Dyspraxia, also known as developmental coordination disorder (DCD), is a neurodevelopmental condition that affects motor planning: the brain’s ability to organize, sequence, and carry out physical movement. It is not about muscle strength or intelligence. The person knows what they want to do, but the signals between brain and body do not coordinate smoothly.

It can show up as difficulty with fine motor tasks (handwriting, buttons, using utensils), gross motor coordination (balance, catching, navigating physical spaces), or sequencing multi-step actions. Sensory processing differences, particularly in proprioception (knowing where your body is in space), often accompany it. Some people also experience verbal dyspraxia, which affects the motor planning involved in speech (this is closely related to childhood apraxia of speech, or CAS).

Dyspraxia co-occurs frequently with ADHD and autism, where motor coordination difficulties are more common. Tasks that become automatic for others may never fully become automatic for someone with dyspraxia, which means everyday activities can require significantly more conscious effort and energy than they appear to from the outside.