Apraxia

Apraxia is defined as a neurological disorder that causes difficulty with planning and executing skilled movements. It affects the ability to perform learned tasks, even when the individual understands the task, is willing to perform it, and their muscles are capable of performing it.

Apraxia is a disorder that can be difficult to understand and diagnose by the untrained eye. It can look different from day to day and in different situations. Not only can a child’s motor skills vary from one day to the next, but those skills can appear nonexistent when asking them to perform a task on demand. It may even be a task you’ve seen them do before but when put on the spot they freeze.

Childhood apraxia can improve with the right therapy. In the case of verbal apraxia speech therapy should be started as young as possible. For visual apraxia, one can benefit from working with a Behavioral Optometrist that offers vision therapy.

Also be aware that apraxia does not necessarily mean there is a cognitive disability. Consider that an individual may have receptive language, the ability to understand, but not expressive language, the ability to talk. Don’t assume they do not understand because they are unable to answer a question orally or through writing or typing.

It is estimated that 64% of individuals diagnosed with autism will also receive a diagnosis of apraxia. This means interacting and educating individuals on the autism spectrum should include giving those individuals access to a way of communicating that is best suited to their motor planning ability.