Re: Hi guys.. question about non-verbal children

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 9/14/2006 12:20:26 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,

momof3oneds@... writes:

am 100% ok if he NEVER speaks.. but I guess I always wonder the " why " part,

for peace of mind.

It has been a long and slow process for Trisha. The introduction to sign

language is what helped Trisha to do more verbalizing. At 14, she still cannot

carry a conversation but between her sign and the one and some times 2 word

utterances she has made tremendous progress. Because of her hearing loss

(she is bi-laterlly aided) she doesn't hear all the letter sounds so she isn't

always able to say the words clearly. For example, she says " eee " for monkey

and " eee " for Becky so you really have to know what she is talking about to

always understand her. Trisha prefers to sign when in public but uses both

sign and speech at home with pictures for back up. She also uses modified

signing so sometimes it's a guessing game no matter how she choses to

communicate. When she is uncomfortable she will shut down and only use her

signs and at

school all last year she would not speak above a whisper but that has

improved except for when she has someone new come in or someone upsets her.

So we

have gone from having a few words when she was 2 and then losing them and no

speech until she was about 5 when she started saying mom again to now she is

using some sign, some 1 and 2 word utterances and this year she has learned

to tell us about the 5 silly monkeys with a combination of sign and voice.

She leaves part of it out but gets the main points in. :-) I don't know if

Trisha will ever carry a regular converstation but at least now she can not

only let us know her wants and needs but she is also starting to let us know

some of what is going on inside that beautiful little head of hers. :-)

Carol

Trishasmom

She isn't typical, She's Trisha!

[Guest guest]

Seth is ten years old and says NO words. Well, he did say a couple two

years ago. Freak things like *spring* and *queen* LOL. He still doesn't

even

say mama or dada. I, too, don't care if he ever verbally communicates. Any

form is okay with me and he is doing well with his Go-Talk.

Gail :-)

Ok.. is 8 and still totally non-verbal. Do any of you have older

children that are still

totally non-verbal? Is it JUST the Autism? Or was there anything else going

on? We have

had evals before and year after year I realize it's not that can

speak and chooses

not to, he truly CAN'T... so I keep wondering if medically if all is ok. I

am 100% ok if he

NEVER speaks.. but I guess I always wonder the " why " part, for peace of mind.

Anyone else in the same boat?

A.

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 9/14/2006 1:25:47 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,

hamburgpatti@... writes:

That must have been the most beautiful thing when she said " Mom " . I dream of

the day Mikey will say that.

It was, but now to be honest I keep saying I'm going to change my name. I

hear mom over and over and over..... You wait for the day they say words and

then the very word you wanted to hear is now the very word you wish they

would not keep saying over and over.... Mom, mom, mom, mom, mom, mom " what " ,

mom,

mom, mom, what do you need, mom, mom, mom, use more words, mom, mom, mom,

and then finally show me what you want and she will then sign or find a picture

of what she wants and I wish I could say that at least she doesn't pull on

my skirt or pants on top of it but she does at times and now her new thing is

when she is in her room and wants my attention " she " knocks on her door and

waits until I come to see what she wants. I'm going to get her a bell at

least that would be better than pounding on the door. lol

But seriously, I love that she is saying more and more words, just wish she

would some more of those and less of the repetitive mom which I think is

because she knows that word and when she is stuck she will just stay on that

word

almost as if it's a record that is stuck.

Carol

Trishasmom

She isn't typical, She's Trisha!

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 9/14/2006 1:51:49 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,

lynnlb@... writes:

Bob, borrowing Lynn's id again

Bob, I keep telling ya to get your own ID. It's good to hear from you

again. Don't be such a stranger. :-)

Carol

Trishasmom

She isn't typical, She's Trisha!

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 9/14/2006 12:19:56 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,

momof3oneds@... writes:

Anyone else in the same boat?

Yep, lots of us. Any SO MANY people ask me all the time when she will

talk. Maddie will be 13 in November. She had started to make some baby

sounds (like ma ma, ba ba) before the autism became apparent. Yes, I

believe

it's because of the autism. Maddie doesn't even have much receptive

verbal language. A lot of things that we SPEAK and she understands, it's

apparent to us that it's more because it's rote behavior....not that she knows

the word. I do think she knows *sit*, *come*, *Maddie*, *kiss* and *bye

bye*. We continue to work on other words. She yells and makes certain

sounds, but no words. Smart as a whip though!!!!!

Donna

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 9/14/2006 1:53:13 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,

lynnlb@... writes:

But, yes, I think it's the autism; though, yes, it is hard to

separate the autism from the other things, delays, intellectual,

cognitive impairment, going on.

