to be worried about DS - 'symptoms of dyspraxia'

[fastichecastiche]

i posted yesterday about ds fine motor skills problem, and people were very kind. ds teacher thinks he has symptoms of dyspraxia as well, and was explaining there is a link between the two. he was a late walker - started at 18 months, and is now quite clumsy and sort of staggers about sometimes, but I thought he was being silly and thought it was funny. he scoots really well on 3 wheels, but struggles on 2. he plays football well, and is able to score goals and has good ball control. he doesnt have good balance, i can see taht when asked to do balancing exercises, such as foot on the ball.
help! i am panicked! should i try and get an assessment for him? or are there things i can do? i am so worried he will get a 'reputation' for being bad at things at school. aibu?

• sorry about the staggering thing - he seems to think it is funny and that it makes other people laugh. So I havent thought of it as something he doesnt unintentionally because of an underlying problem, iyswim.

Why would he be perceived as bad? Is his behaviour poor?

well i dont think his behaviour is poor, but he is quite immature i guess - not brilliant socially, no

sorry i meant, bad at things - ie sports and handwriting. he is in reception btw

If he is diagnosed early with appropriate intervention ie. OT he may cope perfectly well. Ds isn't sporty, learnt to touch type but was good at climbing, sailing and skiing. There will be something out there got him and definitely don't write him off at 5.

My sister was diagnosed very late with dyspraxia, it has done her no harm in life (other than to be an utter pain to walk down the street with!). If you're really concerned, ask for an assessment. Oh and I was terrible at sports, still can't catch a ball to save my life, but we all find different things to excel in.

Please don't panic :) Might as well hop to GP if you and teacher are worried. It is quite common but it is also linked to dyslexia and dyscalculia, so knowing about dyspraxia (if he has this) could help with diagnosis of other things later? (Again, only IF he has these difficulties). Lots of children find Reception tricky, and he might just been a little less physically mature. Are his joints hypermobile? This can commonly cause 'wobbliness'. Knowing about it helps for a start, as you can encourage him to strengthen his core muscles through physical play and you can encourage him not to sit/stand in certain ways, i.e the 'w' position.

I know that was a long reply but please DON'T panic, things like this are often picked up on in Reception as the teachers work so closely with the children.

Agree with Lizs, he is very young yet and this is a good time to get help. DD was great at gymnastics despite being dyspraxia nd ended up doing cartwheels on stage during th school musical in year 8. Socially she did struggle for a fair time but now age 16 is pretty confident and has a great group of friends.

We went though the GP and were referred to community paediatrician who referred to the coordination clinic where he had help from an OT and physio .

Better to have a reputation for being "bad" at something due to dyspraxia and getting the help he needs than getting no diagnosis, no help and a reputation for being "bad" for no reason and behaving in a way that's, as you put it, silly.

Thanks so much creme - he does ha've hyper mobile joints - not sure how this would effect him or what we can do about it or if he looks dyspraxic when actually not?

I would ask for a referral so that you can get a diagnosis.

My ds is dyspraxic and your ds's symptoms sound very familiar. Tbh, there is no magic wand and although we had some OT, most of the "help" I got was just advice about adjusting my expectations. But as a previous poster said, he will be good at something even if it's not sport - you just have to find it!

have a chat with the SENCO, my ds's issues were spotted in reception and he was referred and diagnosed with dyspraxia, we've got a lot of help for him since (hes now yr3) and he's doing really well :)

You could try enrolling him into a ballet class to help with self discipline and controlling his body, balancing etc.

Dd has dyslexia and after 2 years of dancing classes I strongly suspect dyspraxia too. We decided not to go down the diagnosis route as a double diagnosis would not see more educational input and instead we have worked with her on some of the motor skills. She can ride a bike oh God that broke her heart she does gymnastics but is bad as the basic skills but has amazing poise, really amazing. We abandoned the dancing but got her a wii dance game because it was getting to the point she would have been teased. Then lots and lots of writing practice. All in all she is coming on great. In your case I would get a diagnosis and take it from there but he will be fine.

My ds2 is 6, he has been under various professionals since he was three as I knew there was something not quite right, I suspected dyspraxia. Last summer we finally got told that yes he does have dyspraxia. He is very lucky this year he has 2 brilliant teachers and an amazing TA who are doing so much for him and 'holding my hand' so to speak. He is year 2 now, by the way. Ds2 loves football but isn't very good at it due to his poor special awareness but he can ride a bike with no stabilisers, albeit very wobbly and really not very safe near roads.
He does have poor social skills which can be difficult for him and for me. He is very well behaved at school, but let's his frustrations out at home. Getting the diagnosis does help, I know what I am dealing with now.

Hypermobility explains a lot of his symptoms. Fine motor skills can be delayed, as hands are used for stability and holding on rather than developing fine motor skills which can cause delay. The wobble and the wide stance are fairly typical. Physio focusing on core strength is key. Fine motor skill work whilst seated and well supported helps too. I would see your GP for a referral to a consultant paed before this goes on for too much longer tbh. If that is going to take time, which it did for us, we found a private paediatric physio who was amazingly helpful in dealing with the hypermobility.

Often children's fine motor skills do develop at different rates. If you wanted to help strengthen hands then there are lots of activities you can encourage. Play dough is great - google "dough gym" for some ideas. Getting him to use tweezers to pick things up, or clothes pegs (- helping to hang up the washing!) also good. You can buy "caring cutlery" on amazon which encourage children to use cutlery in the correct way. Peg boards are good, using giant sized chalk or paintbrushes in the garden, anything that gets the hands working really! If you get him a pencil grip or the triangular pencils for home this might help with handwriting. I don't think it would hurt to mention to the GP and ask for referral now, as waiting lists tend to be long in some areas...

ds2 has dyspraxia and hyper mobility, picked up on by his teachers.

he's had some OT and physio which has helped him a bit, and school have done everything they can to help him, eg physical literacy sessions everyday, extra help with reading, equipment to help him find it easier to write etc. The biggest difference has been made in us though - we know now that, for example, he's not lying when he says it hurts him when he brushes his teeth, he's not being lazy when he puts down his cutlery and uses his hands to eat.

he's just like any other child - better at some things than he is at others. He may never learn how to ride a bike but is happy with a scooter - I really don't think it will hold him back in life

also, we found games like operation and funny faces really helped with fine motor skills

ok thank you so much for all replies i am feeling a bit calmer. yes, a a pediatrician looked at his joints about a year and a half ago and wrote : ' elbows and knees are slightly hyper mobile giving a beighton score of 4 out of 9 for hyper mobility. There was no abnormality of the back and he has mobile lumbar vertebrae'. He concludes by saying '...is slightly hyper mobile and knock kneed but well within normal limits for a child of his age'

btw we saw the paed regarding worries about his back, which were completely discounted by the assessment.

Should i go back to the paed? thanks so much for helping

Others will advise better but the ed psych recommented an OT for dd.