[SPAM]Re: Re: Crossing the midline---Please help---Janice

[Guest guest]

Jane,

Sorry, I've written you a novel here!

This is not a rare condition for people with global dyspraxia but very, very

common.... If you look at the dyspraxia families group and the adult dyspraxia

board you will find that most of the diagnosed do not cross the midline and are

indeed ambi-dexterous... but not naturally so.... unnaturally so!

The dyspraxic does not cross the mid-line with the dominant hand to pick up an

object but merely uses the hand " closest " to the object of desire.... brushes

teeth with the closer hand, opens the door with the closest hand; my son plays

squash with 2 forehands and no backhand (before he couldn't keep up with the

other kids and so quit), picks up items with closest hand. I once had to

monitor his hand usage for two weeks straight and with the exception of

handwriting (which was chosen for him by the OT's in EI), he had no hand

preference. As long as it did not cross the midline, he was okay and used it

for the action.

My son can write equally well with the left hand and the right which would be

fine but he writes like a 2rd grader in grade 7. Fine motor issues include an

inability to master snaps, buttons, shoelaces, you name it, it is tough for him.

Lockers take longer to open and sweat pants are preferred over jeans. I am

frightened for the day that he has to learn to shave!

For our kids..... lack of good dominance and hand preference/expertise is a huge

debilating issue. Just yesterday, I was watching Mark put a loose leave sheet

into his binder...fumbling all over it as per usual and threatening to tear it

up with his insensitive fingers and then I realized and said.... " hey

sweetheart.... why don't you try doing that with your right hand? " " I'll bet

you it will be easier... " Mark is right-handed but his first instinct is NOT to

use it as the rest of mankind does! Lord knows why.... I swear I will never get

that child to develop a side!!! He is 13 and I just started too late. All of

the professionals said not to worry (so I didn't) and now look what I'm dealing

with..... zero life skills!

We did go back for a do over of the lower motor centers of the brain and it

really did help: crawling, creeping, marching & skipping. We run every day for

1/2 an hour or we do intense sport such as skiing, biking etc. These have also

really helped in many ways to get the body and the mind in better sync.

But the hands are an issue for our kids. There is no instinctive approach that

you and I have with regards to motor planning. The attack is random and

haphazard rather than structured and with reason. Spilling plates full of food

and being unable to carry a plate with stability is a complaint that is often

voiced on the adults board! Sometimes I cannot bear to read the stories of the

adults since they depress me. Issues with memory persist, issues with hands,

handwriting persist, balance, motor control, driving, keep a job.... all of

these issues are voiced on the adults board and it is this board that gives me a

wake-up call and convinces me that I need to keep working and doing home therapy

with my child.

This stuff just does not go away unless we remediate it.....

So Mark and I work and he has gotten a lot better. It is coming but very, very

slowly. I only wished I had done this work when he was 5 and not 13. Every

time I read a post on the families board or this board of a child in first or

second grade who is beginning to lag behind.... I cry inside for the mother and

the child for I know what is to happen next..... the mother is to realize how

far behind her child is and the child is to realize that he is disabled. The

bullying then begins, the tears, the agony and the despair. Somewhere out of

this eventually comes strength but at what cost?

Why can't we begin the process sooner? Why can't we do a better job of

attacking the dyspraxia before school age? This is my quest for all of the

mothers on this board.... never to go through what Mark & I went through....

that is my deepest wish.

Janice

Mother of Mark, 13

[ ] Crossing the midline-

--

> Please help---Janice

> >

> >

> >

> >

> > 's deal:While I called EI for speech in EI in 10/06,

NJ's

> speech standards are low and little to no words at 21 months was

> within normal range: HELLO The speech plus the hand issue is what

> qualified him for services. His tone issues were there as well

but he

> has always had good balance. We have pursued a program of core

> strenthening, etc. since summer and have seen persistent gains

along

> with TLP gains that were immediate. Head loll is gone.Where we

are

> now:Some fine motor work needs to be done in the hand that got us

> services...the right hand. I would not be concerned were it not

for

> all of Janice's posts on dysgraphia, crossing the midline, etc.

so

> here we are.This is what I see:He has a definite preference for

the

> left hand. Brushes teeth with it and prefers to write, such as it

is,

> with it.When we do the balance beam walking I hold his left hand

and

> he leads with his right foot to walk and does well. This is

clearly

> what he prefers to do...his natural position. I realized this

today

> when I did it the other way (held his right hand and he was

trying to

> lead with the left foot). He eventually did it but not with

ease.I am

> assuming this to mean he is mixed up. If he is truly a leftie

> shouldn't he be walking with the left foot leading and be

comfortable?

