Learning Differently:

Christine .: Welcome to Lead Well! and I have another fascinating guest with me today. Rebecca. Rebecca Bush. Hi Rebecca. Hi Christine. Hi. So Rebecca, you're a certified academic language therapist, and I will have to ask you a question about that because I have no idea what that means. And you also have founded Lead Changes and that's another question because, so funny. Um, I am, I work with horses and I also am riding horses, and I know a lead chain change in the horse world is kind of going the different direction or on a different hand, different lead. So another, another thing to, to ask you about. So you spend nearly two decades helping kids with dyslexia. This will be our topic today. And not only the kids, but also their families. Combining the science of reading with a deep trauma informed, compassionate approach. And, uh, yeah, you also work with horses...

Rebecca: I do. Yeah. That's, Christine: That's really great. Uh, so let's, let's definitely talk about that as well because, um, I'm practicing and also teaching the Trust Technique, which is a wonderful approach also to work with animals and emotional regulation for both the animal and a human because I think I'm not sharing any secrets when I say that usually the animals has an issue because the person is causing it. And so let's, we can have that discussion as well. And uh, yeah. So you also got a new book coming out, Dyslexia And Your Newly Diagnosed Child. And of course we can

cover that as well. So I'm really excited to explore how you work with learning and resilience and how that connects for everyone. With, for to, to leaders, but also to every, every one of us because as I mentioned, when we had our, our initial conversation, I mean, I, I know. The word: dyslexia. And I have come, I have, I have friends who are dyslexic, but I never actually asked the question, well, what does this actually mean? What, What is it, when, when is someone dyslexic? Yeah. Rebecca: Yeah, lots, definitely lots to talk about. And I love that you ride horses as well. Uh, that's, That's where the name came from. So I can explain the history of, or the reason behind why I went with the name lead changes as well. Um, but yeah. So to start off, I can just talk about what an academic language therapist is. You're, You're not alone. A lot of people have never heard that term before. Uh, But we've been around for a long time. And really what it is, is that I am incredibly highly trained to work with anybody who's struggling to acquire academic language. So whether that's listening, speaking, reading, obviously for dyslexia or writing.

So it could be dyslexia, it could be ADHD, it could be autism, it could be any reason why the way that we're learning to read and write and speak in classes just isn't coming along as: we might expect it to. Okay. So that's what I do. Christine: Wow. That sounds really interesting. Rebecca: It is. Yeah, I, uh, I love it. I started, actually started in the classroom. I was a classroom teacher for eight years, and that's kind of what started me on this journey. I just kept seeing these kids who weren't learning to read, and I didn't know what to do about it. And I was not okay with that. So I just kept studying and kept getting degrees and certifications and, and doing the horses on the side along the way. And now here I am. Wow. Christine: Wow. Now dyslexia c can, can you share a bit more about that? What, what ex when, When is someone dyslectic? Yeah. And so just, yeah. What, how does it show? Rebecca: That's a great question and, and that's part of what I do is try to beat down all this misinformation and the myths that are out there. But really what dyslexia is, is it's the part of the brain that processes language doesn't work the way we expect it to.

So in English, for example, that comes out in the sounds and the phonemes.: And so when that part of the brain is isn't connecting with the sounds and processing the sounds the way we might expect, and then that connects to the letters on the page, that's where we get the struggle with reading. So dyslexia really is a struggle with reading, but the root cause of it is the language processing in the brain. Christine: Okay. Okay. So I'm hearing something and I cannot recognize it on, on paper. Rebecca: Yeah, so you know, common example we hear in, you know, people swapping the B and d, reversing them. But actually if we remove the letter B and D and we just think about the sound b d, they actually sound really, really similar. And so if my brain in the first place is having a hard time recognizing the difference between those two sounds, I mean, I can hear them, that's fine. My hearing's fine. But it's just the brain. They sound the same. Right. You know, It's like if I were to listen to, uh, Mandarin, for example, with all the different tones, maybe I can't hear the difference,

because my brain just can't process them. So with the: B and d, b duh, they sound really similar, and then the letters look really similar. So when there's layers of confusion upon layers of confusion, that's when we get those reversals that can stay common. Christine: And are there several levels of dyslexia or. Rebecca: Yeah, it's a continuum is is the word I like to use. And so it's not, it's not linear. There's not, so you will, when you get diagnosed, you'll have mild, moderate, severe. But when we look at how it presents in different people, it's a, it's a continuum. So certain things may come out more strongly in some. Some people may have strengths that sort of make the dyslexia not as obvious. Or similarly, they may have other diagnoses that make the dyslexia more obvious and, and have it present even more strongly, so it looks a little different for every person, but we do have these kind of common traits that come up.

