I thought it was time that the website I made for Dyspraxia had a new blog. I haven’t had the time to update it very often. But I’ve been inspired this week by a wonderful piece of documentary making by a young producer named Xanthe Palmer.
Dyspraxia is like a disconnect between your brain and your body when it feels like your entire body is acting out against you. That’s as heard in the recent BBC Radio programme, “My Dyspraxic Life”.
So much of that documentary resonates with me so well.
Dyspraxia is estimated to affect more than 3 million people in the UK, 1.4 million severely. It is a complex disorder and highly misunderstood. People with dyspraxia are Not just simply clumsy. It encompasses a wide range of symptoms but no 2 people with Dyspraxia are the same.
There’s so much I could say about it at any one time but today the thing that stands out to me is the following.
Cognitive function: “It’s not just that I can’t copy what you’re doing. Because of the short-term memory, I have no idea what I’ve just watched.”
And that is so true. Maybe on a given day, if I’m lucky I will understand an instruction the first time but often my brain just can’t take in verbal instruction. This is why so many Dyspraxia people can have trouble following instructions.
You battle against it every single day. It is exhausting. It is annoying. It is frustrating. And from a personal point of view, I quite often wish I did not have it. I often wonder how different I would be if I was rid of this condition. Yes, I can say I wouldn’t be the person I am today but that’s the point.
There is no cure. But even if there was I’d have to learn how to do things all over again. So like all Dyspraxic people all we can do is just learn to make the best thing things and muddle along through life. So please, if you haven’t already please give this radio show some of your time on BBC Sounds. At the time of writing, there are 26 days left to listen and I think you’ll enjoy it and take a lot from it.
“My Dyspraxic Life” – BBC Radio Sheffield – https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p09jk37n