Its a crime how hard it can be to get that diagnosis!

I agree with those that dislike labels, and I certainly hate the idea of using a label to tell a child who they are and what they are or are not capable of.

I am a great believer in the idea that kids become what you tell them they are, if you tell them they are naughty then they behave like a naughty child to live up to that label.

However in the arena of special needs I think a diagnosis can bring with it so many positive points. How can you begin to help someone if you have no idea what their issue is. So many mums and dads that have gone before us have struggled hugely, and the improving understanding and all of that knowledge and experience should be harnessed and used to the advantage of our children.

Aidan was diagnosed at 7, before that we were stumbling in the dark,was he lazy, was he just not concentrating, was he being naughty? Should we force him to read? Why was he so angry and frustrated as soon as he saw his reading book and words.

Once he was offically dyslexic we could start on our journey to understand how he saw the world of words and how we could help him to reach his potential.

We were lucky and got the diagnosis through  the school SENCO, but I have heard stories of people waiting years ( even into adulthood) to get a diagnosis, and stories of schools and professionals saying that a families only option was to pay hundreds of pounds to go private for their child's diagnosis.

Dyslexic children in general are amazing and so full of potential so why are we not making the path to diagnosis as easy as possible, and then quickly supporting these kids to have the chance to reach their full potential!