Christine Okay. Now, the first question I ask myself really is what kind of impact does, uh, social media and the media consumption: have on reading capacity overall? And I, I guess for some people who have a difficult time reading it, is it helpful to have all the media now and, uh, more auditory? Rebecca: Yeah. That's a great question. I think if we actually just kind of forget about dyslexia and just look at reading development in general, particularly in even up through adults. In order to be a successful reader, we have to have really strong executive functioning skills. So I can understand what, well, first of all, I can understand what I'm reading and then I can hold onto that information, I can connect it with what I already know. I can be thinking inferentially all of that. Based on executive functioning skills. And it, what we're seeing is that when you watch, you know, three seconds of a video and you just keep swiping that those executive functioning skills aren't being practiced. Uh, And so then we see impacts across the board and of course also also in reading.

Christine Now. You primarily work with children and, and their families. And so what is your, what is: your advice, if and like the, the title of your book? So what, what should happen if someone finds out that their children, the child is dyslectic? What's the first thing? Rebecca: Yeah. So, uh, I always say, first of all, just take a deep breath, you know, your, your kid's gonna be okay. Uh, The great thing about dyslexia is we actually know exactly what we need to do to support somebody with it. Um, I've also se heard this again and again from parents. So there is a genetic link we think with dyslexia. So a lot of times when the kid gets diagnosed, the parent is like oh yeah, that, uh, that's probably me as well. Or, you know, my husband or my uncle, or there's that family link. Um, So it's a great way. It's a label, but it's a label that gives us information so that we wanna hold onto that as the positive.

So a lot of parents, you know, can feel overwhelmed. They may sometimes feel guilty that, oh, how did I not see this earlier? Uh, On All those feelings are valid, you know, you need to feel what you need to feel in the moment, but we wanna turn all of that into this feeling of this is actually something really positive because now we have: a path forward. Christine: And And how about adults when they have not got the support they probably should have in their childhood? Rebecca: And that's where I do work with some adults as well. Um, Just helping them understand what dyslexia is and exactly this, what it looks like for them. So common, the biggest one obviously, is you're gonna have a hard time reading. And maybe not even just reading, but really understanding what you're reading. Because if you're spending so much brain power just trying to read the words on the page, you don't have any brain power left to understand. Hmm. Um, Another big one would be, uh, sometimes having a hard time like with idioms or jokes or remembering new words or new phrases that can come out.

Uh, So in the workplace we'll see this, sometimes this frustration, if an email is too long. And there's all the pertinent information buried somewhere in all these paragraphs, uh, there's strategies that we can use to kind of learn how to sift through. Obviously technology can help with that as well, AI: has come a long way in helping summarize and, you know, pull key information out. Um, but really we just see this kind of. Struggle with language, and it does come out as speaking sometime as well. Maybe can't think of that word. Uh, which we all do, right? Especially if we're tired, or, um, but whereas just you see this pattern of, of language can be trickier than we might think it would be. Christine: And so what can I do? So you say use, uh, technology, use AI to help me summarize or... Rebecca: Yeah, I think as adults the biggest thing, um, it's just building that self-awareness. So knowing what it looks like for you. Uh, You know, and it may be spelling too, that may be an issue. So obviously technology really can help. Um, Speech to text, of course, text to speech. AI really has come a long way. I mean, I use AI Notetakers in my own meetings and it's super helpful. Uh, So using the summary functions on different AI things can really help as well. 'cause it can, it can wade through all of the words for you and then pull out the action items.

