02 Feb Speaking Up and Out
Our son, Ethan, is fourteen years old and the Apraxia journey for us began many years ago. When Ethan was seven months old, he said “mama” and “dada.” Two months later, however, it stopped. The only sound he made was to cry when he wanted something. When Ethan was fifteen months old, his doctor told us we had to call Early Intervention for an evaluation. By seventeen months old, he was assigned to a behavioral counselor. It was not because he was bad but so that all of us could learn simple signs. We also had a board consisting of pictures of his favorite food, toys, and books so when he wanted one, he had to grab it off the board and make some type of sound. By the time Ethan was two years old, he was assigned three more counselors, making him have four counselors at one time. He had one behavioral counselor, two speech therapists, and one occupational therapist to teach him how to grasp items, such as crayons. Ethan was two and a half years old when we received the official apraxia diagnosis. We had no idea what apraxia was about, and at that time, there was only one book about apraxia coming out. We felt as if we were alone but soon found out that was not the case, thanks to Facebook groups and the Walk for Apraxia.
With Ethan receiving help at an early age, he started school with kids his age. With lots of support from family and friends, he was determined to overcome the obstacles. Ethan taught himself to read at four years old because everything had to be broken down for him when learning to speak. When he was in sixth grade, he gave a speech to 300 of his peers and their families and friends. He had the opportunity in eighth grade to be the lead in the middle school production, “Xanadu JR,” and in ninth grade, he had the chance to speak at the Pittsburgh Walk for Apraxia. A few months ago, he was able to graduate from private speech, allowing himself to be down to only one speech therapist now.
With all this being said, do not lose hope. Work hard, have fun, and let’s kick Apraxia out of our towns. Anything is possible!
Be inspired by more stories today and learn about how you can Give Hope!
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Our son, Ethan, is fourteen years old and the Apraxia journey for us began many years ago. When Ethan was seven months old, he said “mama” and “dada.” Two months later, however, it stopped. The only sound he made was to cry when he wanted something. When Ethan was fifteen months old, his doctor told us we had to call Early Intervention for an evaluation. By seventeen months old, he was assigned to a behavioral counselor. It was not because he was bad but so that all of us could learn simple signs. We also had a board consisting of pictures of his favorite food, toys, and books so when he wanted one, he had to grab it off the board and make some type of sound. By the time Ethan was two years old, he was assigned three more counselors, making him have four counselors at one time. He had one behavioral counselor, two speech therapists, and one occupational therapist to teach him how to grasp items, such as crayons. Ethan was two and a half years old when we received the official apraxia diagnosis. We had no idea what apraxia was about, and at that time, there was only one book about apraxia coming out. We felt as if we were alone but soon found out that was not the case, thanks to Facebook groups and the Walk for Apraxia.
With Ethan receiving help at an early age, he started school with kids his age. With lots of support from family and friends, he was determined to overcome the obstacles. Ethan taught himself to read at four years old because everything had to be broken down for him when learning to speak. When he was in sixth grade, he gave a speech to 300 of his peers and their families and friends. He had the opportunity in eighth grade to be the lead in the middle school production, “Xanadu JR,” and in ninth grade, he had the chance to speak at the Pittsburgh Walk for Apraxia. A few months ago, he was able to graduate from private speech, allowing himself to be down to only one speech therapist now.
With all this being said, do not lose hope. Work hard, have fun, and let’s kick Apraxia out of our towns. Anything is possible!
Be inspired by more stories today and learn about how you can Give Hope!
Visit, FIND HOPE, GIVE HOPE
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