Sensory-Based Motor Disorder

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.

**Sensory-Based Motor Disorder (SBMD)** describes a condition in which one exhibits deficits in balance, gross motor and fine motor coordination, and ability to perform skilled, familiar and/or novel motor actions.

## Signs & Symptoms

There are two ways sensory-based motor disorder can manifest, postural differences and praxis differences.

### Postural Differences

The terms for postural function may vary among professionals, but most agree that there are two main functions of the postural control system:

1. To keep upright against gravity and help one maintain their balance. This can be further broken down into static and dynamic functions. Static posture is when one is holding a position against gravity without moving, and dynamic posture is how one keeps their balance while moving.
2. To keep the rest of the body still so one can use a part of the body to push, pull, reach and/or use force to complete a task.

Symptoms of postural differences may include:

* Chronic muscle tensions in the neck, shoulders, and back.
* Usually loose or tight muscles at rest.
* Decreased control of movements.
* Core muscle imbalance, resulting in rounded, slouched, or uneven posture.
* Slow reflexes/reactions when knocked off balance.
* Inefficient or excessive/extraneous movements result in fatigue.

### Praxis Differences

The term "praxis" encompasses all of the processes involved in performing skilled movements. Praxis includes:

* Ideation - Coming up with ideas; problem-solving; using the imagination to mime actions without objects.
* Planning - Deciding what to do.
* Sequencing - Logically ordering actions from "where to start" to "how to know if you're finished".
* Execution - Carrying out the plan of action.
* Feedback - Reflecting on how well a plan of action worked.

When a professional is assessing praxis abilities, some of the areas that may be examined are:

* Constructional praxis - Building or copying configurations of materials or shapes from a model or instructions.
* Oral motor praxis - Coordinating the muscles of the mouth and jaw for speech production and facial expressions.
* Imitation of movements - Watching a demonstration of a complex movement or series of motions before doing the same movement/motions.
* Motor patterns - Sustaining repetitive movement patterns.

When praxis is optimal, it has three main functions:

1. Coming up with ideas, making plans, thinking of ways to get organized, and problem solving.
2. Monitoring the performance in the moment.
3. Completing motor tasks automatically.

When praxis skills are not fully functional, one or more of the above processes are impaired.

Some symptoms of praxis differences are:

* Poor coordination, especially for complex tasks involving multiple body parts.
* Difficulty learning complex motor skills.
* Struggling to come up with ideas or becoming distress when answering simple open-ended questions.
* Difficulty with multi-tasking.
* Having trouble following multi-step instructions.
* Always doing things "the hard way" or in an illogical or inefficient way.
* Having trouble planning ahead.
* Difficulty managing time.
* Poor organization.
* Being overly rigid with plans and routines.

## Sub-Types of SBMD

### Dyspraxia or Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD)

Dyspraxia is a subset of SBMD in which the affected individual struggles with movement, posture, balance, coordination and sometimes speech due to being "out of sync" with their surroundings.

### Postural Disoder

Postural Disorder is a subset of SBMD in which the affected individual struggles with posture, standing, and walking and easily fatigues due to sensory processing.

## References

https://pediatrictlc.com/sensory-based-motor-disorder/

https://sensorycoach.org/sensory-based-motor-disorder/

https://www.spdstar.org/sites/default/files/publications/3.%20Jul.-Aug.%202012%20-%20SBMD%2C%20PD\_0.pdf

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/151951