What is Dyspraxia?

Dyspraxia, also known as developmental coordination disorder (DCD), is a neurological difference that usually begins manifesting during a person’s school-age years.

This learning difficulty impedes the proper processing of information and transmission of neural messages in the brain. Developmental dyspraxia affects fine motor skills and gross motor skills, therefore causing coordination difficulties and poor organization of movement.

Parents and teachers usually notice the movement difficulties present in children with dyspraxia at an early age. School-aged children with developmental co-ordination disorder may face difficulty learning certain skills and partaking in everyday activities, such as playing sports or riding a bicycle.

Furthermore, the effect of dyspraxia on fine motor skills makes it harder for students to handle writing utensils.

DCD may also cause language difficulties and certain challenges with thought and perception. Although dyspraxia affects some cognitive skills, it doesn’t influence a person’s intelligence. Less severely affected individuals may have their dyspraxia diagnosed during college or when they join the workforce.

Dyspraxia in Adults

While the effects of DCD are commonly associated with childhood, some children don’t outgrow this neurodevelopmental disorder, and many adults get diagnosed later in life. Adults may also acquire developmental coordination disorder as a result of brain injury or stroke.

Adults with dyspraxia may also experience difficulties with memory, organization, and executive functioning.

With a proper diagnosis and accommodation for their complex environmental demands, individuals with dyspraxia can have a thriving career and fulfilling social life. Support from family, friends, and employers can also play a key role in helping individuals with dyspraxia to lead fulfilling and successful lives.

Dyspraxia in Children

Dyspraxia is more detectable in early childhood because it can cause an obvious delay in the development of basic motor skills, impede language acquisition, and affect the child’s speech. Children with developmental coordination disorder experience movement difficulties with various patterns and levels of severity.

A child with dyspraxia usually struggles with:

Due to the motor learning difficulties and impairment of organizational skills it causes in children, dyspraxia used to be defined as “clumsy child syndrome”.

Types of Dyspraxia

Depending on the main effects on the individual’s development, healthcare professionals distinguish several descriptive types of dyspraxia. This classification allows therapists and support workers to focus on the person’s specific difficulties and create tailored strategies.

Developmental coordination disorder is commonly divided into the following types:

Motor Dyspraxia – causes difficulties in everyday tasks that include precise movements, such as dressing, riding a bicycle, handwriting, and touch typing skills
Verbal Dyspraxia – also known as developmental articulatory dyspraxia, impacts the motor neurons that control physical movements involved in speaking
Oral Dyspraxia – weakens the individual’s voluntary control over movements of the lips, tongue, jaw, and soft palate

Signs and Symptoms of Dyspraxia

Each individual’s experience with dyspraxia or DCD is unique and influenced by various factors, including age, opportunities to learn coping skills, and support from their loved ones. However, there are several common dyspraxia symptoms related to movement difficulty as the main feature of DCD.

Most people with dyspraxia experience the following physical difficulties:

Weak spatial awareness - frequent tripping, bumping into things, bruising
Awkwardness and lack of balance in physical movements
Difficulty applying motor skills to new practical tasks or acquiring new skills required for activities or situations connected to physical movement
Carrying out everyday movements requires more time and effort for individuals with dyspraxia compared to their peers

Apart from these physical signs, many individuals with DCD experience memory, attention, and time management issues. Dyspraxia also comes with speech and language struggles that can influence social life, such as difficulty keeping up with conversations and responding to questions after a long pause.

Symptoms of Dyspraxia in Adults

In adult life, dyspraxia symptoms are unique and changeable. This condition may affect the individual’s close interpersonal relationships, career prospects, and financial stability.

Adults with developmental coordination disorder experience the following symptoms:

Poor time management and organizational skills - struggles with deadlines and punctuality in the workplace
Trouble handling essential manual tools and equipment (such as opening jars or tins)
Difficulty learning new skills or applying them to motor tasks in a new, more dynamic environment
Struggles with keeping balance and maintaining energy levels throughout a busy day
Making long pauses before responding to a comment or answering a question
Social anxiety, low self-esteem, and an avoidant approach to social situations that may expose the previously mentioned difficulties
Academic and professional underachievement

Symptoms of Dyspraxia in Children

Children with dyspraxia show different signs and symptoms throughout different childhood stages. Developmental coordination disorder (DCD) can affect a child’s performance of routine tasks and early acquisition of motor skills.

Common signs of this motor disorder in children include:

Delay in the earliest developmental milestones linked to movement, such as sitting, crawling, standing, walking
Slower and more hesitant movements compared to other children
Lack of interest in movement games and activities, such as jumping, running, catching or throwing objects
Excessive stumbling and falling
Issues with handwriting - immature pencil grasp, slow writing
Struggles with common motor tasks, such as using cutlery or getting dressed
Difficulty grasping spatial concepts (on/under/in front of/behind)
Difficulty staying focused, indiscriminate reaction to all stimuli
Issues with following instructions
Inability to work in larger groups
Difficulty maintaining friendships

Causes of Dyspraxia

Dyspraxia occurs due to an impediment in the transmission of messages between the individual’s brain and body. There is probably no universal reason for this neurological difference in motor skills.