Rebecca And I: mean, from my Christine: perspective, having worked with, uh, people who had a harder time reading, it helped me to know that they struggle because then I, I could, yeah, put it into a different perspective for myself as well. And I was much more, 'cause I'm not the most, uh, patient person, usually, but that helped. Because I just knew I, yeah, there is, uh, there is a, a certain condition that makes it harder for them. Rebecca: Absolutely. And that's, um, that's where we get into advocacy, which is something I coach parents on. So helping kids understand what, what it is and what it looks like and what it means for them, so that they know how to share that. Uh, And then for adults as well, um, especially there is a growing understanding of what dyslexia is.

So if you are in the workplace and you feel comfortable sharing, you know, you can say, Hey, I have dyslexia. Reading long emails may be harder for me. This is what I'm gonna do to help. Or, you know, sometimes there may be a spelling error in there. It doesn't mean I'm dumb, it doesn't mean I'm: not trying, I just, spelling's hard for me. Christine: And I think you're also saying that to read is a human right. Is it, so what should society do to make that true? Because I think so far it's not a, not, not enough has been done. Rebecca: Yeah. And that, that speaks to kind of the heart of my, my mission really and what I'm doing. It's crazy to me that we particularly, so I'm here in the United States, that we have all of these kids and adults that are either illiterate or what we call functionally illiterate. Uh, So basically they can't read enough to, to function in, in an adult life or in, in their workplace, which is just ridiculous because we know exactly what we need to do to teach 95% of individuals how to read. Rebecca: We're just not doing it. Rebecca: You know, and there's, there's various reasons why, you know, lots of people point to money.

There's politics. Sometimes there's just personal opinion that has gotten in the way. Um, But if we just think about everything we need to do to: be successful as an adult, it doesn't matter what job you're doing, you have to know how to read. Rebecca: Right. I mean, even if you need to take the bus to go to work, you have to know how to read the sign on the bus. And if, if we're denying a huge percentage of our population that ability, we're just, it's just not fair. We're setting them up for failure from the very beginning. Christine: And as you said, because it's, it has nothing to do with their capacity, with their CAPA capability overall. Rebecca: Yeah. Yeah. They just didn't get taught in the right way. Christine: Wow. And I think you also talk about empathetic communication. So how does that look like, especially where under stress? Uh, How can we, How can we practice it in every situation? Rebecca: Yeah. Uh, I mean, this is where, you know, your work with animals would come in as well, and some of the stuff I do with horses as well, but it really just comes down to, I, I feel like regulation and understanding.

So when we can self-regulate, like, um, you know, even before I got on this: podcast, you know, I sat quietly for a few moments and took a deep breath and got myself centered, so I was ready for this. Um, And I think what you were saying before about understanding. The better, I feel like The better I understand why somebody did something or how they were acting, the more empathy I can have in the moment as well. Um, I think especially with, with kids and teenagers and it, it's really not until about mid twenties that our brains are fully developed. So prior to that, uh, behavior is just another way to communicate. So if I'm doing something, it's probably 'cause there's some sort of trigger that's led me to do that thing. Um, So helping understand not only your own triggers, but then if there's triggers of the other people in your lives to, to help them work through it as well. Christine: Yeah. And one thing I learned, um, as well, is that communication, when I perceive something, it rarely has to do with, um. with me, when someone says something to me, but it has to do with them.

And, uh, same for me. So I'm, I always have this, this me: component in every type of communication I'm doing. Rebecca: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, and um, I know you're from Germany. I have lived all over the world as well, and when you start talking about cross-cultural communication, you just need to think, you know, maybe, I perceived it as rude, but maybe that's just how it's done in their culture or in their language. So checking in with each other too, you know, like, that upset me, did, was that what you meant? Or did I misunderstand something in the moment? Christine: Yeah, I mean the best example is when I traveled to Bulgaria, um, their way of saying no, is that. Yeah, exactly. It's so disturbing at the beginning because we're all, you're obviously, you're hearing something and you're seeing something else and they're like, wow. Rebecca: Well, and what, if you think about how the brain works with communication, we, our brain interprets body language, well before the words get processed.

