Dyspraxia (or Developmental Coordination Disorder, DCD) is a lifelong neurological condition that affects the planning and execution of motor skills, along with other cognitive abilities. It is not related to intelligence, but it presents a variety of challenges, or "weaknesses," that can affect daily life.
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. your daily living skills, such as dressing or preparing meals.
Additional problems
being poor at organising themselves and getting things done. being slow to pick up new skills – they need encouragement and repetition to help them learn. difficulty making friends – they may avoid taking part in team games and may be bullied for being "different" or clumsy.
Moderate to extreme difficulty doing physical tasks is experienced by some people with dyspraxia, and fatigue is common because so much energy is expended trying to execute physical movements correctly. Some dyspraxic people have hypotonia, low muscle tone, which can also detrimentally affect balance.
Often the harder someone tries to talk, the worse it becomes, and increased frustration makes it more difficult. Dyspraxia can affect other actions except speech. Different types of dyspraxia may be dealt with by other health care professionals.
So, what are good jobs for people with dyspraxia?
Dyspraxia can make it difficult for people to maintain attention and focus, especially when there are distractions and interruptions. Some people can also experience excessive tiredness.
Dyspraxia in toddlers slows achievement of developmental milestones and ability with gross motor skills such as crawling and walking and fine motor activities such as gripping objects.
It is important to find ways to encourage and support dyspraxic people to take part in and enjoy physical activities throughout their lives. Martial arts are good for dyspraxic people, with benefits for posture, balance, strength and coordination as well as confidence and self-esteem.
Instead, most healthcare professionals use the term developmental co-ordination disorder (DCD) to describe the condition.
What are the symptoms of dyspraxia? Children with dyspraxia may be late in reaching normal developmental milestones for example an early sign of dyspraxia is a child taking longer to roll over, sit, crawl, stand, walk, speak and toilet train.
Dyspraxia is also a specific learning difficulty because it can impact on how we think of something, plan, organise and sequence our thoughts to complete different tasks and actions. Dyspraxia has nothing to do with intellect, most people are of average to above average intelligence.
Dyspraxia often co-occurs with other learning differences, such as dyslexia, ADHD and autism. Many people with dyspraxia are creative, determined and good at problem-solving.
The challenges that come with dyspraxia should never overshadow the incredible strengths that individuals with the condition bring to the table. By embracing these superpowers—creativity, problem-solving, persistence, empathy, and adaptability—organisations can harness a new level of innovation and performance.
In general, a dyspraxia diagnosis should not prevent you from learning to drive. Sure, you'll have to accept that it will be harder for you to get to grips with the basics and the whole process could take longer than average, but it's not a solid roadblock.
People who have dyspraxia may struggle or seem awkward in social situations. They may display some of the following behaviours: Missing or misunderstanding social cues. Struggling to take turns talking or interrupting.
While indicators of DCD/dyspraxia are varied they may include challenges in some or multiple of the more common areas:
Though there are careers that utilise the assets of dyspraxia, such as empathy, and leadership, more than others. These jobs include teaching, coaching, leadership, creative arts and business development, amongst other things.
Racket sports, such as table tennis or squash, can be a good option as they help work on coordination and fine motor skills. Gymnastics can also be beneficial as it helps develop muscle strength, flexibility, and balance. Dance is another individual sport that can be adapted for individuals with dyspraxia.
Those who have DCD /dyspraxia are 4 times more likely to become obese4 and are less physically fit and more overweight especially in girls5 It is therefore important that those with DCD/dyspraxia are encouraged to be as physically active as possible.
It's not clear what causes dyspraxia. Research suggests that it may be linked to differences in how neurons in the brain develop and communicate. This lack of typical neuronal development impacts coordination but does not result from any identifiable neurological abnormality.
Dyspraxic children often demonstrate some of the following types of behaviour: Inability to stay still (feet swinging, feet tapping, hand-clapping) Loud/shrill voice.
Dyspraxia/DCD can affect coordination skills, such as tasks requiring balance, playing sports or learning to drive a car; dyspraxia/DCD can also affect fine motor skills, such as writing or using small objects.
Dyspraxia is a motor and cognitive condition. It affects fine motor skills (handwriting, doing up buttons) and gross motor skills (walking, driving), as well as motor planning and coordination. It also affects cognitive (information processing and memory retention) skills. It is not related to intelligence.
Dyspraxia is a disorder of co-ordination and movement; it affects complex muscle activities such as handwriting, balance, ball skills, and dancing.