Adult Dyspraxia
1. DyslexiaDyspraxia is usually defined as difficulty with planning and co-ordinating movement. However, it is often also associated with perceptual and spatial difficulties, and with poor literacy, organisational and social skills. Listed below are the main areas of difficulty, and the daily activities they adversely affect.
Fine motor skills
Using cutlery and tools, doing domestic chores, grooming, writing, typing, keying numbers on the telephone, using laboratory materials, manipulating keys and date stamps; using cash or ticket machines.
Gross motor skills
Balance, posture and gait; judging distance and space (tendency to trip over, spill and bump into things), riding a bicycle, driving, dancing, playing sports, using a photocopier.
Perceptual/spatial skills
Keeping place when reading; dealing with maps, graphs, bank statements, equations, formulae, diagrams; having sense of time, speed, distance, weight, height, direction; orienting oneself in strange, or even familiar, surroundings. A possible additional problem is visual stress (Meares-Irlen syndrome): print seems to jump about on the page and white paper to 'glare'.
Memory/sequencing
Remembering messages and instructions, keeping track of thoughts when speaking or listening, taking notes, maintaining concentration.
Organisational skills
Prioritising tasks, remembering appointments, keeping papers in order, organising daily life.
Literacy/numeracy
Spelling, maths and (sometimes) reading; structuring letters, essays, reports; filling in forms.
Speech
Organising thought, expressing ideas succinctly, pronouncing words, speaking at appropriate volume.
Sensitivity
Over- or under-sensitivity to light, noise, touch, taste and smell.
Social skills
Difficulty in interacting with others, especially in groups; turn-taking in conversation, interpreting non-verbal signals, avoiding tactless or impulsive remarks.
Emotional difficulties
The above problems cause stress, loss of confidence, anxiety, frustration, anger and depression.
Associated syndromes
Dyspraxia is also known as Developmental Co-ordination Disorder. It is part of a broader spectrum of 'neurodiverse' disorders. These include dyslexia, dyscalculia AD(H)D and Asperger's syndrome.
Information about dyspraxia
A) Books:
Edited by Mary Colley, Dyspraxia Foundation Adult Support Group, 2000.
B) Contacts:
Telephone: 01462 454986
© Author of this article: Dr Sylvia Moody, Dyslexia Assessment Service, London. This article can be freely reproduced with due attribution of authorship.