Will My Son with Apraxia Ever Talk??

Not all speech therapists are the same. You need to find somone with extra certifications in PROMT method, Kaufman, Masgutova Facial Reflexes, Sarah Rosenfeld, a good oral motor program is what is needed and lots and lots of improving core strength. Look into The Astronaut Program too. SInce you are in Miami, why don't you come up to Broward and see Barbara Ladin in Weston or Therapeeds in Davie. They actually have a free seminar coming up on May 17th 6:30pm.

The Kauffman Center is the premier center for treating children with apraxia in the United States. Families routinely fly in from all parts of the country to at least get short term, intensive therapy for their apraxic children. It is expensive and requires the whole family to sacrifice dramatically. She also has the highest success rates in the country for working with apraxic children. The website for her center is here http://www.kidspeech.com/

My son was diagnosed with apraxia when he was two, on top of a lot of other things. When they told me he might never talk it was the first time in two years of never-ending medical issues that I burst into tears. I was in the grocery store and he stared up at me silently and I just burst into tears. I was devastated.

I mention the Kauffman center and I *know* that not everyone will be able to figure out how to borrow 10,000 dollars and fly themselves out there for three months. But, her center sets the standard of care for successful outcomes with apraxia, and one can use them as a resource for creating a successful program in their home area (which is what they do after short term intensive therapy to transition you home).

The gold standards of apraxia treatment are threefold: 1.) The therapist must have specific experience in working with apraxic children 2.) Therapy MUST be 1:1 to be effective, NO group therapy 3.) Therapy must be intensive, ideally five times a week.

Looking at my son now at six, you would never know he ever had a speech problem. The only signs are more subtle (difficulty with reading/dyslexia and some fumbling with words when excited). The progress he made using the Kaufmann approach was nothing short of amazing.

As an aside, my oldest daughter is 8 and has multiple disabilities due to prematurity. She did not utter her first word until she was 5 1/2. I remember the research I did at the time basically indicated that a child who talked before the age of 7 could and would progress and could "catch up" to peers over time, but a child who wasn't talking by 7 had a 90% chance of never speaking. So, for those years I used "7" as my magic number and tried to tell myself I wouldn't stress until she hit 6. (And of course, I'm a mother, so I did stress and worry about it, but that's what I tried to tell myself!)

Speech therapy can be very slow going. At least that has been my experience. Is your private ST giving you homework (oral motor planning exercizes) to work on with your son between appointments. If so, make sure you do them but don't overdo it because you don't want to stress him out. If he's talking and saying 15 words that you and your family members can understand, then that is a very promising sign. Just keep doing what you are doing to support him through this. My favorite saying is, "Our kids are not rocks," meaning that they keep changing and evolving; they are not stagnant objects. Keep up the good work and keep the faith.

Wishing you and your son well on your journey.

I wanted to know how your son was doing. I am in the same boat. My son just turned 4 and is in preschool and has private speech but no verbal improvement. Can I get your email address? I would like to see if you heard anything new from anyone.

Thanks,

A. in Seattle

You may want your child evaluated and treated by alternative medicine/holistic medicine professionals - there are psycho-spiritual, energetic, and biochemical issues that can contribute to the condition and which can be treated by alternative means (standard therapies generally don't address the causal factors). I'm a holistic therapist in Miami, so I can discuss with you what services are available locally if you want to learn more. You can email me directly at ____@____.com

Hi L.,
First of all, good for you for having him in therapy!!! Early intervention is the key. If he has a true diagnosis of apraxia, it is very difficult for him to speak. His brain knows what he wants to say but the message doesn't go through when the motor planning part of the brain tells the mouth what to do to. I have several students w/ apraxia. I would start inquiring about an augmentative communication device to aid him in his speech. This is a device that he can use to say words. It doesn't mean you give up on trying to get him to speak, but he needs to be able to communicate in the meantime so he doesn't get frustrated or discouraged and can keep on developing in all skill areas. Check out this website, it's good....
apraxia-kids.org and teachmetotalk.com
good luck!!!!

Hi:

I have an almost 4 year old that has speech delay.

Not so long ago I found a mom on you tube that with some research decided to give her toddler Omega 3. The mom I found, will give him Omega 3 squirting it inside his cheek since he was around 2 years old so he doesn't mind the fishy taste. I chose to give my son the gummy version and how much he has improved from his speech delay. I think it's called li' critters brand and you give your child 2 gummies every day.

It doesn't hurt to try it out, is a gummy, is a vitamin and is good for our kids.

My son talks better since i started giving him these gummies. You can find it at Target, WalMart or even Walgreens.

I hope you have the chance to try it.

Blessings, C.

I am actually in the same boat as you. Consider if a different speech therapist would work better, and try to practice what the therapist works on with him. My son is 7 and we've seen some improvement, but the more repetition and work on building his oral motor strength the better.

Hello L.,
Has your son been formally diagnosed? has he has congestion, ear infections and fluid? does he snores when he sleeps? allergies? look at the environment around him also, these are very important questions. if he has none of this symptoms and he has apraxia don't despair there is always hope and never give up! if he has the symptoms above please consult with an experienced ENT believe me its worth it. Also Please read the book The Einstein Syndrome by Tomas Cowell this has helped me tremendously! But remember your son will talk and believe it It will happen and again DONT GIVE UP!!

Hi,
Bless you and take heart. You are doing well, having him receive speech therapy. May I suggest you also incorporate all sorts of fun, physical activities in his day? The brain is a wonderful instrument, and when you exercise it in one way, there are benefits all around. So it helps to increase your son's physical strength, organization and planning. Playground equipment is great, as is bowling, playing soccer, dancing to all sorts of musical beats, etc.

My son is almost 4 and just this month I'm starting to hear him say more words. I found a really great therapist that treats him like he's SOMEONE and not just doing words over and over again. I found a great book called "Apraxia speaks out" on amazon.com and really like that too. I have been praying for him and finding other moms with special needs kids. I'm finding a couple of things.. 1. I'm not alone 2. Adults that have had alot of help have led normal lives and nobody seems to really notice there have been an issue in the past. I know the struggles, I know how kids treat him but I also have Faith and know that this is the child I've been given .. take heart and remember, you're not alone, neither is your child. There's alot of help out there and you're starting early in this childs life!! I'm just a mom.. but I know we're the ones who love these little people the most!!