Dyspraxia

DisclaimerThis page is not here to be used as a self-diagnosis, self-identification, or promotion - it's simply here to be informational. Whether or not one self-diagnoses, self-identifies, and/or seeks a professional diagnosis is up to them.

**Dyspraxia**, also known as **Motor Learning Difficulties**, **Perceptuo-Motor Dysfunction**, and **Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD)**, is when one has difficulties in planning and completing fine and gross motor tasks. It causes an individual to perform less well than expected in daily activities for their age, and appear to move clumsily.

Dyspraxia can be used to describe difficulties that happen later in life because of damage to the brain, such as from a stroke or head injury. Because of this, healthcare professionals will specify DCD or the term **Specific Developmental Disorder of Motor Function (SDDMF)** when used in a developmental context.

## Signs & Symptoms

Symptoms tend to vary depending on the age of the individual. Some of the general symptoms of dyspraxia include:

* Poor balance.
* Poor posture.
* Fatigue.
* Clumsiness.
* Differences in speech.
* Perception problems.
* Poor hand-eye coordination.

Individuals with dyspraxia may be extremely sensitive to taste, light, touch and/or noise.

### Very Early Childhood

In very early childhood, one may take longer than other children to:

* Sit.
* Crawl, many never go through the crawling stage.
* Walk.
* Speak.
* Stand.
* Become potty trained.
* Build up vocabulary.

### Early Childhood

Later on, the following difficulties may become apparent:

* Problems performing subtle movements.
* Many will have difficulties getting dressed.
* Problems carrying out playground movements.
* Problems with classroom movements.
* Problems processing thoughts.
* Difficulties with concentration. Children with dyspraxia commonly find it hard to focus on one thing for long.
* The child finds it harder than other kids to join in playground games.
* The child will fidget more than other children.
* Some find it hard to go up and down stairs.
* A higher tendency to bum into things, fall over, and drop things.
* Difficulty in learning new skills.
* Writing stories can be more challenging, as well as copying from a blackboard.

The following are also common at pre-school age:

* Finds it hard to keep friends.
* Behavior when in the company of others may seem unusual.
* Hesitates in most actions, seems slow.
* Does not hold a pencil with a good grip.
* Such concepts as 'in', 'out', 'in front of' are hard to handle automatically.

### Later Childhood

* Many of the challenges listed above do not improve or only improve slightly.
* Tries to avoid sports.
* Learns well on a one-to-one basis, but nowhere near as well in class with other children around.
* Reacts to all stimuli equally.
* Mathematics and writing are difficult.
* Spends a lot of time getting writing done.
* Does not follow instructions.
* Does not remember instructions.
* Is badly organized.

### Adulthood

In adults, symptoms include:

* Poor posture and fatigue.
* Trouble completing normal chores.
* Less close control.
* Difficulty coordinating both sides of the body.
* Unclear speech.
* Clumsy movements and tendency to trip over.
* Grooming and dressing more challenging.
* Poor hand-eye coordination.
* Difficulty planning and organizing thoughts and tasks.
* Less sensitive to non-verbal signals.
* Easily frustrated.
* Low self-esteem.
* Difficulty sleeping.
* Difficulty distinguishing sounds from background noise.
* Notable lack of rhythm when dancing or exercising.

## Causes

Doing coordinated movements is a complex process that involves many different nerves and parts of the brain. Any problems in this process could potentially lead to difficulties with movement and coordination.

It's not usually clear why coordination doesn't develop as well as other abilities in children with DCD. However, a number of factors can increase a child's likelihood of developing DCD include:

* Being born prematurely, before the 37th week of pregnancy.
* Being born with a low weight.
* Having a family history of DCD.
* Drinking alcohol or taking drugs while pregnant.

## References

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/1519517

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/developmental-coordination-disorder-dyspraxia/