Dyslexia: Type settings that are Bad for Dyslexia

Web accessibility doesn’t only extend to color blind users, but dyslexic users too. Dyslexia is a learning disability that impairs a person’s fluency or accuracy in being able to read, write, and spell.

We can help dyslexic users read text more fluently and accurately by understanding and avoiding the bad design practices that hurt dyslexic users.

Seeing things from their eyes can give us a better perspective on why accessible design is so important.

When dyslexic users read text, sometimes they can experience visual distortion effects.

These effects vary in degree from person to person, but they can make reading text that much harder.

Below are six bad practices that are likely to cause these visual distortion effects for dyslexic users.

These bad practices can also make reading difficult for non-dyslexic users but the effect they have on dyslexic users is much worse.

River effect

Dyslexic users may sometimes see the river effect in the text they’re reading.

This is when large gaps occur within consecutive lines of text. It can often look like a river of whitespace flowing down the page, which can make reading fluently and accurately difficult.

There are a couple bad practices that make the river effect happen.

1. Justified text

When you use justified text, you’re not only making text difficult to read for non-dyslexic users, but even more so for dyslexic users. Justified text creates large uneven spaces between letters and words.

When these spaces line up above one another, a distracting river of whitespace prominently appears.

This can cause dyslexic readers to lose their place repeatedly. You can avoid creating the river effect by using left aligned text, instead of justified text for your paragraphs.

2. Double spacing after periods

Most of us were taught to double space after periods at the end of a sentence.

This practice originates from the typewriting days of the past. Because typewriters used monospaced fonts, people thought that double spacing after periods would make the end of sentences more distinct.

However, on the web, single spacing after periods are enough because most websites use proportionally spaced fonts.

Double spacing after a period can create “rivers” within text that make it difficult for users to find the end of sentences. On the web, single spacing wins.

Blur effect

Another kind of visual distortion effect that can occur among dyslexic users is the blur effect.

This is when dyslexic readers see their text blurring or swirling or together.

This can significantly affect a dyslexic user’s reading ability, and make reading very tiring for them.

You can lessen this effect by avoiding a couple of bad practices.

3. Pure black text on a pure white background

There’s a reason the text you’re reading now is not pure black (#000000), and the background that it’s on is not pure white (#FFFFFF).

It’s because many dyslexic users are sensitive to the brightness of pure black text on a pure white background due to its high contrast.

This can cause the words to swirl or blur together. To avoid this, use a slightly off-white colour for your background, like a light gray.

You can also use a dark gray for your text instead of a pure black to cut the glare even more.

4. Long blocks of unbroken paragraphs

Long blocks of unbroken paragraphs are hard for non-dyslexic users to read, but even harder for dyslexic readers. It’s easy for dyslexic readers to lose their place with long paragraphs.

That’s why it’s better to use short paragraphs that express one idea. This is because dyslexic users need more breaks between ideas than non-dyslexic users.

Breaking up your text to one idea per paragraph makes reading a lot easier for both dyslexic and non-dyslexic users.

Washout effect

Sometimes dyslexic users can experience the washout effect. When this happens, the text looks faint and indistinct.

This can make reading slower and cause dyslexic users to guess what a word is because of the difficulty seeing it. To lessen this effect, there are two bad practices you should avoid with your text.

5. Serif fonts

Serif fonts have hooks at the ends of the letter strokes. They may look decorative, but they can cause reading problems for dyslexic users.

Serifs tend to obscure the shapes of letters, making the letters run together.

A sans-serif font would allow dyslexic users to see the shapes of letters more clearly because they don’t have hooks at the ends of the letter strokes.

This also increases the spacing between letters, making words more distinguishable. If you want your users to read your text easily, go with a san-serif font.

6. Italicised text

Italics are sometimes used to highlight text. However, the reason you shouldn’t use italicized text is because they are hard to read.

The letters have a slightly jagged line compared to non-italic fonts. The letters also lean over slightly making it hard for dyslexic users to read words accurately.

When the text size is small, the text is practically illegible. A better way to highlight is to use bold text because the letters are clearer and give better contrast.

There are many dyslexic users that suffer from badly designed websites. All of these bad practices are quick and easy to fix. It’s a matter of knowledge and understanding that will get people to change.

Hopefully, this article has shed some light on how dyslexic users experience the web, and what designers can do to make their reading experience better.

