Georgia Chiropractic Neurology Center

Brain Based Treatment for the 21st Century!

A Problem Many Face but Few Understand

In today’s classrooms, workplaces, and homes, one universal truth remains: we are always learning. Yet for many people, learning feels harder than it should. Some struggle to retain information when it is spoken aloud, others feel lost when asked to read directions, and some cannot focus unless they are actively doing an activity. When a person uses a learning strategy that does not match their brain’s strengths, frustration sets in. This can lead to poor academic performance, low self-esteem, and in some cases, the mistaken belief that they are “not smart enough.”

The reality is that every brain learns differently. When individuals understand their unique learning style and align strategies with it, their ability to absorb, integrate, and apply knowledge improves significantly. From a chiropractic neurology perspective, these differences reflect the way various neural networks process, prioritize, and store information.

The human brain is not a static machine. It is dynamic, adaptive, and constantly rewiring itself in response to stimulation and experience. A chiropractic neurologist approaches learning differences through the lens of functional neurology, asking not only what a person struggles with, but why the brain processes information the way it does. By understanding the underlying mechanisms of attention, memory, and sensory integration, we can guide individuals toward strategies that support their strengths while also rehabilitating weaker networks.

A Clear Plan: Understanding Learning Styles

Before considering difficulties, it helps to explore the major learning styles. While no single classification is perfect, the following categories provide a useful framework:

  1. Visual Learners
    • Prefer images, diagrams, and spatial organization.
    • Benefit from charts, mind maps, and color coding.
    • Their brains rely heavily on occipital lobe function and visual-spatial processing networks.
  2. Auditory Learners
    • Absorb best through spoken language, discussion, and repetition.
    • Thrive in lecture-based environments, podcasts, or by reading aloud.
    • This style reflects stronger auditory cortex processing and temporal lobe engagement.
  3. Kinesthetic Learners
    • Learn by moving, touching, and doing.
    • Prefer hands-on experiments, role-playing, or physically manipulating objects.
    • Their cerebellum and motor networks are heavily involved in cognitive engagement.
  4. Reading/Writing Learners
    • Retain best when writing notes, reading texts, and organizing written material.
    • Enjoy journals, textbooks, and lists.
    • Engage language-based networks and frontal lobe executive function.

It is important to note that most individuals use a blend of these styles, but often one dominates.

How to Discover Which Style Works Best

Determining a learning style requires more than a self-assessment quiz. A chiropractic neurologist would consider:

  • Observation: Watching how a person naturally engages with new material. Do they doodle diagrams, repeat words aloud, or move around the room?
  • Performance: Testing how well information is retained when presented visually, auditorily, or kinesthetically.
  • Neurological Examination: Assessing eye movements, balance, auditory processing, and motor control can reveal strengths and weaknesses in sensory pathways.
  • Feedback Loops: Experimenting with different strategies and evaluating outcomes over time.

When a strategy matches the brain’s natural processing preference, the nervous system conserves energy and learning becomes more efficient. When it mismatches, extra effort is required, leading to fatigue, distraction, and incomplete retention.

The Consequences of Mismatched Learning Strategies

If a person consistently learns in a way that does not align with their dominant style, challenges can appear. These difficulties are not necessarily evidence of a learning disability but can mimic or exacerbate them. Examples include:

  • Visual learner in an auditory-heavy classroom: May appear inattentive, struggle to follow lectures, or miss verbal instructions.
  • Auditory learner forced into written-only formats: Retention drops, and they may reread passages without comprehension.
  • Kinesthetic learner restricted to desk work: Restlessness, poor focus, or the label of being “disruptive.”

These challenges are neurologically based. A brain asked to process through weaker networks requires more frontal lobe executive effort to compensate. Over time, this can lead to stress, fatigue, and diminished confidence.

An Introduction to Learning Disabilities

While mismatched strategies explain many struggles, some individuals face deeper challenges rooted in atypical brain development. Learning disabilities are neurologically-based processing disorders that interfere with acquiring specific academic skills, despite average or above-average intelligence.

