scottish dyspraxion

Hi there! Welcome to Scottish Dyspraxion. Here we explore adult dyspraxia and its related issues but also provide links to sites providing information on and assistance for people affected by other Neuro-Diverse issues.

One of the main aims of this site, along with providing an information resource for all Scottish adults with dyspraxia, is to provide an online forum for DANDA  (Developmental Adult Neuro-Diversity Association) members in Scotland and - by way of uniting via the website and connecting with other national Neuro-Diverse organisations - making changes through Neuro-Diverse people in Scotland supporting each other.

Although allied to DANDA (our co-founder Sheena Wannan is the voluntary co-ordinator of DANDA South Of Scotland), Scottish Dyspraxion  is an autonmous organisation.

click the banner to access DANDA's website:

We intend to apply for charitable status  in 2009.

About Dyspraxia

Dyspraxia is not an illness or disease from which recovery is possible. Rather, it is a neurologically based disorder which has been described as something one gets "around", not "over".  Dyspraxia - from the Greek “dys” (difficulty) and” praxis” (acting or doing) is an impairment or an immaturity of the organisation of movement. This includes gross motor movement (activities such as such as balancing and posture) and fine movement skills (writing, drawing and many household tasks such as using a can opener).   People with dyspraxia generally do not establish hand dominance, and struggle with holding pens, pencils, and other utensils.  It is because of these things that writing and drawing can potentially cause them physical discomfort as well as resulting in poor handwriting. To improve your fine motor skills it is best to consult an occupational therapist. Someone with dyspraxia has the problem of being "impaired" when it comes to completing a proper action; however, a dyspraxic does not appear to be any different physically. Developmental dyspraxia, in its most simplistic definition, can be explained as an impairment of the interpretation of movements due to underdeveloped neurons. This results in messages not fully coming across to the body. Thus, what you think in your mind and how you apply the idea does not coordinate, and the message that you are trying to convey is not always understood. Dyspraxia is a condition that you can be born with - Developmental Dyspraxia - or can manifest itself through Oral/Verbal Dyspraxia; but,dyspraxia can also occur due to traumatic head injury.

Dyspraxia is also known as Developmental Co-ordination Disorder. A kinesiologist might refer to it as "neurodisorganisation." A person with dyspraxia may talk continuously without apparently listening to or making eye contact with the other person. Dyspraxics tend to show the symptoms of Attention Deficit Disorder Conversely they might talk slowly with a great deal of repetition. They may also have trouble with pronounciation. The visual difficulties associated with have problems with organisation, memory, sequencing, concentration, sitting still for long periods of time and time management. The flipside of having attention difficulties is an ability to hyper-focus on certain tasks and to show dyspraxia may result in problems with reading and absorbing information in written form. Auditory problems also show themselves in inability to filter noise and to remember verbal instructions. In common with people with dyslexia, dyspraxic people tend to show great persistance in achieving personal goals. Dyspraxia can also manifest itself in heightened sensitivities to sound, light, temperature, touch or certain fabrics.

Colleagues & acquaintances can often be surprised when, having appeared quite "normal" to them, there are tasks we just can't perform. In this way, dyspraxia resembles dyslexia: it can take a while to be "found out", and it is absolutely nothing to be ashamed of... Like a dyslexic who has never "learned" to write, a dyspraxic knows only too well the frustrating feeling of not having progressed since childhood in some areas of their life. Dyspraxics with acute noise aversion may extend this lack of progress further - this facet of their make-up hasn't "matured" since infancy. 

Neuro-Diversity is a broad spectrum – but it’s estimated that 2 per cent of the population is severely affected by symptoms of dyspraxia. Perhaps lacking the profile of other Neuro-Diverse conditions such as dyspraxia is sometimes described as “the hidden disability”. Fortunately, its existence is becoming less hidden and the condition is officially recognised – the emphasis tends to be on helping children with dyspraxia and their families but groups such as DANDA  (Developmental Adult Neuro-Diversity Association)  and others, many of which we link to on this site, continue to raise awareness of adult dyspraxia. The Disability Discrimination Act defines a person as having “a physical or mental impairment which has severe long term adverse effect on a person’s ability to carry out normal day to day activities.” The abilities mentioned include symptoms of dyspraxia – which affect day-to-day activities – such as manual dexterity and impairments of mind, memory and ability to concentrate.  If a person with dyspraxia complies with the above definition of a disabled person, they are covered by the Act. The Government recognises dyspraxia as a valid medical disorder, as defined by the World Health Organisation’s International Classification of Disease. Unfortunately though, many Neuro-Diverse adult adults, are not aware of the condition, let alone that they have it. Awareness amongst medical professionals in relation to adults is also low. As a result of having to deal with conditions they might not even realise have a name Neuro-Diverse adults tend to feel “different” but aren’t sure why.

Dyspraxia is a word that isn't recognised by spellcheckers on computers. We hope one day this won't be the case.  Word is getting round, & we aim to help people like us & those who know us, work with us & employ us.  Perhaps you're visiting here because you've just heard about the condition.  Perhaps you’re visiting this site because you’re wondering whether somebody you know might have dyspraxia. It can be difficult to be diagnosed with dyspraxia - we touch on this topic in the Our Stories section and are keen to hear from people in Scotland who have been or are looking to be diagnosed.  We aim to provide as much useful information here as we can. Please realise you are not alone. We recognise that it comes as quite a relief for some people to be diagnosed while others may find that the label stigmatises them.   We are also aware that many adult dyspraxics are not aware of the condition, let alone that they have it. It is regrettably the case that the level of awareness amongst the medical profession in relation to adults is low. This is particularly unfortunate since, as with many Neuro-Diverse people, having to deal with their conditions can lead to some dyspraxics experiencing mental health problems including anxiety, depression &, perhaps most commonly, chronically low self-esteem. A significant number end up with drug/alcohol abuse, which may also mask their condition. The less well-off a family is, the less their dyspraxic child is likely to be diagnosed, and the more likely it is that as an adult they'll become involved in crime and substance abuse.  Dyspraxic inmates are liable to be bullied by other prisoners.