> Recent detox brought W sitting occasionally (had not seen that

Since

> Sept). Also he can still sit and move forward and touch nose to

> floor. Then envy of every 40 year old woman but not good for him

I am

> sure. Lastly, peekaboo flatfootedness during recent

> detox).Question:What am I seeing and how do I fix whatever is not

> good?

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> > __________________________________________________________

> > Share life as it happens with the new Windows Live.

> > http://www.windowslive.com/share.html?

> ocid=TXT_TAGHM_Wave2_sharelife_012008

> >

> >

[Guest guest]

It sounds like " ambiguous dominance " is far more prevalent than I realized. As

i said on my previous post, this " lack " of any dominance is never good for

development of motor skills. A child needs to use a particular hand

consistently for a particular skilled action in order to get good at it. For

ex, if a child wishes to use his left hand for writing and drawing, and

brushing his teeth, that is fine as long as he is consistent with this. If he

decides to throw a ball, and do other things like that with his right hand, that

is OK too as long as he is consistent. what you are describing is something

utterly different. Your child does not have a program built inside of him and

he doesn't know which hand to use for different actions. this lack of motor

programming is far more common among children with developmental disabilities

including children on the spectrum. These children as you know have global

delays in their motor planning which affect their speech and their motor

control. So I think we are all saying the same thing, left handedness and

" typical " ambidexterity is fine and in fact is quite common in college students

(which is who most of the research is done with), but total inconsistency and

lack of any established dominance is not. That is why early OT can be very

helpful in solving this dilemma, not necessarily to make the child totally right

sided or left sided, but to train consistency which leads to skill.

jane M. Healey, Ph.D.

[ ] Crossing the midline-

--

> Please help---Janice

> >

> >

> >

> >

> > 's deal:While I called EI for speech in EI in 10/06,

NJ's

> speech standards are low and little to no words at 21 months was

> within normal range: HELLO The speech plus the hand issue is what

> qualified him for services. His tone issues were there as well

but he

> has always had good balance. We have pursued a program of core

> strenthening, etc. since summer and have seen persistent gains

along

> with TLP gains that were immediate. Head loll is gone.Where we

are

> now:Some fine motor work needs to be done in the hand that got us

> services...the right hand. I would not be concerned were it not

for

> all of Janice's posts on dysgraphia, crossing the midline, etc.

so

> here we are.This is what I see:He has a definite preference for

the

> left hand. Brushes teeth with it and prefers to write, such as it

is,

> with it.When we do the balance beam walking I hold his left hand

and

> he leads with his right foot to walk and does well. This is

clearly

> what he prefers to do...his natural position. I realized this

today

> when I did it the other way (held his right hand and he was

trying to

> lead with the left foot). He eventually did it but not with

ease.I am

> assuming this to mean he is mixed up. If he is truly a leftie

> shouldn't he be walking with the left foot leading and be

comfortable?

> Recent detox brought W sitting occasionally (had not seen that

Since

> Sept). Also he can still sit and move forward and touch nose to

> floor. Then envy of every 40 year old woman but not good for him

I am

> sure. Lastly, peekaboo flatfootedness during recent

> detox).Question:What am I seeing and how do I fix whatever is not

> good?

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> > __________________________________________________________

> > Share life as it happens with the new Windows Live.

> > http://www.windowslive.com/share.html?

> ocid=TXT_TAGHM_Wave2_sharelife_012008

> >

> >

[Guest guest]

This is so helpful!

Thanks!

