Yes, mixing up words is very common with dyslexia, often involving similar-sounding words (like "accept" and "except") or similar letters (like "b" and "d"), due to the brain's difficulty connecting letters to sounds (phonological processing) and organizing sequences, leading to speech errors, misreading, and spelling issues, rather than just "seeing" things backward.
The most common myth about dyslexia is that we're seeing the words incorrectly. That's actually not true. The reason words or sounds get jumbled up is because we're using the wrong part of our brain to process the written words. So, it has nothing to do with our eyes and everything to do with our brains.
General signs to look for are:
People with dyslexia may say a wrong word that sounds similar to the right one (like extinct instead of distinct). Or they may talk around it using vague words like thing or stuff. This kind of mental hiccup can happen when they're writing too. Trouble finding the right word is one of the most common signs of dyslexia.
Visual Distortions: Real Examples of Reading with Dyslexia
While trying to process language, people with dyslexia may experience any or all of the following: Text blurring and sentences going out of focus. Wide gaps between words or phrases. Bunched text that appears to be in groups.
But if a child has a low IQ and additional problem with dyslexia, that just is going to mean that they're going to have even more difficulty learning to read. But knowing that, most people with dyslexia are, at least, average or above-average IQ. So, it is not related to intelligence at all.
Understanding and supporting individuals with Dyslexia, Dyscalculia, Dysgraphia, and Dyspraxia is essential for fostering an inclusive and effective learning environment. These disorders can also coincide with other conditions such as ADHD and Autism, requiring a comprehensive approach.
Confusion between left and right. Struggling with tasks like tying shoes. Mixing up sounds and syllables in long words. Trouble memorizing important things like their address or phone number.
Famous actors like Johnny Depp, Keira Knightly and Orlando Bloom all have dyslexia. Pablo Picasso's teachers described him as “having difficulty differentiating the orientation of letters”.
According to UMHS, the following conditions can present similar symptoms and difficulties to dyslexia:
Babies and preschool
Even though most people do not read in preschool, children can demonstrate symptoms of dyslexia by the age of 3 years, or even earlier. All children learn how to talk in their own way and at their own pace. However, a delay in starting to speak can be an early sign of dyslexia.
Consistent with earlier work showing that RAN, letter name knowledge, and phonological awareness are core predictors of dyslexia (Catts, Fey, Zhang, & Tomblin, 2001; Pennington & Lefly, 2001), these studies highlight the slow development of language, phonological awareness, and decoding-related skills, including poor ...
Words such as "to, it, of, what, have, from," etc. (sight words) are trigger words which must be mastered to eliminate the trigger for disorientation.
Confusing similar looking letters and words
Common mistakes when reading and spelling are mixing up b's and d's, or similar looking words such as 'was' and 'saw', 'how' and 'who'. Letters and numbers can be written back-to-front or upside down. The most common numbers for visual dyslexics to reverse are 9, 5 and 7.
Symptoms of aphasia
It affects people in different ways, but symptoms may include: not being able to say the right words , speaking very slowly or with long pauses. finding it very difficult to speak, or speaking in very short or incomplete sentences. repeating, mixing up or missing out words.
The Nonsense Word Test
Analyze the mispronounced words, looking for patterns that might provide information about the student's decoding strengths and weaknesses. Nonsense words have an important place in learning to master reading.
Actress Jennifer Aniston has publicly shared that she was diagnosed with dyslexia in her 20s, a diagnosis that explained lifelong struggles with reading, writing, and retaining information, leading her to believe she wasn't smart until discovering the learning disorder. She discovered this during an eye exam, where she realized her eyes jumped words when reading, and the diagnosis helped her understand past difficulties, transforming her self-perception.
Ryan Gosling has accumulated praise for movies like The Notebook, La La Land, and Barbie. However, behind this fame, his life's story was full of bravery. The Hollywood hunk faced dyslexia and Adhd as a kid. School was difficult, and bullying made it worse.
Common Misconceptions about Dyslexia
Dyslexia is a sign of low intelligence: Dyslexia does not impact your child's intelligence in any way. As a matter of fact, many dyslexic students are super intelligent and bursting with talent. The only challenge they have is that their brains process language differently.
Five key characteristics of dyslexia include difficulty with accurate and fluent reading, problems with spelling and writing, trouble retrieving words or mixing up sounds, avoiding reading/writing tasks, and challenges with sequencing (like days of the week or times tables), often stemming from difficulties with phonological processing (connecting sounds to letters).
Dyslexia does not worsen over time. However, the demands of adult life—more complex reading, multitasking, or workplace expectations—can make its effects more noticeable. With continued support, individuals often learn to manage their challenges and build on their strengths.
There are four types of dyslexia in common those are; Phonological dyslexia, surface dyslexia, rapid naming deficit, and double deficit dyslexia.
Bill Gates, one of the richest people in the world didn't let his dyslexia hold him back.
Three dimensional thinking and making connections
Many people with dyslexia demonstrate better skills at manipulating 3D objects in their mind. Many of the world's top architects and fashion designers have dyslexia.
The BDA Level 7 Diploma in Dyslexia Assessment and Intervention (AMBDA and AMBDA FE/HE) provides training for individuals who already hold ATS/APS (or equivalent) and have a professional interest in assessment for dyslexia.