Hola and hi!

You have not ‘read me’, for quite some time probably because I had been under construction 🚧, but I’m alive.

-Gratefully alive!

Today I will like to speak to you about Neuro-Divergent, “tal vez podría decir la vida del neurodivirgente”; before I continue let me share with you some aspects of my life.

I already mentioned to you in my profile that I am ADHD & Dyslexic, but I have not share that I am also ADS, I am in the Autistic Spectrum (or what we used to call Asperger Syndrome). I didn’t share it before; just because I did’t now… 🤷🏼‍♀️

I always have been struggling since I can remember, the first year of my life I couldn’t speak, I had to ask my Mother and my Aunty for food moving my hand in a particular circle. My youngest brother started speaking year before me, he even learned how to tight his shoes way before I was able to.

At the age of seven I remember been lock in an ‘audiometric booth’ for a hearing test. Probably my teachers thought I had a hearing problem, due to my look of understanding and fallowing instructions. By the time I reach middle school I was having math tutoring in contain group.

In one of my 1st jobs the casino manager probably avoiding to have to fire me; ask me:

-Are dyslexic? To what I reply:
-No; what is that? He explane to me what it was, and my journey began. An endless journey of finding answers and solutions.

For over a decade I thought that all my problems were call ‘Dislexia’. In my early 30th, and after trying repetitively to pass the Insurance Broker License test. I whent to a specialize children office with learning disability. I remember vividly when I call the first time and the secretary ask me:

-How old is the child?; to what I replied
-33 years old! I explain and we laugh 🤭 , in the evaluation I heard ‘Attention Deficit Disorder’ for the 1st time. Sometime after that I was visiting a Neurologist to see if I had some type of Epilepsy (“absence seizures” or “petit mal seizures), the test came back negative and my quest continue I finally found Dr. Maria Margarida a Phd. in Neuropsicology who validad the suspicion. The 20+ pages 📑 report came with a ADD diagnosis, what we call today ADHD.

Some time after I did start my 1st medication with Metadate CD, later Concerta and my life finally started to change 😃!

With the intention to be grateful I need to acknowledge the Psychologist Miss Dr. Strong, who pass away years ago. She explain to me that my Dislexia was not alone, she also had two other cousin Dysgraphia and Dyscalculia.

So! More or less during the last 20 years I had been explaining when is necessary that my brain is ADHD, with “las tres primas, disgrafía, dislexia y discalculia”. Who are very alike but affect differently the in and out bound of information that my brain 🧠 receives/process in different forms (visual, auditory and kinesthetically).

Dysgraphia affects the writing, this is specially notable during my hand writing. Dyslexia who is probably the most famous of them all, the one that most of the people are aware of; affect my reading ability, in my case is visual and auditory. What makes my life very fun 🙄 specially when I in passionate discussions or arguing with someone; and last dyscalculia that affect my ability to dance with numbers. To me they are the same but Drs. need a way to make distinction between them because not every one have all of them. Nevertheless is very common 🤷🏼‍♀️ to have the full family.

During the last 23 years I had been believing that all my problems were cost by my ADHD “y sus primas”; but recently and after enjoying a mayor breakdown. My Psychologies Dr. Fabio Besú and his friend and colleague Miss Dr. Soto. Both Psychologist and partially form in our Carlos Albizú University, joint effort and found the unthinkable.

At the age of almost 55 I finally found that I am in the Autistic Spectrum… 🤷🏼‍♀️

To be honest I have mix feelings with all of this, in some sense this explains everything. My lock of understanding “indirectas”, jokes or sarcasm and my need to ALWAYS sleep 🛌 with my socks on 😅, to my compulsive need for cleaningness and my obsession with details.

Today I cannot said that I my proud of having a ADHD/ADS brain, on the other hand, I do not feel shame, but I can say that I finally feel ‘free’… Now every single aspect of my life finally makes sense!; and this fells particularly liberating 💃🕺.

Today I grateful to be alive! I am grateful to all teachers, Drs., experts, specialists, wife’s, familie and friends that had been in one way or another helping me in this beautiful journey of self discovery.

In the next 12 weeks I will post something that will add value to the divergent community, here in this beautiful Island 🇵🇷 and all around this wonderful planet 🌍 we call Earth.
For now if you or someone you love is Neuro-Divergent, feel proud to be @typical, and just enjoy the journey, at the end there is no other way around.