Appleton man’s battle with dyspraxia

2:00pm Saturday 12th November 2011 in News

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THIS week is Dyspraxia Awareness Week.

Jonathan Levy, a 20-year-old living in Appleton, whose interests include football, politics and showbiz, has a mild form of the condition. This is his story…

“I HAVE a mild form of dyspraxia, a neurological condition which can make even the simplest tasks a struggle.

“Dyspraxia is thought to affect up to 10 per cent of the population and can run in families. Males are three times more likely to be affected than females.

“I’ve always been slower than most in reaching milestones such as learning to ride a bike.

“Upon reaching school age I avoided games, was unable to tie my shoelaces and stood out with my ‘chicken scratch’ handwriting.

“English and foreign languages were two of my strongest subjects but I struggled greatly with maths, science and anything practical.

“I got through GCSE maths with a D but despite private tuition and resits was unable to advance to a C. I still vow that one day I will.

“I enjoy socialising and have good friends but many people with dyspraxia have poor social skills and struggle to keep up with their peers.

“Teenage life can be particularly challenging as the high school language and chatter is often fast, witty and difficult to keep up with.

“This can be the time when friends desert you and bullying may creep in, as it becomes obvious that you are different.

“With awareness in autism and dyslexia increasing, I describe dyspraxia as the ‘forgotten cousin’.

“Dyspraxia overlaps with both conditions due to the implications it has for skills like reading and writing. Dyspraxia though, has its own symptoms.

“Children often encounter late development in motor skills like standing and walking then later, difficulties in running and catching a ball. I certainly encountered these difficulties.

“Adults may experience communication and motor difficulties such as learning to drive but, as with many medical conditions, it can affect different people in different ways.

“There is no known cause of dyspraxia nor is there a cure but when facing challenges such as following oral instructions or using office equipment I tell myself that I will succeed, I’ll just have to work much harder.

“My condition hasn’t stopped from me succeeding in exams and entering employment so I’m proud of what I can do and never talk myself down. Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe is probably the most famous dyspraxic.”

l Dyspraxia Awareness Week runs until Saturday. if you think you or your child may have dyspraxia, visit dyspraxiafoundation.org.uk

My mom tell me that I write the lowercase "N" backwards, and she thinks it might be a sign of Dyslexia. so is handwriting your letters backwards a symptom of Dyslexia?

yes. for example some people read the word "dad" and go to write it and write "bab"

Yes it is. But don't worry there are teachers that can help you with it. I have dyslexia but I just live with it

I have done lots of research and I found out the symptoms of minor dyslexia match with my daily routine: the symptoms include things like bad handwriting, clumsiness, a good long term memory for places etc. I think I should really tell my parents about my condition because I don't think they really know about it. unfortunately, I don't think they'd believe me if I told them about it, what should I do?

If you think you have it, tell them. you need testing to confirm that you have it. one thing to do is print out a list of the symptoms and check off the ones you have to show to your parents. That may convince them if they don't believe it otherwise.

If they don't think you need testing, or don't believe you, talk to a counselor or teacher at your school. (Some places have staff in during vacation. either way, if it's not affecting your daily life too much, you can probably wait until school's back in, unless it already is).

it doesnt really matter if they do or not EVERYONE is slightly dyslexic.

my dads dyslexic and he is a cop so it doesnt actuly affect your daily routine that much.
im dyslexic and my mom wont belive me but my dad does

so realy just say im dyslexic if they believe you great if they dont then al that matters is that you know

its not serious at all lol

tell them that you want to make a test to see if you have it or not, tell them a lot of kids in your age make those tests and you want to make it too, cause you think you have it.
dyslexia it's quite common, don't make a big deal out of it.

tell them. then if they dont belive you show them all the research you did. give them examples of your life that match up with the symptoms. then ask over and over to be tested. but the worst that can happen by you telling them is they dont belive you. nothing worse.

the internet may lie, but just to be sure, go to your oarents and tell them that you want to see a doctor to see if you have a disease, dont tell them wich one, but then tell them that you havent been feeling good, and not like a normal cold.

tell them how your feeling and that you did research and that it could be a minor form of dyslexia. be mature about it, your health is very important and im sure your parents will believe you that your not making this up. you've got nothing to loose hun!

tell them either way. then if they don't believe you tell them to take you to the doctors and prove them wrong

you should tell them they are your parents they are not going to think any different of you your there flesh and blood they will love you and understand you no matter what just tell them

LOL.. tell them buddy…. just say "Dad, Mom, dyslexic am I!"