering from depression and anxiety. What more evidence did I need that things had to drastically change? Did I have to get rushed to the emergency room? Get diagnosed with a chronic illness? 

I’ve been compromising my pace for this long simply because I didn’t understand what was going on. This new knowledge gives me a much deeper understanding of why and what my spouse needs to be his best, but it’s also completely opened my eyes to what I need to be my best. I tried to keep up with G-Man Master De for the first 20 years of our marriage, but for the next 20–I’m gonna honor my own speed.

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  1. Congratulations! It took me almost 48 years to realize that..now at 53 plus years of marriage I’ve found my groove ??

    • Yahoooo!
      Better late than never~

  2. Beat to your own drum Megan! You’ve got this!?

    • Thanks for the cheerleading Wendy!

  3. Explains so much about my children. However, what if your child is both?

    • I guess the real shift for me isn’t the “thing” is’t the compassion around it.
      I just sometimes forget how different everyone sees and processes the world.
      As soon as someone explains it to me, it’s so much easier for me to be kind.
      “Oh, yer not just an a-hole? I thought you were doing this to get back at me or something. No? Ok. Ok. I can be nicer now.”

  4. As Granny would say, “He didn’t lick it off the grass”!!

    • Hahahahaha!
      You guys are hard to keep up with, for sure. But worth it!

  5. A very wise sentiment. “Simplify your life”, was a common motto with my grandfather on my Dads side. I reflect on those words so many times in my life as I try to manage so much this is a good reminder to meditate and find peace at such a whirlwind time of year. PS. I’m looking to try out your “Do it yourself” day coming up Dec 26:). Merry Christmas!

    • MEGHAN!!!! Yes!!! Fend for Yourself Day is almost here!!! 17 more days.
      I love that you’re already daydreaming about it…ditto!

  6. Good for you for the change. We all need your blog to help clarify so many things in our own lives., and continue to cheer you on. Have a great weekend.

    • Debra, thank you for your continued support.
      I find myself saying to the kids, “You guys are only taking a year or two to figure things out — this crap has taken me 40 + years to realize!
      I guess we get it when we’re ready to get it.
      Thanks for checking in~

  7. Amen! So much I could say, but I just want to clap and give you a hug.

    • Lisa, thank you.
      I think I need lots of hugs right now.
      I’m going to come over and pick one up from you~

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