Additional References and Information Sources
1. http://www.angelfire.com/tn3/writing/DesignUsersReadDis.pdf
2. http://clearhelper.wordpress.com/2009/12/14/web-site-design-suggestions-for-people-with-dyslexsia
3. http://www.dyslexia-parent.com/mag35.html
4. http://www.pws-ltd.com/sections/articles/2009/justified_text.html
5. http://irlen.com.sg/irlen.html
6. http://accessites.org/site/2006/11/designing-for-dyslexics-part-3-of-3
7. http://www.bdadyslexia.org.uk/about-dyslexia/further-information/eyes-and-dyslexia.html
8. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justification_(typesetting)
9. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_spacing_at_the_end_of_sentences
10. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dyslexia]

ADHD’s Impact on Relationships: 10 Tips to Help

Solutions for ADHD in Relationships

1. Get educated.
Knowing how ADHD manifests in adults helps you know what to expect. As Orlov said, when you know that your partner’s lack of attention is the result of ADHD, and has little to do with how they feel about you, you’ll deal with the situation differently. Together you might brainstorm strategies to minimize distractibility instead of yelling at your partner.

In other words, “Once you start looking at ADHD symptoms, you can get to the root of the problem and start to manage and treat the symptoms as well as manage the responses,” Orlov said.

2. Seek optimal treatment.
Orlov likens optimal treatment for ADHD to a three-legged stool. (The first two steps are relevant for everyone with ADHD; the last is for people in relationships.)

“Leg 1” involves making “physical changes to balance out the chemical differences in the brain,” which includes medication, aerobic exercise and sufficient sleep. “Leg 2” is all about making behavioral changes, or “essentially creating new habits.” Which might include creating physical reminders and to-do lists, carrying a tape recorder and hiring help. “Leg 3” is “interactions with your partner,” such as scheduling time together and using verbal cues to stop fights from escalating.

3. Remember it takes two to tango.
Regardless of who has ADHD, both partners are responsible for working on the relationship, Orlov emphasized. Say a couple is struggling with a parent-child dynamic. A way to overcome this obstacle, according to Orlov, is for the non-ADHD partner to give away some of the responsibilities.

But this has to be a done in a thoughtful and reasonable way so you don’t set your partner up for failure. It requires a specific process that involves assessing the strengths of each partner, making sure the ADHD partner has the skills (which they can learn from a therapist, coach, support groups or books) and putting external structures in place, Orlov said.

Also helpful is generating ideas together about completing a project and “coordinating [your] expectations and goals.”

As you’re starting to work on your relationship, the partner with ADHD might initially react defensively because they assume that they’ll be blamed for everything. But this usually subsides “once they become more informed and less threatened and see that their partner is willing to take a chance [to improve the relationship] and make changes themselves” such as managing their own anger and nagging.

4. Set up structure.
External structural cues are key for people with ADHD and, again, make up another part of treatment. So it’s important to pick an organizational system that works for you and includes reminders. For instance, it’s tremendously helpful to break down a project into several actionable steps on paper and set cell phone reminders regularly, Orlov said.

5. Make time to connect.
“Marriage is all about attending to each other adequately,” said Orlov, who suggested that couples consider how they can better connect with each other.

This might involve going on weekly dates, talking about issues that are important and interesting to you (“not just logistics”) and even scheduling time for sex. (Because ADHD partners get easily distracted, they might spend hours on an activity like the computer, and before you know it, you’re fast asleep.)

6. Remember that ADHD is a disorder.
When untreated, ADHD might affect all areas of a person’s life, and it’s hard to separate the symptoms from the person you love, Orlov said. But “a person who has ADD shouldn’t be defined by their ADHD.” In the same vein, don’t take their symptoms personally.

7. Empathize.
Understanding the impact that ADHD has on both partners is critical to improving your relationship. Put yourself in their shoes. If you don’t have ADHD, try to appreciate just how difficult it is to live every day with a slew of intrusive symptoms. If you do have ADHD, try to understand how much your disorder has changed your partner’s life.

8. Seek support.
Whether you’re the partner that has ADHD or not, you may feel very alone. Orlov suggested attending adult support groups. She gives a couples course by phone and one of the most common comments she hears is how beneficial it is for couples to know that others also are struggling with these issues.

Friends and family can help, too. However, some may not understand ADHD or your situation, Orlov said. Give them literature on ADHD and its impact on relationships.

