Dyspraxia (or Developmental Coordination Disorder) is a common disorder that affects fine and gross motor coordination. It persists into adulthood, however difficulties may vary in their presentation depending on individual circumstance, environmental demands, and life experience.
A referral to Occupational Therapy is beneficial when coordination difficulties are impacting on an individual’s ability to participate in everyday activities including self-care, play/recreation, and educational activities. Co-occurring difficulties may also present, for example children may experience social and emotional difficulties and challenges in the areas of time management and self-organisation.
Dyspraxia may present in the following ways:
- delays in reaching motor milestones
- difficulty maintaining pace with peers in gross motor abilities i.e. running, hopping, and throwing/catching/kicking a ball
- challenges in social interaction
- difficulty dressing (e.g. managing buttons/zips; putting clothes on backwards or inside-out)
- clumsy, bumps into furniture and/or falls over easily and often
- handwriting difficulties, immature writing/artwork, laborious/immature handwriting
- avoids fine motor tasks (e.g. handwriting/art) and/or gross motor tasks (e.g. PE/playground equipment)
- reduced attention span
- difficulty with organisation
- difficulty following instructions, especially instructions with more than one step
For more information on assessment and intervention for dyspraxia, please contact us HERE.
Rachel O'Mahony Occupational Therapy 