> > >

> > >

> > > Hi Liz,

> > >

> > > If you want activities that help with crossing the midline,

you

> can

> > refer to a program called Brain Gym. THey use exercises/body

> > movements that help with that specific issue.

> > >

> > >

> > >

> > >

> > > ;

> > ApraxiaDyspraxiaBiomedSupport@: lizlaw@: Wed, 9 Jan 2008

> > 19:08:46 -0500Subject: [ ] Crossing the

midline-

> --

> > Please help---Janice

> > >

> > >

> > >

> > >

> > > 's deal:While I called EI for speech in EI in 10/06,

> NJ's

> > speech standards are low and little to no words at 21 months

was

> > within normal range: HELLO The speech plus the hand issue is

what

> > qualified him for services. His tone issues were there as well

> but he

> > has always had good balance. We have pursued a program of core

> > strenthening, etc. since summer and have seen persistent gains

> along

> > with TLP gains that were immediate. Head loll is gone.Where we

> are

> > now:Some fine motor work needs to be done in the hand that got

us

> > services...the right hand. I would not be concerned were it not

> for

> > all of Janice's posts on dysgraphia, crossing the midline, etc.

> so

> > here we are.This is what I see:He has a definite preference for

> the

> > left hand. Brushes teeth with it and prefers to write, such as

it

> is,

> > with it.When we do the balance beam walking I hold his left

hand

> and

> > he leads with his right foot to walk and does well. This is

> clearly

> > what he prefers to do...his natural position. I realized this

> today

> > when I did it the other way (held his right hand and he was

> trying to

> > lead with the left foot). He eventually did it but not with

> ease.I am

> > assuming this to mean he is mixed up. If he is truly a leftie

> > shouldn't he be walking with the left foot leading and be

> comfortable?

> > Recent detox brought W sitting occasionally (had not seen that

> Since

> > Sept). Also he can still sit and move forward and touch nose to

> > floor. Then envy of every 40 year old woman but not good for

him

> I am

> > sure. Lastly, peekaboo flatfootedness during recent

> > detox).Question:What am I seeing and how do I fix whatever is

not

> > good?

> > >

> > >

> > >

> > >

> > >

> > >

> > > __________________________________________________________

> > > Share life as it happens with the new Windows Live.

> > > http://www.windowslive.com/share.html?

> > ocid=TXT_TAGHM_Wave2_sharelife_012008

> > >

> > >

[Guest guest]

Janice,

Your e-mail touched my soul. It is hard to see these wonderfully capable

kids suffer. My son had a huge tantrum yesterday, because a group of people

answered a question to a guessing game while he was really trying to process

and get the answer out. He was a mess. He was trying really hard, and was

saddened he failed, while others proceeded. We all know too well how it

feels. I just keep focusing on the light at the end of the tunnel.

Regards,

Ambika

_____

From:

[mailto: ] On Behalf Of Janice

Sent: Friday, January 11, 2008 11:07 PM

Subject: Re: [sPAM]Re: [ ] Re: Crossing the

midline---Please help---Janice

Jane,

Sorry, I've written you a novel here!

This is not a rare condition for people with global dyspraxia but very, very

common.... If you look at the dyspraxia families group and the adult

dyspraxia board you will find that most of the diagnosed do not cross the

midline and are indeed ambi-dexterous... but not naturally so....

unnaturally so!

The dyspraxic does not cross the mid-line with the dominant hand to pick up

an object but merely uses the hand " closest " to the object of desire....

brushes teeth with the closer hand, opens the door with the closest hand; my

son plays squash with 2 forehands and no backhand (before he couldn't keep

up with the other kids and so quit), picks up items with closest hand. I

once had to monitor his hand usage for two weeks straight and with the

exception of handwriting (which was chosen for him by the OT's in EI), he

had no hand preference. As long as it did not cross the midline, he was okay

and used it for the action.

My son can write equally well with the left hand and the right which would

be fine but he writes like a 2rd grader in grade 7. Fine motor issues

include an inability to master snaps, buttons, shoelaces, you name it, it is

tough for him. Lockers take longer to open and sweat pants are preferred

over jeans. I am frightened for the day that he has to learn to shave!

