Clumsiness / proprioception

[Sparklysazza]

Does anyone else have the uncanny ability to lasso the belt loops on your jeans around every door handle you pass? I've lost count of the times I've breezed through a door, only to jerk to an abrupt stop - usually with disastrous consequences to anything I'm holding.

At least the jeans survive, which is more than I can say for my cotton trousers, my dressing gown, my shorts... pretty much anything with non-triple-stitched belt loops.

ahh I laughed when I read this, as I've started doing it recently, I thought it was just me! I couldn't figure out why I'd been able to walk past doors without much consequence for most of my life, but in the last few months, it's become quite hazardous!

[Rosie]

Hi all

I often wear tops with ties at the back, and I have lost count of the times I have caught them on door handles, just can't judge how to miss them!

[madmum]

Sleeves the same!! Now a question. My son came out with me and nicky dog last night. He had the new dog toy. Standing on the path he said "shall I throw it in the air". Before I could say no he threw it up and sideways and landed it on a tall bramble bush to his left. He got scratched retrieving it using my crutch. Is this bad proprioception?

[Rosie]

Hi all

I am not sure about this one. From what I remember when i was a child, and from watching my own children, I definitely found some things, like aiming a ball, difficult. I think thta partly it was just not being able to get my body to do what I wanted, and partly not being able to judge where things would go, so probably partly poor proprioception, but mixed in with poor co-ordination and muscles control. I do remember that because I found things more difficult I was lees inclined to try them again, especially as everyone else seemed to have less of a problem learning things like this, when of course it was more practice I needed, not less.

Rosie

[Fluffym]

I had to laugh at this posting. Only this morning I got hooked up on the door by the belt hook on my jeans. I had been trying to manoever the hoover through the door. I did wonder for a second whether I could escape! I too get hooked up by my sleeves and occasionally walk into the door frame!

Fluffym

[Ninjen]

Belt Loops!! I never thought that could be something connected to proprioception! The Sainsbury's delivery man had to unhook me from the front door the other day when I caught myself in a tizz and couldn't unhook myself! I do this ALL the time. He found it hilarious so I was quite lucky with that one! It was not so funny when I rammed the fork into my teeth when I was eating.

Looking back as a child, I was frequently told that I was clumsy and need to "look where I'm going". I was born with my "hip out of joint". The my ligaments etc were very lax and so I had to be in a splint for a while. I was lucky as I was under the consultancy of Prof. ///. He discharged me after a year as the joint seemed to be fine. (It's only through age that it slips out of joint now and again) Mum sent me to ballet so I didn't trip over my own feet all the time. I frequently used to balance on the two hind legs of my chair, and ended up with both a moon shaped bruise and a blueish grey mark in my right thigh where I fell off my chair, panicked in the falling process and stabbed myself in the leg with a newly sharpened pencil! The amount of times I have fallen down the stairs would make me rich if i had a pound for everytime!

I'm lucky that my OH is very understanding and laughs along with me! I do need to concentrate, lots!

To the other poster re: small feet, I am 6ft and have size 6 feet. Yes, there are times when I just topple over!

NJ

Mod edit - name removed, please see forum rules!

[greenjadedragon]

Oh, my word. I think I'm seeing my life flash before my eyes reading all this!

Belt loops & sleeves on doorhandles, falling down stairs, walking into walls, doors, lampposts, postboxes, furniture, tripping over nothing, missing my own mouth while eating & drinking, walking into my partner when walking beside him, a complete inability to hit or catch anything in sports, being completely clumsy & uncoordinated, inexplicable bruising, smacking myself in the face with my own facecloth & nearly dislocating my nose! exiting the bath can also be a hazardous manoeuvre.

Yup, Think that just about covers it!

oh, I also topple over, I'm 5'3 and have size 2.5 feet, I swear there isn't enough foot to hold me up sometimes.

oh and twitching, figiting however you describe it, that, a lot! have to keep moving or else I wouldn't know where my body was.

And I nearly took a header down the stone stairs from the flat (2nd floor) this morning on the way to work!

