Published on 12, July, 2020
I know that we can be prone to being clumsy (and why, and that I definitely am), but can still find it upsetting.
Since my diagnosis, I've found it easier to just acknowledge - or even to smile or laugh about - the smaller examples. But my unending stream of clumsiness, together with the hassle of the bigger examples, still gets to me.
It started innocuously enough today: I somehow dropped my teabag on the kitchen floor, between taking it out of the caddy and putting it into my cup. One moment it was right there, between my thumb and fingers, and I was looking right at it. The next it was on the floor. I've no idea how.
Two hours later, one that I couldn't smile about: I was sitting in the living room, had a first sip from a cup of coffee, and then - in the process of putting it back on the side table - somehow knocked it over and spilled it all over the floor (including down the table, under the table, under the sofa, etc).
I thought it might be interesting or maybe even therapeutic to share some of our clumsiness incidents.
So, if you feel like sharing, how clumsy are you? And what are some examples - whether recent or old?
(Very importantly, I don't mean to be tone deaf with this thread in respect of those of us who routinely have more severe difficulties. I'm thinking about the situations that we think we've got covered, until it turns out that we haven't).
I'm dyspraxic, I bounce off walls and things too, I do have fairly good posture though.
I was the last person to be picked for sports teams too, even my friends didn't want me in thier teams!
For some reason people seem to think competition is good for everyone, I don't, nor do I work well under pressure which another thing people are supposed to be good at. I think there are some people who manage to push their inadaquasies onto the rest of us, they probably write an inspirational book or something and every fool and his aunty believe them!
Hello,
could it be dyspraxia and not simply being clumsy? I am dyspraxic and am forever dropping things or bumping in to walls, doors and have the bumps to prove it. Despite all that, I manage to go cycling but find corners hard to navigate round.
I have poor fine motor skills so struggle with my handwriting.
That's a lovely addition to your profile icon, btw!
My posture is awful. My neck sticks forward. I have shoulder issues because of it. I actually wish someone told me to stand up straight as a kid
Wow! So much already that I doubt I'm alone in relating to - and some interesting different ones! Thank you for sharing
I've also always walked with a stoop, to mind where I'm stepping. Ages ago, I ran into an old school friend, who immediately demanded "you're still walking like that! Stand up straight!".
Indoors, I walk mostly on the balls of my feet, and I've tripped and fallen upstairs far too many times.
There's barely a chip-free plate or bowl left (one fewer, yesterday), and I hit my knuckles into the edges of shelves. I wear earplugs for loading or unloading the dishwasher, not just for the normal noises, but also for when I smash things together or drop them. We buy extras of glassware, to have on standby.
Lots of knocks and bruises, too, including from doorframes and the shower walls.
I was actually just thinking about that, the competitiveness of some kids was off the scale, unfortunately some carried it on into adulthood and the workplace.
In school, I was always the last to be picked for any sports team. I think a lot of people say this.
I’ve been told that I walk like I have a stone in my shoe!
I painted two car suspension springs this morning for a classic car, I walked past them earlier and knocked both of them to the floor. Now nice black gloss covered in grit. I used to get angry but now just accept it. I found it harder as a child, I couldn’t workout why I couldn’t catch, throw or kick a ball. Everyone else just seemed to be able to do it. I can literally trip over my own feet.
Both my late wife and daughter have said I have an odd gait. My daughter says that I walk like I'm drunk , and that I'm the clumsiest person she has known.
It was one of the first things which my sister noticed about my niece. She got a notice of Dyspraxia long before she got her diagnosis of Autism, I know it's one of those things which she'll have to find a way of coping with.
Personally, I don't think i've ever had to worry about it so much - which is nice!
I definitely want to support your notion of "sharing is caring" though. A lot of what hurts me about Autism is the continual sense of loneliness and isolation having spent many years pretending not to have these difficulties.
I think if you do or don't need to find coping strats for this element of Autism, it's still really valuable to learn what some of us have to live with.
Because I have always been a wimp and terrified of hurting myself, I move much slower in a lot of situations, and often miss the scenery when out on walks because I am looking at my feet. I refuse to go out in icy conditions and walk up and down the stairs as if I am 90. I often bang plates on the cupboards when putting in. I don't do anything remotely risky.
On the other hand, when I am fixing things or cooking, I will have cuts and minor burns that I don't notice for a while.
I'm always covered in bruises, I don't know how I get most of them, there's many a slip between cup and lip is an old saying that could of been invented for me, I think I must have an invisible hole in my lip, especially if I'm wearing something new or light coloured, I always manage to drop something down myself and stain it.