How can we better support and promote inclusivity for those living with Dyspraxia?

Documenting her journey from childhood and diagnosis to adulthood, author Kimberley Marie Fraser explores the challenge she has faced living with Dyspraxia. An invisible disability with challenges that evolve as life progresses, Kimberley highlights areas where her life has been affected, including education, employment, and well-being, and argues that it is not the disability itself, but a lack of awareness that leads to frequent misunderstandings and inadequate support for many.

Offering learnings from the author's lived experience, this book is ideal reading for students of Disability Studies, Psychology, Sociology, and Education. Guidance and suggestions to support inclusion across society are provided, and relevant for anyone who lives and works with or alongside people with Dyspraxia, including teachers, employers, and social care and support workers.

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Epigraph
• Abstract and Keywords
• Epigraph
• Contents
• Learning objectives
• Introduction
• 1 Early childhood and diagnosis:
  • My challenging start in this world
  • Discharge from hospital
  • The consequences of my disability going unrecognized
  • Diagnosis at last!
• 2 Primary school experiences:
  • Realization of difference in primary school settings
  • Unapproved disclosure of disability – the bullying begins!
• 3 Secondary school experiences:
  • Commencing secondary school and a disruption to routine
  • The bullying worsens!
  • High school and physical education – a new kind of nightmare!
  • My high school bullying experiences from a reflective standpoint – lessons to be learned!
  • Getting away from high school bullying
• 4 College experiences:
  • College and course accessibility challenges
  • Travelling to the course on my own
  • Commencing college – the good and the bad
  • A need for college education to be more inclusive of neurodivergent students
• 5 Employment experiences:
  • Experiences with a Disability Employment Service
  • Employment and Disability Assessments
  • Commencing employment
  • Experiences as a volunteer
  • Retail work experiences
  • Experiences in a toxic work environment
  • Being forced out!
  • The cowardly mobbing
  • “Voluntary” redundancy – a way out!
  • Struggling to return to an unaccommodating workforce
• 6 Independent living experiences:
  • Cooking experiences and challenges
  • Housework experiences and challenges
  • Sleeping and dietary challenges
  • The benefits of living with a comfort animal
  • The desire to drive – challenges and frustrations
  • Travelling independently – wins and challenges
• 7 Life learnings to support social and economic inclusion:
  • Social challenges and ways forward
  • Exercising in a friendly setting
  • Taking on physical challenges – but not overdoing it!
  • Avoiding bad business deals
  • Assisting and not scrutinizing neurodivergent people
  • Educating employers about neurodivergence and the need for accommodations
  • Stopping unfair judgements about people with dyspraxia
• 8 Concluding comments:
  • Anxiety, excitement, and hope for the future!
• Discussion topics:
• References
• Index