However, the following factors may increase a person’s likelihood of having dyspraxia:

Dyspraxia Assessment

No specific medical tests can detect dyspraxia in children or adults. In case of childhood movement difficulties, parents should consult a team of medical professionals and provide them with details about the child’s symptoms, development, and medical history.

Developmental coordination disorder is diagnosed by a team of healthcare providers, including a paediatrician, pediatric neurologist, educational psychologist, physical therapist, occupational therapist, and speech and language therapists. These experts can assess your child’s balance, coordination, and motor skills.

Their fine and gross motor skills are significantly weaker than expected for their age
These movement and coordination difficulties hinder their developmental progress in everyday activities and school tasks
The signs of dyspraxia appeared in the early childhood stages of development
The child's symptoms don't fit the criteria for other motor disorders (such as cerebral palsy or muscular dystrophy)

Treatments for Dyspraxia

Dyspraxia is not an illness to be cured, it is a condition that requires complex accommodation strategies. Every individual experiences DCD in a unique way. Therefore, an individualised treatment plan is the most effective way for people with dyspraxia to cope with their difficulties and live fulfilling lives.

As a parent of a child with dyspraxia or an adult diagnosed with this condition later in life, you may come across the following alternatives.

Perceptual Motor Training

A series of practical tasks designed by an educational psychologist to improve the child’s movement as well as visual, auditory, and language skills.

Occupational Therapy

Treatment focused on helping the individual with common tasks that involve motor and organizational skills

Physical Therapy

Treatment designed to keep individuals with dyspraxia in physical shape and help them improve their motor skills through exercise.

Speech and Language Therapy

Learning programs created by speech and language therapists created to help people with speech dyspraxia (stuttering, communication issues, struggling to produce certain sounds).

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy

Also known as talk therapy, this type of treatment focuses on the individual’s self-esteem and mental health issues that may arise due to the social barriers imposed on people with dyspraxia.

Dyspraxia Related Conditions

Compared to other learning challenges, dyspraxia is still relatively understudied. As there is no particular test for this condition, experts diagnose DCD by excluding other reasons for the person’s difficulties. Therefore, dyspraxia can be mistaken for another related condition or remain undiagnosed until adulthood.

Dyspraxia and Dyslexia

Dyspraxia often occurs alongside dyslexia. According to research from the Dyspraxia Foundation, around half of the individuals with dyslexia also have DCD. Both dyspraxia and dyslexia affect a person’s learning style, especially in the area of language acquisition. While dyslexia causes trouble connecting letters to sounds, dyspraxia impacts writing in a manual way (weak pencil grip).

Dyspraxia and ADHD

Both dyspraxia and ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) can affect children’s educational progress and prevent them from achieving their full potential. In many cases, children with ADHD and dyspraxia may face similar challenges in the classroom, such as messy handwriting or poor posture.

What distinguishes the two conditions is the reason behind these signs. In children with ADHD, these difficulties occur due to hyperactivity and attention issues, whereas children with dyspraxia experience them as a result of neuromotor differences.

Dyspraxia and Autism

There’s a significant overlap between the symptoms of autism and dyspraxia, especially when it comes to early signs in babies and toddlers. Both conditions may cause a delay in the earliest developmental milestones, such as:

As autism is a more researched and common disorder, many children with dyspraxia may get misdiagnosed. Therefore, it is important to note that dyspraxia primarily impacts movement, while autism affects social and communication skills.

Living with Dyspraxia

Growing up with dyspraxia in an environment with low awareness of the condition can be an isolating experience. Without the right diagnosis, individuals may interpret their difficulties in education or the workplace as a personal failure and therefore develop feelings of guilt, frustration, and low self-esteem.

However, dyspraxia doesn’t affect intelligence and with proper accommodation, children and adults with DCD can thrive in all aspects of live.

Person-centred care encourages these individuals to develop their unique coping skills as creative thinkers and problem-solvers. Access to tailored support strategies allows people with dyspraxia to reach their full academic potential and lead successful careers.

How Does Leaf Complex Care Support Individuals with Dyspraxia?

At Leaf Complex Care, providing accommodation for people with learning disabilities and difficulties is more than just a career. We train our clinicians to guide individuals with complex needs on their pathway to independence with exceptional dedication and kindness.

Our support workers provide tailored care for children and adults with learning difficulties in their own homes. We currently offer support services in Bristol, Exeter, Slough, Somerset, and the Midlands. If you are considering complex care for yourself or a loved one with dyspraxia, contact us as soon as possible and we will develop an individualised care plan for you.

Join Leaf and Support People with Learning Difficulties

If you are an aspiring support worker with a passion for helping people with complex care needs, Leaf Complex Care is the right place for you. We’re looking for practitioners who strive to remove social barriers and create a better world for individuals with learning disabilities and difficulties.

Join the Leaf family to receive free training and start making an impactful difference in people’s lives.