I never expanded my comfort zone, and so I was almost never truly comfortable. What I mean is this: by letting my L.D. limit me, I limited my entire adolescent life. I never talked to anyone but my few friends; never tried learning new things; never bothered with any sport other than football; never took any risks of any kind . . . And so eventually, when the time would come to choose between taking a risk and the certain failure of trying to maintain comfort, the choice was no longer mine. I'd made that choice long ago by allowing my L.D. to put boundaries on who I was, or what I had the capacity to be and to become.

By clinging to familiar things, I stunted my social growth. It took me years to recover my sense of independence, to learn to survive on my own and to force myself to try new things.

While I won't make excuses for myself, I can now look at my high school years understanding that kids with L.D.s tend to lean on one particular person, or one subject, or sport, or whatever makes that individual comfortable. And in retrospect, I can appreciate the importance of breaking those habits as soon as you see them forming. I can understand the need to expand your comfort zone and to allow yourself to grow both socially and mentally. And, if nothing else, I can tell you this much: