“Out of the struggle, you find that unique gift that comes from your disability.”

That’s what Patrick Dempsey, the actor best known and adored for his role as Dr. Derek Shepherd on Grey’s Anatomy, led with when he spoke at Gatepath’s annual “Power of Possibilities” event. He spoke candidly about growing up with Dyslexia.

Patrick spent his formative grammar school years in special education classes. For him, it felt like he and his classmates were abandoned misfits and forgotten because they didn’t fit into the way the educational system was designed. To make things even more challenging, there wasn’t much known about Dyslexia, so there were no supports in place to help him with his learning disabilities.

“We all wanted to belong, to believe in ourselves and have confidence. When you’re not meeting the expectations of what society considers perfect or normal, it wears on you. You feel left out and discarded.”

In order to deal with feeling ignored (and bored of the curriculum), he would entertain his other classmates. He said it was here, in special education classrooms, where he discovered what he was good at.

Like others who didn’t fit the norm, Patrick was bullied. Finding it hard to communicate verbally, he defended himself physically so he was often sent to the office.

“The trouble with that is that my mother was the secretary for the Principal.”

Patrick, like so many children with learning or developmental disabilities, fell through the cracks in an educational system that didn’t understand his unique challenges. It was only later that his diagnosis freed him from feeling that he wasn’t smart or capable of learning.

“Everybody’s an individual and we have to approach education in that way.”

He wants the education system to inspire a love for learning in all children, so no child ever hates getting up in the morning because they have to go and “fail” at school. What got him through his struggles with the written word was television, specifically documentaries, as well as audio books he could listen to at the library.

For someone with reading challenges, why did he go into acting as a career?

“Acting is the worse profession I could have chosen, really. I mean it’s all about the ‘word’ right? You have to read…

I had 10 years of auditioning and I couldn’t just go in and pick up the script and read it cold. Usually they’d give you 10 scenes to come in and audition with but use only 2. I never knew which ones so I’d have to memorize all those pages of dialog. Thank god, I wasn’t qualified to do anything else, otherwise I would have given up.”

It was a really tough period but he just kept at it. He sees all of his struggles in early childhood and having success much later in life as a gift. It keeps him grounded, focused on making the most of his opportunities, and not caught up in the fame.

“It’s nice and it’s wonderful but it’s not who you are.”

What advice does he have for others who feel shame because of their disability?

“Everybody’s journey is different but the most important thing is knowing that this has nothing to do with your intelligence, at all. I hate labels because it puts you in a box and that’s what [society] thinks you’re supposed to be. Find your own self-worth and a loving environment that will nurture you so you can find and develop your own gift.”

And Patrick Dempsey’s message for society?

“When people stand up and they work together as a community for what is right, change will happen.”

He expressed his admiration for Gatepath and the change they’re igniting in their community for people like Annett Guterres. Annett dreamed of working independently and with Gatepath’s support and her own hard work, she’s become a valued employee for Marriott Hotels. Even better, she has blossomed into a leader and positive role model for others.

“That’s the Power of Possibilities in action.”

Watch Annett’s story filmed by Joey Travolta’s Inclusion Films with filmmakers who are on the autism spectrum.

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• Why Colin Farrell Believes in the Pledge for Inclusion
• Holly Robinson Peete and the “Power of Possibilities”

Images courtesy of Gatepath

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