I was adopted from Brazil

Related: Language Disorders

by Beth
Monday, May 11, 2009

I was adopted from Brazil. I was born in the slums of Brazil and my birth mother was too poor to take care of me. She gave me up for adoption which was the best thing for me. When I came to the states at the age of 4 I was malnourished. I had worms growing inside me. I had allot of health problems. I was speaking portuguese. Learning english was very hard for me. I was held back a year becuase I did not speak english. My mom noticed that I was having trouble in school. I was always falling behind and my mom was getting calls from all my teachers about my inapropiate behavoir. My mom got me a speach teacher when I was in first grade. I had trouble pernouncing my Rs. The summer after 4th grade I got tested and then was diagosed with a learning disability in language and math and with ADHD. Right after that my mom and my doctor put me on Ritalin. Ritalin changed my life for the better. I then after was doing better in school and I was reading. I started taking the ritalin in 5th grade and continued to take it when I graduated from College. I went to the Norman Howard school for 7th grade and up to 10th grade. Norman Howard school is a school in Rochester NY for kids who have learning disabilities and ADD. Then for 11th and 12th grade I went to a catholic all girls private school. High school was hard for me. It took me many hours every night to do my homework. I never gave up and worked very hard. Graduating from high school was one of the best days of my life. Then I told all my old teachers from 1st grade, "look I told you so, I finished high school and with regents. I am not retarded after all." I went to Cazenovia College and got my bachelors degree in Liberal Arts. My grandpa always said, you have come a long way baby. I could of not done it with out my mom. She helped amd supported me all the way through. Most of all I made it happen. I did not let me learning disability stop me from doing what I wanted to do.