9. Remember the positives of your relationship.
In The ADHD Effect on Marriage, Orlov writes that “remembering the positives in your relationship is an important step in moving forward.” Here’s what one wife loves about her husband (from the book):

On weekends, he has a coffee ready for me when I wake up in the morning. He tolerates my “morning grumpies” and knows not to take any of my grousing personally until an hour after I get up. He shares my passion for random trivia. He has no problem with my odder personality quirks and even encourages some of them. He encourages me in my passions. His need to keep life interesting can really keep life interesting in a positive way.

10. Instead of trying harder, try differently.
Couples who try with all their might to improve their relationship can feel disheartened when nothing changes, or worse, when things deteriorate, as Orlov experienced first-hand in her marriage. Trying harder made both her and her husband feel resentful and hopeless.

What does it mean to try differently? It means adding ADHD-friendly strategies and knowing how ADHD functions.

It also means that both partners change their perspective. According to Orlov, the non-ADHD spouse might think that the ADHD or their partner is to blame. Instead, she encourages non-ADHD partners to shift their thinking to “neither of us is to blame and we are both responsible for creating change.”

Another common belief non-ADHD spouses have is that they must teach their ADHD spouse how to do things or compensate for what they can’t do. A better way is to think “I am never my spouse’s keeper. We will respectfully negotiate how we can each contribute.”

Having ADHD can leave many feeling defeated and deflated. They might think, “I don’t really understand when I might succeed or fail. I’m not sure I want to take on challenges.” Orlov suggested shifting this thinking to “My inconsistency in the past has an explanation: ADHD. Fully treating ADHD will enable greater consistency and success.”

People with ADHD also can feel unloved or unappreciated or that their partner wants to change them. Instead, Orlov suggested altering your perspective to, “I am loved/lovable, but some of my ADHD symptoms are not. I am responsible for managing my negative symptoms.”

Even though your past might be riddled with bad memories and relationship problems, this doesn’t have to be your future, Orlov underscored. You “can make quite dramatic changes” in your relationship, and “there is hope.”

ADHD’s Impact on Relationships: 10 Tips to Help | Psych Central

Research Claims Ritalin Improves Ability to Learn

Research Claims Ritalin Improves Ability to Learn

Ritalin (methylphenidate), a drug prescribed for millions of children who have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), appears to improve the ability to learn by enhancing the speed of learning. Currently, Ritalin is prescribed to help inhibit impulsive behaviour, which in turn can improve a child’s ability to focus on tasks.

The new finding is the result of research by investigators at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). It is significant because it lets scientists know that Ritalin impacts and improves behaviour through two specific types of neurotransmitter receptors rather than just one. Neurotransmitters are chemicals that act as messengers to allow neurons to communicate with each other.

Previously experts knew that Ritalin enhanced the activity of the neurotransmitter dopamine receptor known as D2, which controls the ability to stay focused on a task. The new research shows that another dopamine receptor called D1, which is involved in the ability to learn and learning efficiency, is also affected by Ritalin. Apparently the drug produces these benefits by strengthening the ability of the neurons to communicate with each other at their meeting points, called synapses.

These new findings may allow researchers to develop more efficient drugs to treat ADHD and to improve the ability to focus and learn more efficiently, according to Antonello Bonci, MD, principal investigator at the Ernest Gallo Clinic and Research Center and professor of neurology at UCSF.

Improve Your Memory - No Guarantees but it may help

If you’re looking for a way to increase the capacity of your memory or pass a test, you don’t need to memorise 23,000 words but the technique used to memorise large amounts of data can be used to memorise anything.

Below is the simpler version of a memory improvement system, developed to help pupils pass history, psychology, and other information-heavy tests.

• First, use a pencil (or word processor, it’s faster) to type in complete sentences, any fact you think might appear on the test.
• Use short sentences because they’re easier to remember.
• Take your printed notes into a quiet room, shut the door, and eliminate all distractions.
• Look at the first sentence in your notes and read it out loud. Then, close your eyes and say the sentence without looking at it.
• Repeat the step above, this time with the first 2 sentences.
• Next, try it with 3 sentences. Then 4. Repeat until you have memorised every sentence in your notes.

After a study session, take a quick nap. New memories are very vulnerable, but studies have shown that sleep helps your new memories stick. After your nap, repeat the memory technique once more for maximum retention.

The person who provided this system became so good at the technique that they could complete all studying for any 'information heavy' mid-term or final exam, in less than 6 hours.

Whatever you do, do not ignore all your classes until the last minute, but it’s good to know there is a way to save yourself if you do.

Does it Really Work?
This memory technique isn’t the newest, the prettiest, or the most interesting technique on the market but it should worked for most people, even people who claim to have the “worst memory in the world.”