The Late Talker

I picked up a book at the library last week called "The Late Talker - What to Do If Your Child Isn't Talking Yet" (by Marilyn C. Agin, M.D., Lisa F. Geng, and Malcolm J. Nicholl).


I cannot express in words how wonderful this book is. You can read more about it at The Late Talker. I highly recommend it to any parent with MORE THAN just a "late talker". I also recommend that you purchase this book as it should be a part of your resources through your entire journey with apraxia. This book has a wealth of information that you will want to reference through each step of the way, from getting a diagnosis, early intervention services, setting up an IFSP (Individualized Family Service Plan) or IEP (Individualized Education Plan), starting developmental preschool, and getting appropriate therapy and insurance coverage. I will be returning this book to the library and purchasing a copy for myself. I think the title grabs the attention of a larger audience of parents seeking help for their late-talking child, but this book helps to determine whether or not your child has a real DELAY or a DISORDER. This book focuses on children with speech disorders, particularly APRAXIA. It provides a list of speech signs that will help you identify if your child may have apraxia.

Some of the things discussed in this book will include 1) ways to identify the warning signs of a speech disorder 2) information on how to get the right kind of evaluations and therapy 3) ways to obtain appropriate services through the school system and health insurance 4) fun at-home activities that parents can do with their children to stimulate speech 5) groundbreaking evidence of the promising and dramatic benefits of nutritional supplement 6) advice from experienced parents who've been there on what to expect and what you can do to be your child's best advocate.

I will begin to share some things that if I had owned this book I would have highlighted because of their importance to me.

DELAY OR DISORDER?

From the book:
A delay is a maturational lag in development, for example, a 4 year old who exhibits the language capabilities of an average 3 year old. Often, with time, the child "catches up" to his or her peers without specific interventions. Unfortunately, it's not always evident at an early age if your child has a delay or disorder."

A disorder is a significant (severe) delay with a disruption in the normal sequence of development that's in stark contrast to his or her typically developing peers. The child does not "catch up" if you adopt a "wait and see" attitude. Neurologic "soft signs" like coordination difficulties, low muscle tone, a history of seizures, or the physical signs of a syndrome may be present.

For so long I have "blamed" Alex's early childhood ear infections for his "delay of speech" and it may or may not have some correlation, but I'm not certain it caused his speech problems. As time went on with little progress through therapy and as I learned more about speech delays and disorders, I found that Alex was exhibiting patterns of apraxia. I was surprised that this wasn't discovered sooner and that no one approached me about this disorder until I went looking for answers. I'm so thankful that I've done my research, and that we have started getting services as early as we have. Now my main focus is getting him the APPROPRIATE intensive therapy he needs to overcome this disorder, or at least learn to live with it reaching his full potential, since we have identified this disorder. Several statements from mothers of apraxic children in this book stand out to me. One states, "as a parent of a non-speaking child, it is up to you to be his advocate." This book is a great tool to equip you to be knowledgable about how to do just that. I know I will be referencing information from this book for months and months, possibly years to come.

GETTING THE RIGHT THERAPY

From the book:
Getting the right kind of early therapy is of paramount importance, especially for children who are diagnosed with apraxia, because they do not respond to the traditional speech therapy methods. They do not benefit from group therapy. They need more intensive and more frequent therapy than children with other speech problems. They need intensive one-on-one sessions at least three times a week. If they take a break, they are likely to regress. Children with apraxia do not "grow out of it."

My husband and I have decided that in order to get Alex the appropriate intensive therapy he needs, we must have him officially diagnosed through a developmental specialist. So far we only have an unofficial diagnosis from his last speech therapist, and from mom too, of course. We are fortunate that the specialist he will see also happens to be his primary care physician in pediatrics. I will go this week and schedule Alex's first appointment and start the paperwork. I have no idea how long the process will take to get a diagnosis, but I plan to use it to get services through the school system (ESY - extended school year) through the summer, and have our insurance company cover private one-on-one therapy sessions with a speech language pathologist in addition to school system services. Alex has only received group therapy so far through the school system and as I've read repeatedly in my research, children with apraxia do not benefit from group therapy. I think the program is good for him that he's around other children and in a structured educational setting, but he needs additional more appropriate one-on-one speech therapy as well. I will post about our experiences as we go.

ESSENTIAL FATTY ACIDS

Through my research and information found in this book, I have found that there has been a great report of progress from apraxic children who have had essential fatty acid supplements on a daily basis. Apraxic children have primarily shown most improvement through the supplementation of ProEFA, found at Nordic Naturals. I ordered a three month's supply from their site last night and we will give supplementation a try. Do your research, ask your child's pediatrician, and see if this is something you would like to try with your apraxic child.

COPING WITH FEAR AND FRUSTRATION

This book explains how to cope with your own fears and frustrations as a parent of an apraxic child. It goes on to list the stages that parents typically go through, and in order... Denial, Anger, Fear, Guilt, Depression, Acceptance. Personally, I identified with all of these and I think I experience all of them simultaneously to some degree or another. I think I'm largely in the "Fear" stage. I am intimidated by the people I'm fighting to get Alex the services he needs. I fear the unknown about Alex's future and how this disorder will affect him long-term. I fear that I am uncapable of being the mother I need to be for him. I fear uncertainty, confusion, helplessness, coping. I know these things are natural feelings of the flesh. I also know I need to turn over these feelings of fear to the Lord and ask for His strength and guidance, and overall that His Will be done in Alex's life.