So if your brain's already thinking yes or no, based on what they're doing, and then the: words come out, you're, where you're like, wait, what? You know, You get totally lost. Christine: Yeah, that's, that's true. So, So how can we learn from all those lessons that you learned through helping children and also adults through their difficulties of reading. What can we learn from that and, and apply to other areas of problem solving. Rebecca: Yeah. I think at the end of the day, just recognizing that we're all different. Rebecca: You know, Even with dyslexia, you get, you may have 10 people with the same label, but it's gonna look a little different for everyone. Uh, So recognizing what makes us unique and finding the good in that.

Um, And then when it is a problem, and that's that self-awareness too, thinking, knowing how your brain works. Some people are really creative, some people think very logically, so finding teammates or people in your family or company that you can lean on when you need that sort of thinking as well.: Christine: Yeah. And don't be shy to, I always say don't be shy to ask for help because I, in, in my history, I had an episode in my life where I had a burnout and I had to ask for help, and fortunately I did. It was the hardest thing for me to do. But looking back, it also was the bravest. So asking for help is not that sign of weakness at all. It really is a strength. Rebecca: Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. I mean, we've all had moments of burnout. I was there too, you know, a couple years ago. Um, And yeah, and it's, it's swallowing your pride, you know, a little bit sometimes, but Yeah. Yeah. Knowing how to, knowing when to ask for help, but I think also learning how to ask for help. Um, you know, Be specific with what you're asking for. You know, maybe tell this person why you're coming to them, um, or sometimes even just saying, prefacing and saying, I don't need an answer from you right now, I just want you to listen. You know, Because that can be a huge help as well.

Christine: Yeah, yeah. That's, That's absolutely true. I, I truly believe that asking the right questions and then being quiet enough to listen, it's the biggest skill anyone can have. Rebecca: Yes. That's, yeah. And I think, um, as far as, you know, the, I do a lot of coaching with parents and families and, and also through the, the horse stuff that I do, and I think learning how to sit in the silence and then ask the right question, that's what makes, that's what make, make or break a good coaching session. Christine: Yeah. Yeah. Wow. Now, last question. You have this new book coming out. Yes. What's one idea from that for parents, leaders? What, what should we start applying immediately?

Rebecca The biggest thing I think for kids or anyone, I use this in my own daily life too, is having some kind of routine and structure to what you're doing. Uh, Obviously things change in the moment, but I mean, even simple: things at home that you can do, like I noticed I was always trying to get out the door in the morning, it was always a struggle and I was trying to find this or that or the other. So I bought one of those rolling carts stays in one place by the door, and then every time I think of something I've gotta take with me, I can just dump it in the cart. So in that moment of trying to get out the door, I don't have to remember all the things that I'm supposed to take, I just can take my cart and go. Um, You know, for kids using backpack cooks or baskets, things like that. But I think even for us as adults, having that one place, you put your kios every time. You know, like these little things can just make your life so much smoother. Christine: Wow. That's great. Wow. I, I am as, as with every guest. I say that every time, but every time, it's really from my heart. I could go on with you forever because it's so interesting and, and so exciting to learn from you. Thank you. Um, But if people wanna find out more about you, where can, where should they go? Rebecca: Yeah, so you can go to my website, LeadChanges.com. Um, I'm also on Instagram. It's Dyslexia Rebecca.

Christine: Cool. And you promised you would, um, you would share why you're calling your business Lead Changes? Rebecca: Yeah. So, you know what a, a lead change is, but for the non horsey people, it's when it looks like the horse is skipping, right? So they're, they're cantering in one lead and they change to the other. And I'm super horsey the, not in that work, but I wanted a horsey name. Uh, but really what it comes down to, so a lead change is very technical. But just about any horse can learn to do it. If they're taught in the right way and they're given the right amount of practice and they're strengthened and and let them do it at their time, pretty much every horse can learn to do a lead change. Just like every person can learn to read. Wow. They may need more time. They may need to be taught in a different way, but they're just as capable as everybody else. Christine: Cool. Wow. Great insight. Thank you so much, Rebecca, for coming.

Rebecca Absolutely. Thank you, Christine, for having: me.