For our kids..... lack of good dominance and hand preference/expertise is a

huge debilating issue. Just yesterday, I was watching Mark put a loose leave

sheet into his binder...fumbling all over it as per usual and threatening to

tear it up with his insensitive fingers and then I realized and said.... " hey

sweetheart.... why don't you try doing that with your right hand? " " I'll bet

you it will be easier... " Mark is right-handed but his first instinct is NOT

to use it as the rest of mankind does! Lord knows why.... I swear I will

never get that child to develop a side!!! He is 13 and I just started too

late. All of the professionals said not to worry (so I didn't) and now look

what I'm dealing with..... zero life skills!

We did go back for a do over of the lower motor centers of the brain and it

really did help: crawling, creeping, marching & skipping. We run every day

for 1/2 an hour or we do intense sport such as skiing, biking etc. These

have also really helped in many ways to get the body and the mind in better

sync.

But the hands are an issue for our kids. There is no instinctive approach

that you and I have with regards to motor planning. The attack is random and

haphazard rather than structured and with reason. Spilling plates full of

food and being unable to carry a plate with stability is a complaint that is

often voiced on the adults board! Sometimes I cannot bear to read the

stories of the adults since they depress me. Issues with memory persist,

issues with hands, handwriting persist, balance, motor control, driving,

keep a job.... all of these issues are voiced on the adults board and it is

this board that gives me a wake-up call and convinces me that I need to keep

working and doing home therapy with my child.

This stuff just does not go away unless we remediate it.....

So Mark and I work and he has gotten a lot better. It is coming but very,

very slowly. I only wished I had done this work when he was 5 and not 13.

Every time I read a post on the families board or this board of a child in

first or second grade who is beginning to lag behind.... I cry inside for

the mother and the child for I know what is to happen next..... the mother

is to realize how far behind her child is and the child is to realize that

he is disabled. The bullying then begins, the tears, the agony and the

despair. Somewhere out of this eventually comes strength but at what cost?

Why can't we begin the process sooner? Why can't we do a better job of

attacking the dyspraxia before school age? This is my quest for all of the

mothers on this board.... never to go through what Mark & I went through....

that is my deepest wish.

Janice

Mother of Mark, 13

[ ] Crossing the midline-

--

> Please help---Janice

> >

> >

> >

> >

> > 's deal:While I called EI for speech in EI in 10/06,

NJ's

> speech standards are low and little to no words at 21 months was

> within normal range: HELLO The speech plus the hand issue is what

> qualified him for services. His tone issues were there as well

but he

> has always had good balance. We have pursued a program of core

> strenthening, etc. since summer and have seen persistent gains

along

> with TLP gains that were immediate. Head loll is gone.Where we

are

> now:Some fine motor work needs to be done in the hand that got us

> services...the right hand. I would not be concerned were it not

for

> all of Janice's posts on dysgraphia, crossing the midline, etc.

so

> here we are.This is what I see:He has a definite preference for

the

> left hand. Brushes teeth with it and prefers to write, such as it

is,

> with it.When we do the balance beam walking I hold his left hand

and

> he leads with his right foot to walk and does well. This is

clearly

> what he prefers to do...his natural position. I realized this

today

> when I did it the other way (held his right hand and he was

trying to

> lead with the left foot). He eventually did it but not with

ease.I am

> assuming this to mean he is mixed up. If he is truly a leftie

> shouldn't he be walking with the left foot leading and be

comfortable?

> Recent detox brought W sitting occasionally (had not seen that

Since

> Sept). Also he can still sit and move forward and touch nose to

> floor. Then envy of every 40 year old woman but not good for him

I am

> sure. Lastly, peekaboo flatfootedness during recent

> detox).Question:What am I seeing and how do I fix whatever is not

> good?

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> > __________________________________________________________

> > Share life as it happens with the new Windows Live.

> > http://www.windowsl <http://www.windowslive.com/share.html?>

ive.com/share.html?

> ocid=TXT_TAGHM_Wave2_sharelife_012008

> >

> >