What am I doing?

Some of you may know that I live with something called Dyspraxia, which is a type of specific learning difficulty (SpLD). You’ve probably heard of Dyslexia, which is another SpLD which is much more well known. I’m fundraising for Dyspraxia Foundation to raise awareness of the condition.

During lockdown, I challenged myself to complete Couch to 5k. Despite avoiding running since PE at school, I managed to finish it! I never  thought I would be able to run, especially as I find co-ordination tricky. 
So, to keep up the momentum and raise money for a good cause, I’ve decided to run 50k over the next 10 days. It’s a step up from 3 runs a week but I’m ready for a challenge!

Dyspraxia?

I was formally diagnosed with Dyspraxia during my time at University. For me, Dyspraxia means that I often struggle with co-ordination, can be forgetful and that I learn in a way which sometimes doesn’t make sense to others, because my brain is wired a bit differently.

During school, DCD (a dated term for Dyspraxia) was on my record but this was overlooked because I wasn’t a struggling student.
This meant that I didn’t receive any additional support and was often told to ‘try harder’ by my beloved PE teacher. You wouldn’t tell a person with Dyslexia to try harder to read, so I’m not sure why you’d do the same for someone with Dyspraxia for activities involving co-ordination!

Dyspraxia can make a range of things difficult and isn’t all about co-ordination, however. It can have a significant impact on the way people learn and their performance at school and work, especially if awareness and support aren’t there for them. 

I'm running to raise awareness so more people with Dyspraxia can meet their full potential.