Do lot of people really have bad balance?

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I wanted to share one of the things I have used to help with my balance.
It can be made at home pretty cheap or you could buy one of the expensive ones.

I would suggest you fix two blocks of wood underneath the skateboard near each end.
These are STOP blocks.
They keep you from rolling the board off the roller sideways and falling on your behind!
You can use a doorway to help steady yourself until you get the hang of it.
If you use a skateboard like mine... the bottom is not flat and that makes a difference from using a flat-based board.
A good piece of plywood would work also.

This is mine. I also have a small square of carpet that I use underneath so I don't mess up my rug or slip on the wooden floors.



Here's some video of people using these boards:

First off... just to embarrass all of us adults ...
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PntUHayAchU[/youtube]

Have fun!

A make-it-yourself video (I've seen recommendations to only use bottles desgned for carbonated drinks. It is thought that these bottles are stronger)
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqJMrRJ8wOQ[/youtube]

You can do it anywhere... it's portable!
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6LBWJVW83s[/youtube]

...it's fair...not as good as when I was younger. I can still skateboard somewhat...a little shaky on a bike.

I've got bad balance and I'm clumsy.

I tried to use the Cross-Trainer at the Gym but kept falling off. It probably looked funny.

On the plus side, when I was younger I could climb up the mast of a skiff while it was pitching in the waves and not be concerned (because I didn't know when I was off balance).

i have bad coordination

clumsy, clumsy, clumsy.... Knocked knees, bruises and when I am not feeling well, off balance. Gees, it takes a lot of concentration to just walk sometimes, doesn't it?

A lot of people think that they have poor coordination, but if people point out that you are uncoordinated, or have bad balance, then it might be true. These are my examples of what happens when you are unusually uncoordinated (based on personal experiences):

-You get kicked out of a bar when you are completely sober because you happened to fall over or accidentally break something, as you often do

-You can't stand on one leg without falling over

-Your parent(s) took you to a doctor just because you were always falling and getting hurt

-You hate yoga classes because you're always singled out for wobbling and falling over

-You've been given nicknames like "mess"

-You've been injured in ways that don't make sense to other people (like accidentally banging your head against the corner of a car door)

-Every time you try to roller skate, ice skate, or ski, you take a bad fall and/or crash into somebody . . . often more than once

-People often don't believe you when you explain that all your scars are from accidental injuries

-Other people tell "funny" stories about you falling or running into people or objects

I used to walk funny until I learned how to walk like a stereotypical stoner.

I've never been able to ride a bike and I bump into things a lot. My lack of balance is ten times worse in the dark though. I have no awareness of where anything is so frequently fall into walls.

My so called NT boyfriend is far worse than me though - he can't go anywhere without walking straight into a bush or lamppost.

I have good balance, but I bump into things a lot. I have a theory that my 'personal space' is so confined that body parts stick out of it...

I'm dangerous with a hand truck and a load...

Either that, or I'm just a lefty stuck in a righty world..

Mine is terrible. My husband's is fine.

My sense of balance is all but completely gone due to massive repeated ear infections when I was younger (no tubes though, whew). Even now I can barely tell the difference between vertical and horizontal, but I've compensated by learning how to read the pressure in my legs and feet and correct as needed. Riding a bicycle is unpleasant, but everything else is relatively normal.

If we look at Dr. Ayres studies on sensory integration and we understand that all of us by virtue of being on the spectrum have some modicum of sensory integration problems, then our answer is evident. Some of us obviously are more integrated in space than others. I bump into walls, trip up stairs, often lose my balance walking down stairs, have no depth perception. All sensory integration issues. Some children have such severe sensory integration issues that they cannot cross midline with their bodies or their brains. My son was so impaired that he could not even cross midline during drawing. Drawing a circle involved starting at the top and middle of a circle and progressing to the bottom and middle of one half and then repeating the process on the other half.

So, as adults, these sensory integration issues, which basically amount to understanding where our bodies fit into space and reality, translate as bumping into walls, tripping over air pockets, etc. I think it makes sense. The more that I know and the more that the missing pieces fit in the more I understand about autism in general.

I'm a complete klutz.