Speech Language Disorder- Part 3

So in continuation with the Speech Language Disorders here is DLD.

Do you find that your child's peers are already chattering away and your little darling is still struggling to speak his mind? Should you be concerned? Talk to your child's teacher to check about his communication skills in
school. You may also want to do a checklist against the milestones for your child's age. So what is DLD?

"DLD (developmental language disorder)- when a child's language skills do not appropriately relate to his or her age, the child is regarded as being language disordered or delayed. This can be caused by numerous factors including environmental ones, being hearing impaired, cognitive disabilities caused by physical injuries or malfunctions, and suffering from syndromes such as PDD (pervasive developmental disorder). Because of the nature of language and what is expected at different stages of childhood, a child can lose one type of delay or disorder and in a few years develop a new one. Children with delayed language can even, and often, end up meeting the milestones of their peers, but others with more serious disorders often continue to fall behind. Early intervention is the key."

I hope that this passage gives you a better idea on what to look out for in your child, and as mentioned early intervention is key to helping your child.

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Book: Alphabet Kids: From ADD to Zellweger Syndrome by Robbie Woliver  

Childhood Apraxia And It's Myths

There are many myths and old wife's tales when it comes to bringing up children. I am  pretty sure that you must have heard your fair share of tales too. It just gets a little harder when you are challenged with a child having special needs.

Here are some of their wisdom, that they may wish to share with you:

• Einstein was a late-taker.
• Some very bright children won't talk because they are bored with "baby talk".
• He'll talk when he has it all perfected in his mind.
• He just doesn't have anything to say.
• You (or big sister) do all of the talking for him.
• He has all of his needs met and doesn't "need" to communicate.
• He'll talk when something really interests him, or he really wants something.

So do you think that your chis is a"Late-Taker?"

According to Becca Jarzynski, a pediatric speech-language pathologist and blogger of Child Talk (www.talkingkids.org), "If a child reaches 24 months and isn't yet using 50 words and/or isn't yet putting two words together into short phrases (e.g., "more juice," "bye mama"), we typically recommend that (parents) talk to their pediatrician about an evaluation by a speech-language pathologist."

• What does the child understand?
• Can he follow a wide variety of directions?
• Find objects when Mom and Dad ask him to do so?
• Point to pictures in a book?
• Show off some body parts when they are named?
• Follow silly directions like "put a cup on your head?"

• How he is communicating with gestures and facial expressions? 
• Is he nodding and shaking his head no?
• Pointing at things that he wants or that interest him?
• Waving "hi" and "goodbye?"
• Clapping with delight? 

• How he is using the words he does have? 
• Is he using them appropriately?
• Does he have inflection in the right places?
• Can he articulate well?

• What kinds of sounds is he using?
• Does he uses his voice to get attention?
• Does he vocalize often throughout the day?
• Did he babble often as a baby?
• Does he use his voice in a way that sounds like he having a conversation, even if there are no real words involved in that conversation? (At 24 months, for example, a child should be using a variety of sounds such as p, b, m, n, t, d, h, and w- and using them in a variety of words.)

• How is he playing?
• Does he use pretend play in some very simple ways?
• For example, does he give a bottle to a baby, or feed a stuffed bear with a spoon? 
• Is he able to play simple rolling or fetching ball games with others, and starting to imitate housework?

• How does he imitate actions? 
• Will he clap when an adult does?
• Does he imitate stacking blocks?
• Will he imitate you if you do something silly and unexpected, like place a block on top of your head? 

•  How is he hearing?
• Any concerns with hearing should be evaluated to rule out a hearing loss. 
• Some kids can hear some sounds but not others.

What's a Parent to do?

If you are faced by ignorant loved-ones, or insensitive people, here are a few ways to go around it graciously, so you spare misunderstandings:

• He's takes a while to warm up
• Not all our kids develop the same, right?
• I am grateful, that he is quiet and manageable, at this age.
• He's quiet, just like his dad, men of a few words.
• Gosh, really, you think I should be concerned? What do you recommend?

I am sure you can find your own way of brushing them aside. Try not to offend them if you possibility can, you will need a good support system as your child grows and you may need to depend on them. Their ignorance is what's making them misunderstand. If you have the patience, try to fill them in, on what's going on in your child's life. Having more loved ones, is only going to be beneficial to your child.

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Book: Speaking of Apraxia by Leslie A. Lindsay, R.N., B.S.N.

Childhood Apraxia Also Known As...

So far I share shared a bit on childhood Apraxia. Here's a list of other names, it is known by.

• Developmental Dyspraxia
• Developmental Verbal Dyspraxia
• Developmental Aphasia
• Developmental Apraxia of Speech
• Dyspraxic Dysarthria
• Verbal Apraxia
• Oral Verbal Apraxia
• Development Verbal Apraxia
• Childhood Aphasia
• Executive Aphasia
• Congenital Articulatory Aphasia
• Dilapidated Speech
• Articulatory Apraxia
• Articulatory Dyspraxia
• Phonetic Disintegration
• Afferent Motor Aphasia
• Efferent Motor Aphasia
• Little Broca's Aphasia
• Ataxic Aphasia
• Sensorimotor Impairment
• Minimal Brain Dysfunction/ Disorder
• Pure Motor Aphasia
• Speech Sound Muteness

Book: Speaking of Apraxia by Leslie A. Lindsay, R.N., B.S.N.

Speech Langauge Disorder- Apraxia

When we got wind of Ivan's challenges, I became frantically, looking for answers. Or rather, would I honestly, admit that I was looking for a cure. I just could not wrap my head around the idea that he had something we could not fix. The normalcy as we knew it in our lives, had been wrecked forever.

