Look Beyond the Label to Discover Gifts

Related: Parents, More TagsChildren with Learning Disabilities, Related Conditions, Mental Health, Education, Fewer Tags

by Merely Me
Monday, May 04, 2009

We all have labels attached to us at one point or another.  Some labels denote our social roles and relationships such as:  Mother, son, brother, sister, or aunt.  Some labels tell others what we do such as student, writer, or teacher.  But some labels are bestowed upon us due to our unique challenges and differences.  For example, being labeled with a "Learning Disability" can be an umbrella term for a host of many different individual labels, each bearing their own acronym.  Quinn, the host of this blog, has VCFS (Velo Facial Cardio Syndrome).  Some other members to this site may have ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) or ADHD (Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity).  Then there are individuals with SID (Sensory Integration Disorder), SPD (Semantic-Pragmatic Disorder), AS (Asperger's Syndrome) or PDD (Pervasive Developmental Disorder).  The list of possible labels goes on and on.

How can we make sense of this alphabet soup of labels? 

I have had to ask myself this question many times as both an educator and as a parent. 

This might be a good time to introduce myself.  I was recently asked to be a contributing writer for Friends of Quinn and I could not be more delighted and honored.  My educational background is in Special Education.  But although I have a Master's Degree in this field I can honestly say that despite my training and experience there is so much I do not know.  I could read and research the different types of diagnostic and educational labels given to any one individual and still know very little about that person.  When I was working with children and adults with multiple disabilities quite often I would be presented with a manila folder with their diagnoses and written reports of their every difficulty.  Going against the grain, I would purposely ignore the manila folder and meet the person first without looking at their label.

I do believe that labels may be important for acquiring needed services but beyond that they do very little to tell us about the person.  I strongly believe that all of us are more than our labels.   The key is to find the unique gifts of every person regardless of their label.

After working in the field of special education for over ten years, I stayed home to be with my two boys.  I could not have been more surprised when my youngest son acquired a label of autism when he was three years old.  No amount of professional experience, research, or book reading prepared me for the journey we are still on.  I learned firsthand how judgments are quickly made based upon a label.  I was told he might not ever talk, that he would have no imagination, and that institutionalization was an option. 

I remember one sad day when I came home after having him tested.  The tester told me that my son was unable to do even the basic tasks such as copying a circle onto paper.  Knowing my son's reluctance to perform in front of people, I "tested" him at home leaving a piece of paper with a circle on it as well as a crayon next to him.  I told him to make a circle and I left the room.  With great anxiety I returned some minutes later.  I saw my son, legs dangling off the chair, humming to himself.  I was prepared for disappointment.  But instead, my heart leapt when I saw that he had drawn a perfect circle next to mine.  Later I drew a smiley face.  And my son not only copied it but added hair and glasses.  My son had never drawn anything before in his entire life.  He had barely picked up a crayon previously.