---
title: 'Video: New England Patriot Lawrence Guy on overcoming stigma and being your best'
description: NFL football player Lawrence Guy talks about growing up with learning disabilities and playing professional sports, and share words of wisdom for young athletes.
slug: video-new-england-patriot-lawrence-guy-on-overcoming-stigma-and-being-your-best
published: '2019-10-16T11:49:13.724Z'
thumbnail: https://cdn-images.understood.org/p0qf7j048i0q/CBA4400A86E34CA38F3B89D4A414553B/9977439b115b2dbeabf4fc43f7f0e74e/072618_Video_New_England_Patriot_Lawrence_Guy_on_Bringing_Out_the_Best_in_Yourself.jpg
source_url: https://www.understood.org/en/articles/video-new-england-patriot-lawrence-guy-on-overcoming-stigma-and-being-your-best
lang: en
---

# Video: New England Patriot Lawrence Guy on overcoming stigma and being your best

Lawrence Guy was diagnosed with dyslexia, dyscalculia, and ADHD as a young child. Hear his inspiring story about his journey from special education to the NFL: His father as his strongest advocate, his goal of getting into college, and his decision to finally seek out the help he needed at Arizona State.

Plus, learn how the New England Patriot defensive end is now helping future athletes to be their own self-advocates and bring out the best in themselves.

[![Video](https://cdn-images.understood.org/p0qf7j048i0q/CBA4400A86E34CA38F3B89D4A414553B/9977439b115b2dbeabf4fc43f7f0e74e/072618_Video_New_England_Patriot_Lawrence_Guy_on_Bringing_Out_the_Best_in_Yourself.jpg)](https://www.youtube.com/embed/jvK9kS8g7Mo)

---

## Explore related topics and articles

- [Video: The journey from student with dyslexia and ADHD to special education teacher](https://www.understood.org/en/articles/video-the-journey-from-a-student-with-dyslexia-and-adhd-to-a-special-education-teacher) - Anya was identified with dyslexia and ADHD in elementary school. Her mother who had similar issues was determined to make sure Anya never felt like she was less than anyone else.  Anyas incredibly supportive parents read books to her, taught her to self-advocate, and kept her focused on education th
- [Video: My experience with dyslexia and bullying ](https://www.understood.org/en/articles/video-dyslexia-and-bullying) - David was diagnosed with dyslexia at an early age. But he didn’t always have access to the resources and support he needed to thrive in school.
- [Video: A Harvard graduate on growing up with dyslexia](https://www.understood.org/en/articles/video-a-harvard-graduate-on-growing-up-with-dyslexia) - In this video, Harvard graduate Laura Schifter shares her experience growing up with dyslexia. She explains how support from her parents and teachers helped her succeed. She also talks about why she decided to work in the field of education.

---

<!-- structured-data -->
```json
[{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://www.understood.org/en/articles/video-new-england-patriot-lawrence-guy-on-overcoming-stigma-and-being-your-best#webpage","url":"https://www.understood.org/en/articles/video-new-england-patriot-lawrence-guy-on-overcoming-stigma-and-being-your-best","description":"NFL football player Lawrence Guy talks about growing up with learning disabilities and playing professional sports, and share words of wisdom for young athletes."},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://www.understood.org/en/articles/video-new-england-patriot-lawrence-guy-on-overcoming-stigma-and-being-your-best","name":"Video: New England Patriot Lawrence Guy on overcoming stigma and being your best"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","datePublished":"2019-10-16T11:49:13.724Z","description":"NFL football player Lawrence Guy talks about growing up with learning disabilities and playing professional sports, and share words of wisdom for young athletes.","headline":"Video: New England Patriot Lawrence Guy on overcoming stigma and being your best","url":"https://www.understood.org/en/articles/video-new-england-patriot-lawrence-guy-on-overcoming-stigma-and-being-your-best","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://www.understood.org/#organization","name":"Understood for All Inc","logo":"https://cdn-images.understood.org/p0qf7j048i0q/307jFAYQevghG8nQMCjh89/ccdbbec895765824db43f6d30b496e83/logo_lockup_navy.jpg"}}]
```