The Student Room Group

What to call people with "special needs"?

Okay so I have ADD and Dyslexia and it is often relevant for me to bring it up as it affects my education etc, but the only appropriate terms I can think of are either my actual conditions (long and tmi in a lot of cases) or "special needs" or "learning disabilities". I don't like the implications though. Special needs to me is a lot more serious and the "disability" part of LDs is again pretty over the top for me.
Learning disabilities are varying and on a spectrum and there are a lot of people who are more affected than me.

I feel like using those terms for me is not right since for me they are not so serious and not anything like a disability. Also i'm worried it kinda makes me seem bad cos eithter people will think I am low functioning and "special" or that i'm trying to grab attention by faking serious problems.

Also those terms just sound like such a negative thing so something better for general conversation would be good.

Anyway can anybody think of a better term (or terms) to describe things like special needs or mh issues? I also have some mh issues so if anybody can think of something that could encompas both it would be cool.
Reply 1
You can just call me Ash
Reply 2
Original post by AshEntropy
You can just call me Ash


I'm not sure people would get it if I said I was Ash though :P
Learning difficulties could work? Or additional needs but that just sounds odd to me. It's quite a difficult one! Or just 'i have difficulties/disabilities/whatever else that affect my learning' if that's any better, but yeah. I don't know :redface:
I d second learning difficulties, I find it harder to learn things but I m not unable to like the word disabled could suggest.
I'd say 'learning difficulties'. I try not to tell anyone but if I would need to, I would use that. :smile:

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