I tried to establish a routine for Ivan, and soon it became a night ritual for me. Peter had started to take overseas job projects, leaving me and the two boys alone. So, I would settle the boys both in the same room. First we would have Oreos and Milk, then we would go to bed, followed by soft instrumental music playing in the background. I say a night time prayer and tuck the boys in. El had always been rather independent and didn't like the mushy good nights. But Ivan would want me to sit by his side. I would sit in and watch him drift off to sleep. Once they were down for the night, my routine continues, as I broke down in tears and poured out my pain and anger. After a good cry, I would take a deep breathe and go over to my room and start reading and researching. The routine grew on me, and I would say that I found it healthy to let it out on a regular basis. One night, I stumbled on this article on Apraxia. I saw many symptoms that I related with, I figured that Ivan had this condition.

I came to know that autism was a landlord that had many other co-occupants too. And one of them in Ivan's case was Apraxia. Here are some info, that could help you know what it is.

"Apraxia - a neurological disorder that occurs when a child is unable to execute speech movements- the specific sequence of movements that results in proper speech- because of problems with coordination and motor planning. Apraxia does not involve muscle weakness. The child's brain is unable to plan and order motor activities so that the mouth can form the correct shapes to form words. The apraxic child knows what he wants to say, but his mouth isn't getting the correct messages to be physically able to say the desired words or sentences."

Within apraxia itself, there are two kinds, oral apraxia and verbal apraxia.

"Oral apraxia affects the child's ability to move his or her mouth muscles for intent other than speech, e.g., coughing or blowing out birthday candles."

"Verbal apraxia is identified when the child's ability to sequence speech sounds is impaired, again, not resulting from muscle weakness."

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Book: Alphabet Kids: From ADD to Zellweger Syndrome by Robbie Woliver  

Speech Language Disorder - Part 2

Here's the part 2 of the article I started on Speech Language Disorder. As the topic is very wide and there are many sub-categories to cover, I figured I would start off by giving you the signs to look out for.

Here are some signs and symptoms to look out for:

• articulation impairments
• awkward and clumsy physically
• delayed first words with many sounds omitted or replaced by easy-to-pronouce consonant sounds
• difficulty imitating sounds and words
• difficulty understanding spoken language
• difficulty with nursing or feeding during infancy
• distractibility
• fine motor problems 
• groping for words while speaking
• grunting instead of using first words
• handwriting problems
• high frequency of vowels and voicing errors
• history of ear infections
• improper use of words
• inability to express ideas
• inability to follow verbal directions from ages 2-3
• inapporpriate grammatical patterns
• inappropriate responses to simple questions from ages 2-3
• inattention to spoken language
• late onset of first words
• learning disabilities
• little or no cooing or babbling in infancy
• not using two-word phrases by 24 months
• pointing instead of using first words
• poor organizational skills
• reduced vocabulary 
• repeating words and phrases but not comprehending them
• saying easy sounds (b, m, p, t, d, and h) from ages 2 to 3 but unable to use them in words
• seeing a word but not understanding its meaning
• sensory problems, such as being sensitive to touch
• slow, halting speech that is full of effort
• slow or no progress with traditional speech therapy
• trouble getting across what they are trying to say
• unable to use consonants
• unintelligible speech
• unpredictable speech errors
• voice fluency not present

I hope that you would use these pointers as an objective marker. Should you think that your child shows about half the symptoms here, please try to get hold of a Speech Pathologist, to advice you.

Book: Alphabet Kids: From ADD to Zellweger Syndrome by Robbie Woliver  

Speech Language Disorder - Part 1

I love to watch children play, they are so original and innocent. Their transparency makes them such adorable play writers. Speech is an important part of play. Without the fluency of speech, children will struggle to fit in and become loners as a result. 

The number of children who struggle with speech disorders, nowadays are on the rise. My first born spoke when he was one, but Ivan only spoke when he turned five. So if you are in a situation, wondering if your child has a challenge in the area of speech, read this entry, I hope it helps you.

"With a typical child, receptive abilities (understanding language) and expressive skills (vocabulary, the production of complex sentences, and recall of words) usually develop at the same pace. However, when there is board disparity between the two and when a child's communication is noticeably lagging behind his or her peers in the attainment of these skills, a serious disorder is indicated  and red flags go up.

When a child's ability to understand language is in the normal range but his or her expressive ability, speech, is critically inadequate- it might be completely absent, somewhat impaired, or just difficult to understand- then they have a speech or language disorder." Here we are talking about children under the age of three.

You may think that your child is a "late bloomer". Like Peter did with Ivan, he kept telling me that we should just wait it out. Neither of us knew better. In time, I came to realize that even if Ivan was a "late bloomer", a weekly visit to the therapist would have helped speed along the process. Either way, it would have only helped the boy. So I encourage you, if you see fit, do make an appointment with a Speech Therapist to see your concerns through. At the most, if you are not comfortable, at least you took step one.

Here are three types of speech language disorders:

1. Agrammatism - telegrahic speech (Me, you, uh, watch television)

2. Anomia - difficulty in retrieving or recalling a specific word

3. Aphasia - problem with language caused by brain damage. 

The thing to remember here is that, should your child be affected by these three above mentioned, do know that this only affects his speech not his intellect.

As, there are many to cover, I will pause here and continue in the next article. Stay tuned.

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Book: Alphabet Kids: From ADD to Zellweger Syndrome by Robbie Woliver