With as much gentleness and respect as I can convey to you across the internet, may I suggest that allowing the opinions and judgements of others from many years ago (very possibly limited or mistaken) to rule your experience of yourself now and your choices into the future is punishing yourself for the errors of others. Those persons or organizations no longer have authority over you; any power they have is power you abdicate to them at this point.
I reiterate, HIQ, that while there is nothing you can do to change the past, you can absolutely make choices about the future. Your capacity to learn, grow, create, and act as an independent moral agent is not limited by the labels you may or may not have received in school. You have many more opportunities open before you than any you may have lost previously.