[thalia]

Oh yes, belt loops, sleeves, and sometimes pockets bringing me to an abrupt halt, I'd forgotten about that. So many things I just take for granted and let free from my memory, no wonder I can never explain anything to anyone

Fidgeting, yes, though mine's subtle, so I wouldn't get told off - part of being brought up by an (at the time undiagnosed) Asperger mother, I guess, whose response to stuff I could never predict, and who wanted me to behave like a 'proper little lady' and not the 'ruffian' she often accused me of being.

Regularly smack myself in the face or poke myself in the eye - my other half seems amazed how often it happens, but at least I've only once got him in the 11 years we've been a couple (probably helps that he's in NZ and I'm in the UK, and only get to see him for 3-6 months of the year, lol - keeps him safe). I did manage to stab a friend in the finger with a scalpel at art college, but fortunatley he quickly forgave me, and learnt to keep his distance if I was wielding sharp objects. My other half has banned me from using power tools since I dremmelled the skin between my thumb and forefinger. I am a real danger to myself, lol.

Greenjadedragon, you mentioned nearly taking a header down the stairs - that's one thing I do worry about, in the middle of the night, when I come out of the bathroom and see the steep fall down the stairs, knowing I'm at my unsteadiest at that time of night. Have often thought I need a barrier across the top, but so far the fear of falling has stopped me doing so.

Perhaps I should just wrap myself in the mountain of bubble wrap I've accumulated over the years, padded out with some cotton wool. It's that or put padding on all teh edges of furniture and door frames, and a big crash mat at the bottom of the stairs

[mazza111]

I always tell Stacey she could fall over fresh air. She says it's because the fresh air should be up at her face and not down at her feet. She also does the custard pie thing when smelling stuff

[BendyBoff]

Yep for the sleeves getting caught it door handles!

The most embarrassing proprioception thing that ever happened to me was in my old job - I was talking to a group of student volunteers about a project they could volunteer on while we were all sat on bean bags. I stood up to hand them some information leaflets and my ankle gave way but I managed to rescue myself. Then when I tried to sit back down I missed the bean nag completely! Luckily I was standing in for my colleague and so I didn't have to see these particular volunteers very often!

xxx

[ktwf2]

I'm glad you liked the video. This topic is certainly for keeps! I'm laughing my head off here.

I'm getting hydrotherapy nowadays and a while ago my physiotherapist suggested I could try swimming a bit in order to relax. When complaining about my neck, she suggested swimming on my back. Doing so I kept turning on my side though after two or three strokes. Everytime I exploded with laughter. Telling my sister this on the phone, her comment was: "Oh, just like a dead fish!"

Keep up the good stories!
Kate

[Rosie]

Hiya

ktwf2 - backstroke is actually swum rotating from one side to the other. As the arm pulls down through the water your body rolls onto that side, and it helps the other arm and shoulder clear the water as it recovers. So for once it maybe wasn't just your proprioception. Love your sister's comment though!

Rosie

[ktwf2]

Good comment, I wasn't crawling though, I had my arms akimbo and was kind of just floating on my back.

Kate

PS: Akimbo? Really? That's English? My dictionary must be kidding, I never heard of that word before! Haha.

[Looby62]

This thread has really cheered me up!

I can so relate to the sleeve, pocket, belt loop scenarios. I frequently walk into my clothes airer and have lost count of how many times I have bruised my toes just making the bed.

I too bump into my husband when walking next to him and surpassed myself the other day by tripping over my own feet when trying not to bump into him, sending myself hurtling across the pavement and into the road, arms outstretched and my face almost parallel to the floor like I was pretending to be a plane dive bombing. I was very lucky it was a quiet road and no one else was about to see my performance.

I did eventually manage to right myself and look on my husbands face was priceless

[jolajo]

I'd just like to add another post...

Attempted to carry the dregs of a cup of tea and my macbook air downstairs at the same time (why?). Ankle gave way, lost balance etc- tea goes flying all over cream carpet and wall and my Macbook. Idiot!

Anyone else with poor general judgement of situations to go alongside poor proprioception?!