What is dyslexia?

October is Dyslexia Awareness Month, and as an often-misunderstood disorder, it is an important one to understand correctly. Although most people have heard of dyslexia, many people wrongly believe that it has something to do with intelligence, which is not true at all.

Dyslexia is a set of learning difficulties that affect our ability to process words and sounds. This difficulty spills over to various areas of our lives but is most profound in reading and writing – particularly spelling.

Because of its misrepresentation, there is some stigma around dyslexia that does dyslexics a great injustice. To help break down that stigma, we are going to spend October covering everything you might experience if you learn that you or your child are dyslexic.

This week: what is dyslexia? What are the different types? How is it caused and who is most at risk of being born dyslexic?

Types of dyslexia 

There are many types of dyslexia, but it can loosely be categorised by whether it was developmental or acquired (alexia). While most people with dyslexia are born with it, some develop the condition later in life as a result of brain trauma, stroke or dementia.

Phonological dyslexia is a difficulty matching smaller sounds (phenomes) with whole words. People with phonological dyslexia often struggle to read aloud and to identify the sound of new words. Phonological dyslexia is the most common and best-known type.

Surface dyslexia is another common type, in which sufferers struggle to understand words by sight. Deep dyslexia, is an acquired dyslexia that causes a person to mix up meanings of words, confuse similar-looking words or struggle to read function words (conjunctions, for example).

There are multiple other, less common, types of dyslexia, most of which are still being defined by research. Difficulty with rapid naming (identifying letters and words) in addition to phonological dyslexia is known as double-deficit.

There are many types of dyslexia, including phonological, surface, deep and double-deficit.

Causes of dyslexia 

Unlike many disorders we discuss here, the cause of dyslexia is quite established. It is largely accepted that developmental dyslexia is genetic, so you are most likely to develop it if your close family members have it.

Although you are born with dyslexia, it is not clear from birth for obvious reasons (babies can’t read and write!). As children begin to learn to read, spell and understand words, symptoms start to show.

We will cover the symptoms thoroughly in a couple of weeks, but the earliest they are caught, the easier dyslexia is to manage. By being aware of the causes and symptoms, parents of children with dyslexia can identify risk factors for delayed learning.

Dyslexia can be caused by brain injury, stroke or dementia as well as genetically inherited.

Risk Factors for dyslexia 

As the cause of dyslexia is genetic, its only established risk factor is a family history. There are, though, environmental factors that influence how dyslexia progresses (whether it improves, gets worse or stays consistent as the person grows up).

Limited parental literacy, for example, can reduce a child’s ability to overcome the challenges set out by dyslexia. Socioeconomic status and stresses at home also make children with dyslexia less able to learn to read and write.

Other language difficulties and overall child health also introduce additional barriers for children with dyslexia to overcome the challenges associated with the diagnosis. Children that have comorbid health or learning disorders face unique combinations of challenges.

The only known risk factor for dyslexia is a family history of the disorder.

Dyslexia Awareness Month

It is important to remember that dyslexia has nothing to do with intelligence. Someone with dyslexia is no more or less likely to have a low IQ than someone without. It is a learning disorder, so people with dyslexia simply learn in different ways.

In later weeks, we will discuss the signs and symptoms of dyslexia, as well as the different learning methods that can help overcome it. We will also have a look at what living with dyslexia is like – from diagnosis to treatment.

If you are worried that you or your child has dyslexia, speak to your GP. They will be able to work with you, your child and your child’s school to create a learning plan.

Felicity Thompson

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