05/11/2026
Reading English has always felt physically difficult for me in a way I could never fully explain.
It’s not just “understanding” the words.
My whole sense of rhythm, focus, and even body awareness feels strained when reading English text for long periods. Like my brain has to force itself through a narrow channel.
But when I read Japanese or Chinese characters, the experience feels different. More spatial. More visual. More intuitive. My eyes and mind don’t fight the page in the same way.
I recently learned that different writing systems actually recruit the brain differently.
English relies more on sequential sound-decoding and left-hemisphere language processing:
letter → sound → word.
(❌Mai buk ✅My book)
Chinese characters and kanji involve more visual-spatial (recognizing shapes, structure, movement) and bilateral brain processing:
pattern → meaning → sound.
So dyslexia and reading difficulty can feel very different depending on the language and script.
Same brain. Different cognitive pathways.