I realise that in a community like this I’m going to stick out like a sore thumb, mind you ;-)
Check the following links, here is my homepage from when I was 18 and this is another page from that year. Looks more like something made by a 14 year old, doesn’t it? And since Desrtopa mentioneddiscalculia, your case might be stronger, but it took me 3 attempts to figure out how old I was in 2002 :-)
There do exist neurological deficits that prevent people from acquiring certain skills, understand some concepts and reach certain performance levels, but I wouldn’t jump to a conclusion in your case. A lot of it might very well has to do with what you believe to be the case, rather than what is actual. I haven’t hit any barrier yet. And I only learnt to read analog clocks when I was around 14.
I admit that I can’t put myself in your position, so maybe I am wrong and you should stop worrying about mathematics. I am only saying that you might as well stop caring, but not give up. In other words, do not panic, just try it and don’t expect to succeed. Start small, think about the most basic problem for as long as necessary, without feeling coerced to understand it. Use objects and drawings to approach the problem. Read up on various different sources explaining the same problem. Do not stop reading, or listening to explanations when you feel that you can’t follow anymore, just read it over and over again. Then stop for a few hours or days and think about it again. And remember not to push yourself to understand it, you just do it in your spare-time, for fun. If you feel overwhelmed, just forget about it and get back to it later. Write it down, print it out and plaster the walls in your bedroom with it so that you don’t need any willpower to approach the problem, the problem will approach you. You have all the time you need, even if it takes decades to understand that one simple problem.
It also helps to remember that almost everyone knows someone who is much better at something. Many people learn to play a musical instrument and never expect to become a professional musician. People play golf or soccer, just for fun or because of the challenge. Almost nobody turns out to be good at what they are doing. Personally I like to play an online racing game called Trackmania. I play it since 2007 and only managed to reach the world rank 34795. And I still play it, even though I almost never win. If you have trouble doing basic arithmetic, well then, try to enjoy the challenge, don’t worry, don’t panic!
Check the following links, here is my homepage from when I was 18 and this is another page from that year. Looks more like something made by a 14 year old, doesn’t it? And since Desrtopa mentioned discalculia, your case might be stronger, but it took me 3 attempts to figure out how old I was in 2002 :-)
There do exist neurological deficits that prevent people from acquiring certain skills, understand some concepts and reach certain performance levels, but I wouldn’t jump to a conclusion in your case. A lot of it might very well has to do with what you believe to be the case, rather than what is actual. I haven’t hit any barrier yet. And I only learnt to read analog clocks when I was around 14.
I admit that I can’t put myself in your position, so maybe I am wrong and you should stop worrying about mathematics. I am only saying that you might as well stop caring, but not give up. In other words, do not panic, just try it and don’t expect to succeed. Start small, think about the most basic problem for as long as necessary, without feeling coerced to understand it. Use objects and drawings to approach the problem. Read up on various different sources explaining the same problem. Do not stop reading, or listening to explanations when you feel that you can’t follow anymore, just read it over and over again. Then stop for a few hours or days and think about it again. And remember not to push yourself to understand it, you just do it in your spare-time, for fun. If you feel overwhelmed, just forget about it and get back to it later. Write it down, print it out and plaster the walls in your bedroom with it so that you don’t need any willpower to approach the problem, the problem will approach you. You have all the time you need, even if it takes decades to understand that one simple problem.
It also helps to remember that almost everyone knows someone who is much better at something. Many people learn to play a musical instrument and never expect to become a professional musician. People play golf or soccer, just for fun or because of the challenge. Almost nobody turns out to be good at what they are doing. Personally I like to play an online racing game called Trackmania. I play it since 2007 and only managed to reach the world rank 34795. And I still play it, even though I almost never win. If you have trouble doing basic arithmetic, well then, try to enjoy the challenge, don’t worry, don’t panic!