Daniel Radcliffe has Brain Disorder

[Narya]

Yeah... he admitted he has a condition called DYSPRAXIA. Apparently, he can't tie his shoelaces.

Could have had me fooled. He looks perfectly normal. Very, very rich, but normal nonetheless.

Anyone know what causes this disorder? I'm asking because, my kid is slightly Dyslexic and I'm wondering if this is connected with Dyslexia or if it can be something she might acquire too.

[Gilthoniel]

Um.. Yeah. I'll take this one, as I have both.

Whilst you could call Dyspraxia and Dyslexia a 'disorder' but it's more usual to call them 'learning disabilities' - Sounds nicer! Hehe.

They are somewhat related, but they manifest themselves very differently:

Dyspraxia tends to be more co-ordination. I couldn't tie my shoelaces until I was eight, catch until I was 10, do my tie until I was 16, and I still get my left and right confused. Handwriting tends to be messy, wobbly and big, often illegible, even if the spelling is fine.

Dyslexia is more intellect. Spelling and numeracy is usually. It tends to be more getting things confused, than just ignorance. Like 'd' and 'b', I knew the difference, and I knew which one went where, but I'd write the wrong one. Numbers as well confused me. I just couldn't understand the difference between multiplication and addition until I was about 11.

People with them tend to take longer to understand things, and get their ideas out. I know the answers but it takes me longer to organise them in my mind. You can 'grow out' of them, to an extent, in that I learnt how to do the things I couldn't do, but I'll always take longer to learn things. It doesn't mean I'm stupid, I was always one of the brightest in my class, I just need the extra time to think, and get my writing sorted.

So no. You wouldn't be able to see anything in Radcliffe. You might just notice he stops and thinks before answering a question or gets muddled in what he says... If your kid has Dyslexia, it's no problem. She might also be dyspraxic, you might wanna get her tested. I dunno if you have learning support where you live, but my school was very supportive, and even managed to get me extra time in my exams.

Hope I've helped.

[HLGStrider]

http://www.dyspraxiausa.org/what_is_dyspraxia.html

Since it appears to be congenital, I don't think you can develop it at a later date. Dyslexia is pretty common. I think we'd hear about it if it were possible it could lead to more serious complications.
edit:
I guess Glith beat me to posting and knows a lot more, but at least I found a link!