Apr 22, 2007

Dyspraxia

Have you ever heard of the term "dyspraxia?" Well, until today, I hadn't. I took the boys to the library today and was browsing through the ADHD & LD books. I soon found myself looking at other medical conditions as well. I came across a book entitled "My Friend has Dyspraxia." At first I misread it and thought it said dysgraphia. I was excited because I had never seen a children's book dedicated to this one learning disability. Then, I actually reread it and realized that is was about a totally different subject. My curiosity was piqued. Of course I checked it out and brought it home. Since it was actually in the juvenile section at the library, it is short (32 pages) and very easy to read. The symptoms seems to describe my ADHD/LD son to a "T." Why hadn't anyone ever mentioned this before? He's seen a number of professionals since first being diagnosed in 1993, but none had ever mentioned this disability.

Dyspraxia: A collection of symptoms showing that someone has difficulty with organizing their movements, which may lead to problems with speech, handwriting, math, getting dressed, and physical coordination.

--taken from "My Friend has dyspraxia"


I have already performed a preliminary search on the internet to learn more. The National Center for Learning Disabilities has a brief article about dyspraxia, but at least it's a start. There is also a Dyspraxia Foundation located in the UK. They seem to have a fairly comprehensive website. Also, DyspraxiaUSA.org, describes itself as being the first dyspraxia website in the U.S. As I said, this is new to me and I am eager to learn more. I will continue to research the topic but would also love to hear from anyone who has first hand knowledge of this condition.

4 comments:

  1. Shane,

    My son has Dyspraxia. It is also called Motor Coordination disorder. Here is my post about Dyspraxia. The best source of information I found was the book by G. Brookes titled "Dyspraxia".

    Paula

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  2. hi shane! my first visit here and i've thoroughly enjoyed everything so far!
    i have heard of dyspraxia (from my adhd email support groups) but it was ruled out in my damien's case because he doesn't battle at all with fine and gross motor coordination, he's an adhd-er through and through.

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  3. Hi Shane,

    I have a son, Anthony, who is 21 later this month and who was diagnosed with Dyspraxia when he was 4.

    I have decided to put all the major expriences and "epiphanies" into a Blog.

    http://DealingwithDyspraxia.blogspot.com


    I'm keen to find out if other parents would be interested in stories of hope .. and what to prepare for,

    So I'd appreciate it if you would publish this letter on your website and see if you can reach people who might be interested in learning lessons from my family's "on-going" story.



    Many thanks

    Des
    London UK

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  4. Hi,

    I have dyspraxia - and as a 29-year-old man, I've learnt a lot about it through living through it and talking about it with professionals and friends alike.

    If you'd like to know more, I write a blog which regularly touches on my dyspraxia at http://vikingbay.blogspot.com/

    Matthew Munson

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Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I love comments and feedback!