A U2 star has opened up on his extremely rare health condition that means he no longer has the ability to count numbers.
Larry Mullen Jr has been speaking about his recent dyscalculia diagnosis, a medical condition that is often linked to dyslexia.
According to the British Dyslexia Association, dyscalculia is a ‘a specific and persistent difficulty in understanding numbers which can lead to a diverse range of difficulties with mathematics’.
Unlike dyslexia, the health condition can occur at any age, and is also not linked to any one ability. It’s also extremely rare; only about six percent of people suffer with the condition.
Speaking about the challenges he faces on a daily, Mullen Jr told Radio Times: “I’ve always known that there’s something not particularly right with the way that I deal with numbers. I’m numerically challenged. And I realised recently that I have dyscalculia… so I can’t add, I can’t count.
“I had to find ways of doing this, and counting bars is like climbing Everest. And when people watch me play sometimes, they say, ‘You look pained’. I am pained because I’m trying to count the bars.”
Mullen Jr has since written and produced Left Behind, a new movie that focuses on the topic of dyslexia.
Essentially, the film follows five mothers who are determined to establish a state-run school that is specifically for children with dyslexia.
The film, which is set to be released in 2025, will hopefully raise awareness for the condition over the coming months and years.
“Making the music through the eyes of my dyslexic son felt personal and visceral,” the U2 drummer said.
Research into dyscalculia remain at a premium, and is said to be around 30 years behind that of work looking into dyslexia.
The Dyslexia Association continues: “It is thought that the lack of number sense that is often common to people with dyscalculia is connected to the function of the left intraparietal sulcus which deals with numbers, and the front lobe, which deals with reasoning. It can therefore be hereditary but also connected to certain developmental conditions like Foetal Alcohol Syndrome.
“An estimated 25 percent of people have maths learning difficulties which can be caused either by other neurodiverse conditions such as dyslexia or external issues such as a traumatic learning experience related to maths or school absence etc.”
The website went on to state 60 percent of individuals with dyslexia will have some kind of difficulties with maths.
