Cancer Survivors Network

I was diagnosed with the 5 cm oligodendroglioma in my left frontal lobe in April 1996, had it surgically resected at time of diagnosis, then followed by six months of chemotherapy and six weeks of intensive radiation. I have weathered all the trauma remarkably well but it has still left its mark, primarily in my cognitive functions (ability to process thought and understand written or spoken media). I have done well with continuing education, achieving a BA in 2000 and am considering going for an MA in Education and becoming a Special Ed teacher. But I would not have been able to accomplish that without help from the Services for Disabled Students Office at the university I attended. The problem I have is with family refusing to cut me some slack when my difficulty understanding verbal commands costs me a job (which has been the case with every position I've had since 1997). They insist that I am imaging my disability(ies) and that I need to "grow up", "stop slacking off and start acting like a functional adult". "You graduated with honors, there's nothing wrong with you." I graduated with honors by taking only 12 units (3 of which were for being a teacher's aid in a lab and 1 or 2 units for PE courses) and lots of assistance from notetakers, readers, and private testing facilities where I had twice the regular time to complete the exams. I'm tired of my family coming down on me and not believing my answers. I've tried ignoring them, but it still hurts. Does anyone have any ideas of how I can cope with this?