Louise Said:

my daughter was diagnosed with apraxia, what can i expect from speech therapy? ?

We Answered:

To be honest it depends on the severity. Both of my kids had this in some form. My oldest started speech therapy when he was 3. I was clueless and just thought he talked funny, but by the time he was 5 he was fine. My youngest has dsypraxia so he did everything backwards from writing to getting dressed. He started in speech at 3 as well but didn't finish until he was 6 1/2. The funny thing is though in my opinion his speech was no where near as bad as his brothers.

Both of my kids learned to talk on their own. The thing is they kind of have their own language. They understand it and you will probably understand it too, but no one else will. My oldest used to call "Milk" "Book". Looking back at old video tapes I don't know how we did it. My kids are now 21 and 18.

If you live in the US your child is entitled to free speech therapy through the public school system starting at age 3. Just contact the special needs department.

Ted Said:

Do you know what Apraxia of Speech is?

We Answered:

I would wonder how much of their apraxia is related to the hearing deficits? If you werent told then ask. Our speech therapist was able to tell us our 3 yr old son has apraxia and it was confirmed by his devleopmental pediatrician. It is mild and has improved with speech therapy. We used the Kauffman-Praxis series of cards to help our son with the sounds he has issues with. We started at the base sound of a word and moved up to the full word as he was able to get the sounds made correctly.
Be sure what ever speech therapist you use is trained and fluent in dealing with apraxia. Some arent and some are. Good luck and you sound like an amazing and proactive parent.

Raymond Said:

Does speech therapy work for expressive speech delay?

We Answered:

My son turned 2 in October and has only a few words, we are on a waiting list for speech therapy. Like your son he talks gibberish (or mostly stuff that we can't understand) and I am hoping that therapy will help but I imagine that at age 2 it is going to take a lot of time for therapy to work as 2 year olds are still so little and probably not entirely co-operative! Of course by 2 1/2 they should have quite a good vocabulary so it is great you are getting help for him, but at this point I would just hang in there a bit more and give it time. Ideally he would be talking before he gets to preschool age so that he can communicate with peers and learn effectively, but I guess it is not going to happen quickly. Have you discussed your concerns with the speech pathologist? They are probably doing what they can with him at his age and developmental level. I'd have a chat to them at your next appointment and see what else you can do to help him.

Good luck.

Eugene Said:

my child 4yr old has been diagnosed w/ (verbal Apraxia) does he REALLY need Speech Therapy ?

We Answered:

If you live in America then why don't you have her evaluated for Early Childhood Intervention. It's free for kids who qualify. Not only will the Speech Therapy be free but she may even qualify for the free preschool program too. The setup is different in different communities. You can start by calling the Spec Ed department of your local public school district. You'll find their number in the Yellow Pages phone book. If they don't evaluate preschoolers then they'll give you the contact phone number who does.

Shirley Said:

What will the future hold for my son with apraxia of speech?

We Answered:

My nephew also was diagnosed at a young age, he went to speech therapy and by Kindergarten he was back in regular education, please don't worry.

Jeremy Said:

afraid i may have apraxia of speech?

We Answered:

Apraxia of speech is typically an acquired disorder and is due to brain injury from stroke or traumatic brain injury.
Dyspraxia, or Developmental Apraxia, is almost always diagnosed in childhood and is accompanied by speech and language delays.
To ease your mind, I must tell you everyone has dysfluencies from time to time in which we feel like our words are garbled or difficult to produce. This does not mean you have apraxia; it's part of the normal spectrum of speech production.

Veronica Said:

Speech Apraxia or not?

We Answered:

Just wanted to make sure you got my answer. Please visit the websites.


My son has Childhood Apraxia of Speech. I knew there was a problem before he was 2. At the age of 2 he could say maybe 20 words. His pediatrician said he was "just a late talker". Your son sounds similar to mine.I knew otherwise. Dr. would not even consider a speech eval until he was 3, and after hearing test. At 3yrs he could say 30 words. Even so my insurance refused an eval. (it is very hard to get insurances to cover anything for speech). I was rejected for evals until he was 5yrs old.

Apraxia is a neurological disorder you need to have it "approved for eval" as a symbolic dysfunction , not speech delay. I actually brought in about 20 pages of highlighted information off the web to help his pediatrician get it approved.

He is 7 now and has "rapid, intense, speech therapy" He now has an extensive vocabulary but still struggles very hard with speech. I have fought doctors, schools and insurances to get my child's needs met.

For improvement you need "rapid intense therapy" 4-5 xs a week. At 3yrs you can get your child an IEP from the school and have free therapy from them. Work hard at getting your insurance to pay for addition therapy. It is hard but can be done.

Speech paths do speech for a living. If you have a good one I would definitely trust their evals. They know more about speech.

Be patient with your son. It is very frustrating for him. My son would throw tantrums all the time. Your speech path can give you stuff to work with at home.

Also 75% of children who are Apraxic are Dyslexic. My son is now struggling with learning disabilities as well.

For a child who is Apraxic they know what they want to say, but have a very hard time getting it out.

Please visit these websites for lots of info.

http://www.apraxia-kids.org
http://www.apraxiaspeaks.com
http://www.asha.org/default.htm

Also this book is helpful.
The Parents Guide to Speech and Language Problems by Debbie Feit

Good luck and be strong.
Your son needs you.
And find a good support team for you