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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]My son is in 8th grade in middle school and has low muscle tone. He received private OT from 4 years old to 1st grade and OT services at school from 1st to 5th grade. He is very active and LOVES to be outside. When he was young he was in gymnastics until 2nd grade then couldn't pass the test to get to the next level. We put him into Tae kwon do from 2nd to 5th grade and he played soccer from 3rd to present day. We walk a lot and visit the beach and pool a lot.

He has no idea he has low muscle tone. We didn't really understand his diagnosis until about 3rd grade, because he was always at the playground running around with all the other boys and could completely keep up with them. But he couldn't ride a bike until the END of 3rd grade or swing himself until 5th grade (a huge acomplishment we had a swing in our front yard) He is an AVID and good soccer player, he makes a HUGE effort to play well but I can tell he just can't get to the next level even though his determination is there. He practices everyday on public fields, inside community centers and in our basement. It breaks my heart to watch him practice soooo much, he plays with kids that are on travel teams and can really hold his own.

His writing was HORRIBLE. He could not hold a pencil/crayon well until he was in 2nd grade, he had IEP accommodations to have his tests and writing done verbally. He could only write about 2 sentences when he was in 4th grade. (He is also Dyslexic and ADD) Physically it was hard for him to write. When he got to 5th grade his teachers made him write a lot and I just sat back and watched him, it was hard but he didn't want to appear different from his classmates so he just plugged along. Now in 8th grade he is writing pretty well. He wants to give up many days but we are there to push him along, many times I scribe for him and that accomodation was also in his IEP.

He is my hero; a sweet boy who has low self esteem because he struggles academically. He is a great friend, kind, beautiful, soooo funny! I don't know how we will make it through high school and if he will be able to keep up in sports (I hope he does- it has helped his self esteem) But we will continue to learn strategies and build our muscles and mind.

Be sure to ask for accommodations you believe your child needs in school. I even had the accommodation to have DS lay his head down or lie down when he became fatigued. They insisted he sit up but I insisted to have a lay down moment if needed every hour. Keep your child in some kind of physical activity either organized or not. [/quote]

My daughter seems like this at 5.  She is a twin, and was the first to walk/RUN, first to climb, and is in constant motion.  She used to walk into walls, but the OT seems to be helping with that.  We're pretty sure she'll get an ADD diagnosis eventually, but at the moment she's on grade level so no diagnosis yet.  BUT - she can barely hold a crayon/pencil.  When she does, she prefers to use a fist.

PP I quoted - thanks for reminding me I'm not crazy, not all hypotonia looks alike.  My daughter doesn't realize she has a diagnosis, my kids both just know that she goes to play with Miss Katherine while her sister hangs out in the waiting room.

Eventually the delay in fine motor skills is going to catch up with her, I think even more than the lack of core strength and general "floppiness" that has been observed since the NICU follow up clinic (she was a 33 week preemie).  Asthma (which she likely would have had anyway due to family history) and this hypotonia are her only lingering effects of prematurity.  We have her in private OT now, we'll see what happens when Kindergarten starts in the fall.  The schools don't currently see enough of a delay in fine motor skills to provide services, but they will likely be more of an issue when her peers are better able to write (Realistically, what's "on grade level" for writing for a pre-kindergartener?  My daughter CAN color in the lines, but she needs to concentrate much harder than the other kids to do so.)

I am also decidedly NOT athletic, neither is my husband. [b] I never thought about if some of this could be inherited but now I will.[/b][/quote] It is often genetic. Have you read "The Out of Sync Child"? I'd highly recommend it.[/quote]

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