What are the symptoms of dyspraxia? Children with dyspraxia usually have motor learning difficulties. Some children with dyspraxia also have other physical or behavioural problems. Motor dyspraxia involves trouble with coordinating physical movements, for example, walking up or down stairs, kicking balls, or hopping.
Symptoms of dyspraxia
You may find routine tasks difficult. If you have dyspraxia it may affect: your co-ordination, balance and movement. how you learn new skills, think, and remember information at work and home.
Dyspraxia (developmental coordination disorder) can cause a wide range of issues with coordination and motor skills. While most people with dyspraxia show signs of the condition by the time they start school, some people have mild forms of the condition that are more difficult to detect.
Only a trained healthcare or education professional can make a diagnosis.
Typically dyspraxia is most obvious with new tasks and in new situations as these require much more planning than familiar tasks. If the child or adult only has difficulty with doing, then this would not meet the criteria for dyspraxia as initially described by Ayres.
Learning Disabilities and Dyspraxia
Individuals with this condition have trouble planning and organising their thoughts. They are often unable to understand logic or reason. Many of the learning disabilities that children with dyspraxia face are linked with embarrassment related to their physical disability.
Dyspraxia can effect fine motor skills such as using cutlery and scissors, being able to brush hair and do things most women take for granted, such as applying makeup and painting nails. All the fiddly things in life. Our lack of motor skills can mean we are often mucky pups and quite messy.
Dyspraxia often co-occurs with ADHD, but the two conditions are separate. Luckily, there are support groups, online resources, and coping skills for dyspraxic individuals seeking a diagnosis.
For a diagnosis to be made, it's essential for the child to have what is called a norm-referenced assessment of their motor skills. This may be done by an occupational therapist, physiotherapist or paediatrician.
Although signs of the condition are present from an early age, children vary widely in their rate of development. This means a definite diagnosis of DCD does not usually happen until a child with the condition is 5 years old or more.
Fundamentally, autism is a disorder that affects socialization and communication, while dyspraxia affects motor skills and physical coordination. While coinciding symptoms aren't uncommon, the two are considered distinct disorders.
The condition not only impacts coordination and movement, but there can also be social, emotional and processing difficulties too. Dyspraxia may affect: Coordination, balance and movement. Writing, typing, drawing, and grasping small objects.
Poor memory
They may seem to have trouble with their short-term memory, be forgetful, or tend to lose things. Following multiple instructions may be difficult, tasks may take longer to finish, and individuals may seem more erratic, messy, and unfocused compared to colleagues.
The usually demonstrate problems with drooling, drinking from a straw, whistling, etc. Picky eating and problems with food textures can be common as well. Although not always the case, verbal and oral dyspraxia commonly occur together. Motor Dyspraxia involves the programming of hand or whole body movement.
Many Australian children struggle with dyspraxia, a condition that disrupts the messages that travel from a child's brain to the muscles of their body. Dyspraxia (also called apraxia) is a neurologically based developmental disability that is typically present from birth.
If you are an adult and think you may have dyspraxia/DCD, a formal diagnosis can help by providing a reason to explain your differences. It may also unlock access to resources and support.
Dyspraxia is considered to be a hidden disability as the physical signs can be difficult to recognise. Dyspraxia is also less well known and often misunderstood, many people with dyspraxia do not realise they have the condition until later in life.
The effects of dyspraxia
The emotional impact of dealing with the symptoms of dyspraxia and the social isolation that some individuals feel can result in mental health difficulties. Anxiety and depression are fairly common in individuals with dyspraxia.
Dyspraxia is commonly identified alongside dyslexia – some reports even suggest that half of dyslexic children exhibit symptoms characteristic of dyspraxia. Attention difficulties and dyspraxia may also co-present, as can dyspraxia and autism spectrum disorder.
Does dyspraxia/DCD run in families? Dyspraxia/DCD seems to run in families in some cases, but to date, no specific gene has been identified. It is likely that there are many different causes of dyspraxia/DCD, and genetics may be one.
Daniel Radcliffe – Actor
Daniel is the oft-cited shining example of a successful person who also happens to have dyspraxia.
What is it about dyspraxia that causes people to find maths difficult? Research carried out in 2011 found that in a sample of 43 children with dyspraxia (the research paper used the term DCD), 88% showed difficulties with maths [1].
Dyspraxia does not affect a person's IQ, but they may often have to navigate a mind which can be unorganized, meaning they are usually very intelligent people. Navigating around these barriers results in creating strategies to overcome problems really well.