Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD)
This week is Developmental Coordination Disorder awareness week!
What is DCD?
Developmental Coordination Disorder is a lifelong neurodevelopmental condition which affects the way a child learns, sequences and coordinates movement.
Children with DCD often have difficulty with learning new movement skills and with putting together a couple of movement skills into a sequence.
Signs of DCD
For children at risk of DCD there are a number of different signs. Usually parents would describe their child as:
Clumsy
Having difficulty with learning new movements
Taking longer to do everyday tasks, especially motor tasks like doing buttons or getting dressed
Tripping or falling over frequently
Avoiding difficult tasks
Bumping in to objects or people
Getting tired more quickly than other children their age
It is important to remember that every child with DCD is unique, and your child’s story might be different. It is important for your child to be reviewed by your GP or a kids physio if you are concerned that they may have DCD.
How kids physio at NeuroCentric can help
Here at NeuroCentric, we support many children with DCD.
Assessment: We complete a comprehensive assessment of your child’s movement. This helps us identify their areas of strength and the areas in which we can help support them.
Goal Setting: We work with you to identify the goals you have for your child. This helps guide how we structure your physiotherapy program, and helps make sure that the things we work on in physio will have a meaningful impact on how your child is playing, learning and moving.
Physio Program: We will work with you on exercises and activities that can help your child to build their skills. This program is based on areas in which your child needed additional support identified in the assessment. This could include working on strength, sequencing, motor planning, coordination and balance.
Coaching: We work with you and others working with your child to help you understand how best to support your child. This could also include speaking to pre-school or school teachers about ways to include your child in the classroom.
Want to know more?
We would love to chat to you more about DCD and the way that physio could support your child.
Reach out to us today!