If you’ve read my post called “Brainiac – Villan or Superhero”, you’ll know that we had a very real picture of Sol’s brain and the challenges he would face when it came to balance and co-ordination….. and speech.
As Sol did reach his physical milestones, albeit a bit wobbly, we noticed that his sitting posture wasn’t very strong. He seemed to hunch and was floppy when we held him. I was lucky to know a young lady who specialised in paediatric physiotherapy and I thought it would be worthwhile having Sol assessed by her. Sol had his first meeting and assessment with Joanna at 13 months old.
The report indicated the following:
- slight hypermobility in wrists and ankles
- normal muscle power for his age
- no scoliosis
This assessment certainly didn’t indicate that Sol had any obvious motor development delays. As a baby, he was really active and always moving so I believe his muscle power and ability to meet his physical milestones in his early years was a combination of the time he spent in activity, some of the early movement classes we introduced him to and his personality. Sol is a real go-getter and incredibly determined and these qualities will carry him far. Ironically, one of the traits for dyspraxia is that they tire easily. As the brain is always thinking about where to put that arm, lift that leg, how to turn this way or that, it is exhausting. If we apply this to ourselves, we don’t think about walking, we just walk. A dyspraxic will need to remind themselves to move one leg, then the other and “how did that chair appear in the way?”
Sol started “baby gym” classes with Sathya at Kizsports. For a long time, this was one of the only safe and clean indoor play spaces in Kuala Lumpur and they offered baby movement and music classes. In fact, I used to take Jazz to these when she was a baby, 13 years before! And we also had Sathya back then. The soft mats and multiple options for climbing, as well as socialisation ensured that Sol had a lot of his needs met.
Sol moved onto “TheLittleGym” when he was 18 months old. This was a more challenging gymnastics based class but once again, another space where he was able to hone his skills, particularly with balance. The teachers were kind, attentive and aware of Sol’s physical challenges. He stayed until he was 3.5years when it became more obvious that he was struggling with some of the atypical physical motor skills you might see in a kid his age.
We had another review with Joanna at 3 years, 3 months. The stakes were much greater with this feedback:
- generalised joint hyper mobility where several of Sol’s joints are flexible than usual
- hypotonia – low to average muscle tone
- compromised balance and postural-equilibrium response or the ability to stop yourself from falling.
- poor midline organisation
- impulsive movement patterns, not always organised
- poor timing, fluency and rhythm of movement patterns
- no pincer grip for fine motor skills
- holds head at an unusual angle when performing tasks up close
We swapped out Sol’s gymnastics sessions for focused Physical Therapy sessions with Joanna. Sol has been at The Energy Source for 9 months now.
Let me tell you about Joanna – she just “gets” kids that have learning differences and struggle daily. And she does not feel sorry for them or treat them “less than”. Joanna has high standards and higher expectations. Every session is planned to challenge and, wait for it, have FUN! Sol LOVES his sessions with Joanna. They are always laughing and what looks like playing is actually all part of Joanna’s clever plan. Every “circuit” or new exercise is masked as playtime. I think of Joanna’s sessions as a personal training session for a child and about 10 times more fun. When I’m watching, I find myself laughing a lot and marvelling at how creative and clever she is.
The moment it hit home just how much Sol had improved, was his Pre-School Sports Day. They had to carry water in cups, complete an obstacle course, throw things, jumping races – you name it, all the things that kids with poor co-ordination and sucky balance would hate. Not Sol – he had a blast, didn’t bat an eyelid at any of the activities and gave everything his best. And…….he was awesome!!!!!! There were quite a few moments (walking the plank, not spilling any water, throwing beanbags) where he was as accomplished as any other kid on the field. I felt so proud and admittedly a bit teary. Sol did not know that these activities were meant to be hard and that he typically shouldn’t be as good as he was. The time spent with Joanna has meant that my Sol-man left his very first sports day with his self esteem intact.
While many of Sol’s peers will now be starting to find a soccer team to join or trailing new sports, Sol might not have this in his future. I’m not saying never – I just think we are going to continue to focus on the tasks that Sol needs that keep him moving efficiently and safely through daily life. I’m grateful that we have found some physical activities that Sol enjoys and excels at and we are going to stick with those for now. Sol is showing quite good legs for running – if we can just get him running between the lines, we will be winning! Oh – and he’s damn quick on a scooter!
On a side note, I’ve started reading an amazing book I highly recommend for any parents that are struggling to make decisions for their kids who require more of a “scenic route” to education and life.
“Differently Wired: Raising an Exceptional Child in a Conventional World” by Deborah Reber – sharing this “I’ve come to realise that if we really want a parenting paradigm that embraces and appreciates who our children are, we have to first own up to the ways in which we are contributing to keeping the outdated one in place” (p.76).
RESOURCES
Sol-Man's Superhero Powers - Dyspraxia 