Ten Things You Need to Know About My Sons World

Carrying on with the theme of a few posts ago, I decided to list ten things (although there are probably more) about Mr 5 and dyspraxia that people probably do not know. There are many people with dyspraxia in the world; some are diagnosed and others are not. Given that Dyspraxia awareness Week(1st -8th September, 2005) commences here in September, I thought it an opportune time to help increase awareness via my blog.

1. Dyspraxia affects more boys than girls, often it is not picked up as soon as it should because of the the adage "boys develop slower than girls". If you think something is amiss, say so; if you feel the Dr. Dismisses it..See someone else. I always have said "Your right, your child, their voice".

2. Poor gross and fine motor skills, however dyspraxic kids such as Mr 5 become dab hands at avoidance and manipulation away from things they cannot do or afraid to try. They will feign non interest when all the other kids are climbing, cycling, kicking balls, etc but be watching carefully to try and learn. One on one play away from others sometimes helps until they master some of the skills needed..We kicked a soccerball about in the yard for most of the year, he only started trying it a kinder two weeks ago.

3.Poor handwriting is one of the most common symptoms, these children do not need to be told their handwriting is poor, they can see that they are not as good as their peers. Dr Rosemary Sassoon (Handwriting expert)believes they should be judged against their own best efforts and to progress in a relaxed way. Mr 5 hates pen/pencil work and is still learning to hold a pencil in the proper manner. Tracing letters formed from dots helps to keep lines straight and pressure off the actual order the letters come in. (courtesy of "Let's Talk About Dyspraxia" Issue no36)

4. Sequencing is also a problem, he does not understand the sequences of time, actions, or those involved in learning (number and letter sequences) pattern recognition is difficult. If told we are doing/going somewhere after lunch and it is 0900, he believes that in eating lunch now brings the "after lunch" event to fruition. He does not recognise the consequences of actions, such as running in front of a moving swing, car, lawnmower. There is a "blank" as to what happens if I do this or that...even if asked, he is unable to reconcile the cause/effect relationship.

5. Dyspraxic children are very aware of their perceived limitations, I say perceived; because Mr 5 today does things he would not have tried a year ago or 2 years ago. His SP has taught him that a "try is as good as a do" in all things. We encourage and celebrate all trying and accomplished tasks, in doing so teach him that it's not the completion of the task that matters but the attempt.

6. Dribbling by some children is, often, not related to any one thing. It could be a excess of saliva, new teeth, learning a new sound or just need for oral stimulation. Mr 5 dribbled when he was getting his first ADULT bottom tooth (about 4 weeks ago) after nothing for months, when he learnt the letter "p", when learning a new physical task, and generally when he forgets to close his mouth...He is just gently reminded to wipe his mouth and close it. Until 3 months ago he had a "chewy" which was a piece of surgical tubing, knotted at each end, which if he felt the need to chew something, he was directed to.

7. Eating can be a trial for these children, many will resort to routine foods they are comfortable with. Mr 5 rarely ate meat until a six month ago...It was hard for him to chew and chewing was not his forte. They will balk at any changes in diet, and often want the same for breakfast, lunch and tea. Mr 5 has always been a big milk drinker, likes juice (but this is limited to breakfast) he prefers peanut butter to Vegemite, likes cheese in slabs, not slices and I have been lucky that he loves fruit. I discovered from the SP that these children often like sauce with food (tomato, BBQ, whatever) as the sauce helps to break up the food in the mouth as they chew. I never had this occur but at the age of 2 ,Mr 5 would tip his cup of water on his plate and eat the sodden food..Makes sense now.

8. My experience and that of other parents I have spoken with; tells me there is something amiss with the sleeping habits of dyspraxic children. Now this is only MY OPINION, not medically proven to my knowledge, as dyspraxia cannot be diagnosed until 2.5-3years of age. But it seems most children who later are diagnosed with the condition were really bad sleepers in the beginning, sleeping for 45 minutes in the day only, from day one was Mr 5's story. Consequently, you have an overtired and irate bub. What is going on in these little brains that is so important that they cannot sleep? And is the lack of the ability to sleep related to the misfiring synapses which are believed to be the cause of dyspraxia?? Like I said, only my opinion but I really wonder.

9. Because you see a parent in a shop, park, where ever, yelling at the child to "come back", "be careful" does not mean the child is naughty or disobedient. Dyspraxic children have a problem with receptive language..That is they have trouble processing commands to actions. So the repeating of the command reinforces the action, perhaps together with the signing or actually showing the child what needs to be done.

10. Expressive language is often a problem too, together with a vocabulary which is marred with errors and an inability to make themselves understood, dyspraxic children often resort to grunting, pointing or even taking the person to the item they want. Patience, alternative methods of understanding, and the encouragement to "use the words" all help to increase the usage of words, number of words used, ability to use them in context and not only the child's willingness to use the known words but also the wanting to know "what that named".

This is but a small part of what I have experienced since Mr 5 was diagnosed, it is not the "be all and end all" and will never encompass all I know or have learnt. It is not a medical text nor do I have any real medical knowledge, only what I glean from reading more about the condition. It serves only to inform, encourage and generally let people know that the condition exists and that there are ways to help and there are rest stops along the trip, complete with drinks and ice creams.