Some of the most common include:

  1. Dyslexia
    • Affects reading fluency, decoding, and comprehension.
    • Linked to differences in phonological processing and left hemisphere language networks.
  2. Dysgraphia
    • Impacts handwriting, spelling, and the ability to organize written expression.
    • Often involves fine motor control challenges and integration difficulties between frontal and parietal lobes.
  3. Dyscalculia
    • Affects numerical reasoning, sequencing, and mathematical problem-solving.
    • Related to differences in parietal lobe processing of spatial and numerical information.
  4. Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
    • Not strictly a learning disability, but it significantly affects focus, working memory, and task persistence.
    • Associated with frontal lobe regulation, dopamine transmission, and cerebellar networks.
  5. Auditory Processing Disorder (APD)
    • Difficulty interpreting sounds, particularly speech in noisy environments.
    • Involves temporal lobe processing delays or inefficiencies.
  6. Nonverbal Learning Disorder (NVLD)
    • Strong verbal skills but difficulties with spatial reasoning, motor coordination, and social cues.
    • Linked to right hemisphere differences in processing.

These conditions highlight the complexity of the brain’s learning systems. They are not about intelligence, but about how information is taken in, organized, and expressed.

How Chiropractic Neurology Approaches Learning Challenges

From a chiropractic neurology standpoint, the focus is not only on labeling a disability but on understanding the brain’s function at a systems level. Questions we consider include:

  • Which sensory pathways are dominant, and which are weak?
  • Is there an imbalance between hemispheres, lobes, or networks?
  • How does the autonomic nervous system regulate stress during learning tasks?
  • What rehabilitation strategies can strengthen weaker circuits while supporting stronger ones?

For example:

  • Eye movement training may support reading fluency in dyslexia.
  • Balance and cerebellar exercises can enhance attention and executive function in ADHD.
  • Auditory sequencing drills can help auditory processing disorders.

In addition, aligning educational strategies with the learner’s style ensures that strengths are leveraged while challenges are rehabilitated.

Why This Matters in Daily Life

When learning is inefficient or difficult, the impact extends far beyond school. Adults with unresolved learning challenges may struggle in careers that require constant adaptation. Children who repeatedly fail despite effort may internalize the belief that they are incapable. This creates emotional strain, avoidance behaviors, and even long-term anxiety or depression.

The good news is that learning styles and neurological challenges can be identified, understood, and supported. No one needs to remain locked in frustration. With the right guidance, the brain’s potential can be unlocked, opening doors to confidence, achievement, and joy in learning.

Help Is Available

If you or someone you know has struggled with learning, it is important to look beyond surface performance and ask deeper neurological questions. Understanding your learning style is the first step. Identifying whether a true learning disability is present is the second. From there, individualized strategies and neurological support can transform learning from a source of stress into a pathway of empowerment.

Every brain is capable of growth. Every learner has strengths. The challenge is simply finding the right key to unlock them.

If you or someone you love is experiencing difficulty with learning and you would like to learn how chiropractic neurology can help, contact the team at Georgia Chiropractic Neurology Center today. We look forward to hearing from you.

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Written by Sophie Hose, DC, MS, DACNB, CCSP

Peer-Reviewed References

  1. Shaywitz, S. E., & Shaywitz, B. A. (2008). Paying attention to reading: The neurobiology of reading and dyslexia. Development and Psychopathology, 20(4), 1329–1349. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579408000631
  2. Butterworth, B., Varma, S., & Laurillard, D. (2011). Dyscalculia: From brain to education. Science, 332(6033), 1049–1053. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1201536
  3. Barkley, R. A. (2015). Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: A handbook for diagnosis and treatment (4th ed.). New York: Guilford Press.
  4. Bishop, D. V. M. (2014). Ten questions about terminology for children with unexplained language problems. International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders, 49(4), 381–415. https://doi.org/10.1111/1460-6984.12101