Dyspraxia and ADHD: Have you ever heard of dyspraxia? If so, you may be surprised to learn that dyspraxia is linked to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in many ways. If you’ve never heard of it, don’t worry!
In this article, we will explore what developmental dyspraxia is and how it relates to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
What is dyspraxia?
Dyspraxia, also known as developmental coordination disorder (DCD), is a neurological condition that affects an individual’s motor skills and affects approximately 6% of school-aged children. It is important to note that this condition usually appears in childhood but can also persist into adulthood.
Developmental dyspraxia affects various motor skills, including:
- Gross motor skills: involve large, coordinated movements such as running or jumping.
- Fine motor skills: involve small, controlled movements such as writing
- Motor planning: involves sequential or multiple movements such as tying a shoelace
What are the symptoms of dyspraxia?
The symptoms of people with developmental dyspraxia vary mainly according to age group. In fact, children may start walking or crawling later than usual in their early years, while as they get older they may have difficulty writing or drawing and perform poorly in physical activities that require coordination.
In adults, however, the symptoms of developmental dyspraxia can include:
- Poor posture
- fatigue
- Poor hand-eye coordination
- Clumsy movements
- language problems
Diagnosis and treatment of dyspraxia
The diagnosis of developmental dyspraxia can vary due to numerous factors. It can usually be suspected in early childhood, but it normally takes at least 5 years to obtain a definitive diagnosis.
It is reassuring to know that people with developmental dyspraxia can achieve significant improvements through treatment and therapy after diagnosis. Obwohl Entwicklungsdyspraxie nicht heilbar ist, verbessert ein frühzeitiger Beginn der Therapie die Prognose.
Although developmental dyspraxia is incurable, early onset of therapy improves the prognosis.
What is the connection between ADHD and dyspraxia?
Let’s now examine the connection between attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and dyspraxia! First, it is interesting to note that children with developmental dyspraxia are more likely to develop other conditions, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dyslexia, and autism. So if you’re wondering whether it’s possible to have both developmental dyspraxia and ADHD, the answer is yes, a person with developmental dyspraxia could also have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Nevertheless, ADHD and developmental dyspraxia generally share several symptoms, such as:
- Restlessness: In people with ADHD, this is a common symptom of hyperactivity, while in people with developmental dyspraxia, it is often expressed through frequent movements of the arms and legs.
- Emotional dysregulation
- sleep problems
- Poor working memory
- Difficulties in school and social settings
In general, research shows that almost 90% of people with ADHD also suffer from dyspraxia, and around 50% of people with developmental dyspraxia also suffer from ADHD.
Remember that it is completely normal if you have ADHD and sometimes feel overwhelmed by these or other ADHD symptoms! In such cases, remember that you are not alone! Consider GAM Medical, a clinic specializing in the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in adults, and start your ADHD therapy journey to alleviate your ADHD symptoms and improve your quality of life!
ADHD and learning difficulties
Although dyspraxia is a developmental disorder, it is often associated with and grouped together with other learning disorders. It is interesting to note that ADHD is not a learning disorder in itself, but it is not uncommon for some of the symptoms of ADHD to interfere with learning ability.
Developmental dyspraxia is actually just one of many learning disorders that can affect people with ADHD. In fact, approximately 30% to 50% of children with ADHD also exhibit learning difficulties. The most common learning disorders associated with ADHD include:
- dyslexia
- dysgraphia
- dyscalculia
- Aphasia or dysphasia
- Visual and auditory processing disorders
It is important and reassuring to know that there are many strategies for coping with learning difficulties and other ADHD symptoms. ADHD therapy is the first line of treatment.
In that case, GAM Medical could be just right for you!
When you start a therapy program with GAM Medical, you will be accompanied by ADHD specialists who will help you alleviate your ADHD symptoms and improve your well-being!