 It can be difficult for someone wirh dyspraxia to do  literally do themselves justice in the stressful scenario of a court appearance, as fidgeting, apparent evasiness, inconsistent and partial recall  and lack of concentration can do them no favours when "selling" their innocence.

We talk quite a bit on this website about how bullies can take advantage of the "different", vulnerable dyspraxic child. As Victoria Biggs points out in her book Caged In Chaos, sometimes bullies themselves are dyspraxic: having no other outlet for their frustrations, their behaviour becomes destructive. Whether destructive to oneself or others (or destructive to both),  it's understandable how frustration can lead to intensely negative feelings about a world that seems to move at a different pace to yourself & doesn't seem to understand the way you are. We certainly don't condone or seek to excuse anti-social behaviour but motor competence, adaptability and an ability to muti-task is undoubtedly linked to social acceptance which means that those of us who lack motor competence can find it hard to be accepted by our peers. We are marginalised because we're clumsy, unsure of ourselves, "different". We become figures of ridicule & tend to withdraw, perhaps occasionally lashing out at others or turning on ourselves, impatient and frustrated with our inability to accomplish tasks other people perform without a second thought.

Dyspraxia often comes "packaged" with other Neuro-Diverse conditions, most commonly Dyslexia. Here's some of the more common ones..

Attention Deficit Disorder & Attention Deficit Hyper-Activity Disorder (ADHD) are fairly well documented in the media these days. (ADDISS is the association set up to help people with the disorder).

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

Dyscalculia:  Someone with this condition cannot, for instance, analytically devise a budget plan, or perform any other maths orientated task that requires the left and right side brain integration.

Dysgraphia: This is due to problems with organization. Construction of words is difficult.

Asperger's: Hard to sum up briefly but the most obvious symptoms arise in problems with social interaction. Asperger's Disorder is seen as a milder variant of Autistic Disorder. (Follow this link for the website of ELAS, the Edinburgh & Lothians Asperger Society, and this link for the Scottish Autism Service Network).

(Further links: Number 6  is a site for adults in the Lothians who have High Functioning Autism  and its equivalent in Fife is Phad Fife).

Dyslexia: Difficulties with reading and maths due to the reversal of letters and numbers.

As motor-competence is significantly related to social acceptance, dyspraxic children & adolescents are often found in the margins of their peer groups, feel socially awkward & unable to muster the “patter” their friends engage in & tending to be the last chosen for the football or netball team. As children & throughout our subsequent lives, we can find we are the target of criticism & ridicule which may become more subtle as we get older but can reoccur when we try to participate in group activities. For child, adolescent & adult, the result of this avoidance of participation is unhappiness and feelings of being isolated and excluded from the Neuro-Typical world. As Max Davidson's excellent April 2008 article in The Telegraph, Clumsy But Clever puts it: "Many dyspraxics grow up anxious and lack social skills. If you cannot trust yourself to perform simple physical tasks, you are bound to diffident".

Indeed, being dyspraxic can hold a lot of fear - fear of being "found out",fear of humiliation, of breaking things  - and, if you break them, not being able to fix them; fear of not being able to help oneself or help others; fear of being, or being considered, a liability.

Lack of practical skills would have made us unsuitable for National Service and even if we became famous we’d probably be inappropriate as contenders for I’m A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here, Big Brother or any other task-based show. To continue the TV theme, we have many strengths and special abilities, but do not possess what our society sees as the Krypton Factor...A Neuro-Diverse condition can often carry positive aspects: lateral thinking, the tendency to be fully absorbed and preoccupied with tasks that catch their interest. Many of life’s innovators have demonstrated their Neuro-Diversity through lateral thinking and achieving by persistency and imagination what others might not even dream of attempting.

Perhaps paradoxically to the limitations we can experience in short term memory and following instructions, many of us have good auditory and verbal skills with above-average ability to learn languages, compose music and write creatively. This could be described as paradoxical or contradictory because as dyspraxics we are often unable to recall a freshly-heard sequence of sounds dyspraxics have problems with logisitic thinking and thus do not follow any organized pattern of speech. This means that "small chat" is irrelevant, there are pragmatic tendencies and interruptions are prevalent.  This aspect of dyspraxia makes it difficult to understand what is happening around you. Again, however, through repeated actions a dyspraxic can learn to enhance these skills. Some people with dyspraxia have trouble putting words in the correct order and may pronounce words incorrectly and occasionally produce spoonerisms when we speak.

Also, for example, our lack of natural lack of time management  can be turned around and used constructively. By looking at these issues in-depth we have the chance to learn to become better time managers than those to whom such things come naturally but who don’t analyse their time management. By being aware of our need to organise we have the chance to utilise our time to our best advantage. Opinions on whether dyspraxia is a blight or a blessing are divided. This quote from Geoff Brookes in his book Dyspraxia (Continuum, 2007) eloquently states (from the perspective of a parent) how the condition can shape the lives of those it touches: "There are those who speak of the “gift” of dyspraxia. As the father of a dyspraxic son I am not sure I can agree with this. If it is a gift then it is that jumper with the orange diagonal stripes that you never wanted. I have had to watch my son wade through a deep river while others strive confidently across the bridge just a little way upstream. It seems so unfair".

LINKS: The Dyspraxia Foundation; The Dyspraxia Foundation's Adult Support Network