Finding Dory is about someone with short term memory loss, which is obviously very different from ADHD, but it definitely has some similarities and, as an ADHD girl, I really connected with Dory on that level. Throughout the whole movie you can see her struggling to remember something that should be easy. Such as "two lefts then a right." or Jewel of California... Something. Even I can't remember. There were several moments I was nearly sobbing, not because of a sad part of the movie because but because I connected so much to Dory's struggle. Such as the line "the thoughts just leave my head." or when she's lost in the kelp with no clue what she has forgotten or where she just came from. All she has is the crushing knowledge that she has forgotten something important, and she's all alone with no one to help her. She deals with kinda an overload and goes into a panicked frenzy until she stops and just figures out things out from what she does know, which was actually a great lesson. Sometimes you just have to force yourself to take it one simple step at a time. Ocean, or kelp? Kelp is better. Rocks, or sand? I like sand, sand is squishy.
One of the best things about this movie though is that it wasn't a lament, "Oh, poor Dory has to live her whole life with this disability!" but rather an eye-opener. Just because people like Dory, or those with ADHD can't do what others can doesn't mean we're useless. We have our own special abilities no one else has. Like the way Dory always finds a way out because she's willing to believe in an idea so crazy it just might work. Sound familiar? A disability is just a different ability, and that's the message I really got from Finding Dory. She can't hate on herself for forgetting things because she can't help help it. She can, however, find things that work for her.
Jenny is one of my favorite characters in Finding Dory because she doesn't get frustrated with Dory's inability to remember, but rather helps her overcome it in unique and interactive ways, such as coming up with phrases or songs like "Just keep swimming, just keep swimming" These things stayed with Dory even when she couldn't remember where she learned them or why.
So to all of you out there like Dory, or like me, just keep swimming and know that you can accomplish great things and that you are "Fearfully and wonderfully made" ~ Psalm 139:14
To all of you who are the friends, family, or significant other of someone with short-term memory loss or ADHD, thank you for staying with us and loving us through it all. Thank you for your patience. We don't say this enough, but we would not have gotten this far without you.
~Katie Stone~
