The Hidden Struggle Behind the Smile

According to Rethink Dyslexia, “Masking can have 56a significant impact on the mental health and well-being of individuals with dyslexia. Constantly concealing difficulties and feeling the need to perform at a higher level than their peers can lead to increased stress, anxiety, and even depression.”

I’ve observed masking at every educational level, from young children to adults. For primary-aged students, masking often takes on a playful tone. A child might try to steer the teacher toward easier words they know they can spell, avoiding those that present a real challenge. When reading, they might focus on the pictures and use contextual cues to bypass the actual text. In classroom settings, these students may participate minimally, their silence often rooted in fear, shame, or confusion. They haven’t yet developed the strategies to cope with their difficulties, so they retreat inward.

As students progress to secondary school, their masking techniques become more sophisticated. These older students often excel at ‘talking the talk.’ They can be highly articulate, using their verbal skills to divert attention from tasks like spelling, reading, or writing. Before you know it, the conversation has veered away from the lesson, and the student has successfully avoided the challenge. 

They might claim confidence in their writing abilities but then produce only a few lines of text, often without proper punctuation. Reading, however, remains a significant hurdle. For many dyslexic students, reading aloud is the most daunting task, as it exposes their struggles in a way that can’t be masked.

By adulthood, dyslexic individuals have often developed a complex array of coping mechanisms. Rethink Dyslexia states that "Driven by a deep desire to fit in and avoid judgment, they might rely heavily on memory, and contextual cues, or even delegate tasks like writing to others for editing. They may seem to navigate reading, writing, and spelling with ease, but beneath this façade lies a constant battle with feelings of inadequacy".

Many of my adult students have faced mental health challenges stemming from a late diagnosis and delayed access to specialized intervention. 

As Rethink Dyslexia notes, “The effort required to maintain the mask can be exhausting, often resulting in job burnout and reduced self-esteem. It is crucial to recognize the toll that masking takes on dyslexic individuals and provide them with the necessary support and understanding.”

At SET, we are deeply committed to raising awareness through our Online Dyslexia Awareness Courses. We believe that awareness is the first step toward creating a society that truly supports dyslexic individuals.

Let us shine the light on this learning difference and create a dyslexia-friendly society.