Jarred Bird's 18-year journey to diagnosis of severe dyslexia

My name is Jarred Bird and I'm from Coffs Harbour in northern New South Wales.

One thing I know is that my mum has always been there for me.

My journey to a severe dyslexia diagnosis took 18 years.

I think Mum felt relieved but also disappointed that it took so long to get answers.

Loading...

Back then, dyslexia just wasn't talked about and the only related treatment was wearing coloured lenses.

Thankfully things are changing and there's more understanding but it's still not easy, especially for my generation and older.

My mother was a teacher, and was investigating dyslexia and strategies to help students learn in the classroom.

She wanted to see what one program was like, so my younger brother and I were like guinea pigs.

She was always searching for the answers as to why we struggled.

It soon became apparent I wasn't just dyslexic, I was severely dyslexic. I found this out at the age of 18 from a specialist who tested me.

Jarred's mum, Michelle Maybury, never stopped trying to find answers. (Supplied: Jarred Bird)

Navigating dyslexia at school

Teachers were always saying to me, "Hey, you're writing letters back to front a lot, and you're so focused on the reading … you're not actually understanding what you've read."

International Day of People with Disability Photo shows A dark blue figure of a human against a cream background with orange, blue and green swirls. Find out how you can get involved this year on the IDPwD website.

At school dyslexia affected my confidence mainly because I was always put in the lower groups — the lower reading groups, the lower maths groups.

Those groups were always called the "red" groups.

And you know what the colour red means? Emergency, not quite good.

I just didn't feel like I could go any further, and I felt like it was structured in a way that didn't suit me.

Thankfully I could make friends really quickly, and that kind of balanced it out.

I was always really curious about making people laugh. I think I have a good sense of humour.

Through school, I really enjoyed different types of theatrical plays and drama.

Jarred lost confidence at school and he was often placed in the lower reading groups. (Supplied)

I did have a go at football but I knew I wasn't that good at rugby league.

I started one season on the front line in the forward pack … and by the fifth year I was really good at cutting oranges.

Disability advocate's dream job Photo shows A man with curly brown hair smiles at the camera. He uses crutches to stand in the beautiful bushland scene behind him. Marcus Dadd says working as a ringer at the remote Delamere Station has been "the most incredible experience".

But when you're not good at something for a long time, it's really disheartening.

When I found out that I had severe dyslexia, it was kind of that last piece of the puzzle.

It made sense of everything that I'd been struggling with.

I wish I'd found it out sooner, that way I could have got a bit more help.

Finding a way in the workplace

Dyslexia has affected my working life hugely. I've had a lot of jobs, and it hasn't always been great, especially in environments where they expect you to do a lot of reading and writing.

I'm good at customer service.

A lot of employment agencies just gave up on me or they find it too hard. For example, I worked for an insurance company, where you must read the script verbatim — gosh that was tough.

I didn't feel a lot of self-worth. Going from job to job you wonder, do I ever fit in? Can I work around it? And you can feel like a massive hindrance to your employer or your team.

Jarred brings warmth and humour to wherever he works. (ABC News: Alex Barwick)

I've seen it come across as lazy, but I'm not.

I still find it a struggle, that's why I wanted to share my story. That way people can hear it and some will think, "I've been through that experience or a similar kind of struggle".

But I know with any struggle, there's a light at the end of the tunnel, and I'm just trying to work towards that.

A supportive family and strategies

I was always really curious about making people laugh. I think I have a good sense of humour.

I've always had a good family to fall back on, and I know Mum's always been there for me.

I've worked out how to implement some new strategies within the workplace.

I use a lot of voice to text [like the transcription tool used for this story] and so I will say to my employer, "Hey, I'm going to be talking into my phone a lot". It just writes it out for me.

There is other software I can use to write with but I'm still working it out, still on that journey.

For the ABC Gives campaign, Jarred performed Cyndi Lauper's Girls Just Want To Have Fun to raise funds. (ABC News: Meredith Lake)

What I wish people knew

Many people think reading and writing is such a natural thing that you develop through school.

When I was at school, I got told that if you don't know how to read and write by the time you finish year 12, you're going to fail in life.

Breaking down employment barriers Photo shows A young man with short dark hair is sitting in front of a microphone wearing headphones in the ABC radio studio. Alex Whitton has a degree, volunteer experience and plenty of enthusiasm, but says employers often don't see past his disability.

But why would I write off my future just because I don't know how to read and write by the time I'm 18.

I'm not going to give up even though I've got this diagnosis.

It's something that's a part of my life, but it's not my whole life, so I just need to keep working through it. I'm not going to give up.

And even though I've talked about my dyslexia and how I can struggle in the workplace, I've got a lot to offer.

My sense of joy and understanding about people has been a great benefit to the places I've worked, including the ABC.

This story is an edited transcript from an interview Jarred Bird did with ABC Audio Innovation's Alex Barwick. Jarred currently works in the tourism industry and is a casual at ABC Alice Springs.

This content was produced for the ABC's International Day of People with Disability campaign which runs from November 19 to December 10, 2024.

Click here to read article