Dyspraxia

Dyspraxia is a developmental disorder, which manifests as a marked impairment in the development of motor co-ordination. The co morbidity with Autistic Spectrum Disorders, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Dyslexia is as high as 40 – 45 percent. Dyspraxia is four times more common in boys than girls (some researchers estimate as many as seven times), although when girls are affected, they are usually more severely disabled. Developmental dyspraxia affects between 2 and 5 per cent of the population and if not identified early, can have a devastating effect upon a child’s performance and self-esteem.

If dyspraxia is not identified and remediated before children enter pre-school, they are usually excluded from cooperative games because they fail to understand the rules and their behaviour is too erratic. So psychological barriers to progress are often in place before formal schooling begins.

Therefore, it is vital that a comprehensive assessment and early intervention strategies be carried out. A range of information needs to be collected from a variety of sources including a full developmental history (prenatal factors), family history, parental observations, standardised testing and formal observations.

In closing, any parent of a dyspraxic child knows, dyspraxia is a difficult disorder for parents and children to live with and for therapists and educators to work with. A holistic approach is essential as the ramifications of dyspraxia can be life-long if undiagnosed or worse still misdiagnosed as something else. It must be remembered that there are “no magic cures” or “one-size-fits-all” therapies or methods for people with dyspraxia.

Our approach at Learning Discoveries is to undertake psychometric testing, utilise standard assessments and tailor interventions to suit the particular needs and requirements being presented. The types of intervention techniques we utilise include: Neurofeedback, Samonas Sound Therapy,the Interactive Metronome^® and exercises for the inhibition of  Primitive Reflexes.

For more information or to make an appointment please send an  email or contact us on (02) 9639 7778 during business hours.