Prince Carl Philip Of Sweden Talks Being Dyslexic, His Struggle With Reading And Writing

Prince Carl Philp of Sweden has opened up about his struggle with dyslexia, right from childhood. He said that he becomes sad when the disorder is mistaken for being stupid. He recounted his school days when he used to get red marks constantly in his report card.

The 36-year-old royal, who is now all set to become a father in April 2016, wanted to ensure that no child suffers stigma related to learning disorder. Carl Philip is set to welcome his first child along with his wife Princess Sofia. The Swedish prince, who loves sports like formula one, hunting and other outdoor has now opened up about his reading and writing difficulties.

Carl Philip has been selected to race with Volvo in 2016. He also participated in the Scandinavian Touring Car Championship. However, in March he helped organize a major dyslexia conference to help children experiencing reading and writing problems.

“Prince Carl Philip himself has dyslexia. He told me how important it is that children with reading and writing difficulties shouldn’t feel left out at school,” said Bengt-Erik Johansson of Dyslexia Association of Sweden, of which Carl Philip was just named a patron. He said the prince told him that it makes him very sad when some people are called stupid because of their dyslexia.

Johansson added that students will be comforted by the fact that they are not alone battling the disorder. He said that maybe when kids think that even their prince has dyslexia, they will not feel so isolated in the classroom. This will help them make progress at school, Johansson told Sveriges Radio.

In many cases, dyslexia is genetic and runs in the family. Carl Philip is not the only Swedish royal to be dyslexic, but his father King Carl XVI Gustaf and older sister Crown Princess Victoria also have similar problems.

The young prince visited the Dyslexia Association in May 2014. He participated in discussions with the members and also got to know about the association’s projects. He also interacted with a student who showed him the tools she had been given.

The 36-year-old royal spoke about his headline grabbing appearance at the Swedish sports awards gala Idrottsgalan 2013. He stumbled while announcing one of the winners. It caused quite a stir in the local media which branded him “stupid and unintelligent.”