I would be thrilled if someday Charlie would say mom, momma, mommy,

or any variation, approximation thereof. But I keep working on da,

dada, daddy. Gives me something to do, and, as you know, I court

trouble. -- Bob, borrowing Lynn's id again

Bob, you are bad...you should start off your posts identifying yourself, so

we don't think Lynn has gone crazy on us......JK dear!!

I responded but do want to add that I think it's important to *rule* out

other things, such as hearing issues. Cognitive impairment certainly is a

contributor, but then it's my understanding that there are some folks with just

autism, who are non-verbal, but don't know if the MR is the reason (I

believe 25% of those dx'd with autism do NOT have MR). Would be interesting

to

see if there are kids with JUST DS out there, who are completely non-verbal,

like many of our kids dually dx'd are. I personally can't think of any.

Hmmmm.....maybe I will take a poll on the DS listserv.

Donna

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 9/14/2006 1:58:01 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,

Csvillars@... writes:

You wait for the day they say words and

then the very word you wanted to hear is now the very word you wish they

would not keep saying over and over.... Mom, mom, mom, mom, mom, mom " what " ,

mom,

mom, mom, what do you need, mom, mom, mom, use more words, mom, mom, mom

LOL Carol. Reminds me of the first time Duff stayed home from work when

the kids were little. He sat them down and told them they were NOT

PERMITTED to use the M word even ONE more time that day!!!!!!!!! LOL

Donna

[Guest guest]

My son, , is 7 and he has DS/ASD, and he is still non-verbal. I have all

the same questions you do.

Patty

Hi guys.. question about non-verbal children

Ok.. is 8 and still totally non-verbal. Do any of you have older

children that are still

totally non-verbal? Is it JUST the Autism? Or was there anything else going on?

We have

had evals before and year after year I realize it's not that can speak

and chooses

not to, he truly CAN'T... so I keep wondering if medically if all is ok. I am

100% ok if he

NEVER speaks.. but I guess I always wonder the " why " part, for peace of mind.

Anyone else in the same boat?

A.

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[Guest guest]

Carol,

That must have been the most beautiful thing when she said " Mom " . I dream of

the day Mikey will say that.

Patty

Re: Hi guys.. question about non-verbal children

In a message dated 9/14/2006 12:20:26 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,

momof3oneds@... writes:

am 100% ok if he NEVER speaks.. but I guess I always wonder the " why " part,

for peace of mind.

It has been a long and slow process for Trisha. The introduction to sign

language is what helped Trisha to do more verbalizing. At 14, she still cannot

carry a conversation but between her sign and the one and some times 2 word

utterances she has made tremendous progress. Because of her hearing loss

(she is bi-laterlly aided) she doesn't hear all the letter sounds so she isn't

always able to say the words clearly. For example, she says " eee " for monkey

and " eee " for Becky so you really have to know what she is talking about to

always understand her. Trisha prefers to sign when in public but uses both

sign and speech at home with pictures for back up. She also uses modified

signing so sometimes it's a guessing game no matter how she choses to

communicate. When she is uncomfortable she will shut down and only use her signs

and at

school all last year she would not speak above a whisper but that has

improved except for when she has someone new come in or someone upsets her. So

we

have gone from having a few words when she was 2 and then losing them and no

speech until she was about 5 when she started saying mom again to now she is

using some sign, some 1 and 2 word utterances and this year she has learned

to tell us about the 5 silly monkeys with a combination of sign and voice.

She leaves part of it out but gets the main points in. :-) I don't know if

Trisha will ever carry a regular converstation but at least now she can not

only let us know her wants and needs but she is also starting to let us know

some of what is going on inside that beautiful little head of hers. :-)

Carol

Trishasmom

She isn't typical, She's Trisha!

[Guest guest]

If it's any consolation, spoke a few words when very very young, then lost

them and didn't begin to speak again till she was 10-11. I had pretty much given

up. She still mostly speaks spontaneously to ask for her needs to be met but she

can speak her reading words and many other words in Speech Therapy on demand.

Just don't ask about intelligibility:-)

She began speaking again after we started a Verbal Behavior program (ABA speech

emphasis) before that I referred to her as nonverbal....now as lowverbal.

Sherry mom to 17 DS-Aut

[Guest guest]

hasn't grasped all of signing yet, but we use total communication and

he gets

more out of it receptively. The stuggle with ANY verbal sounds or speech is

truly facinating

though, let me tell you. He can't make ANY sounds... except for all his throaty

sounds,

grimmaces, ect. (I posted a few months ago asking more about Tourettes).

I don't know about your kids... but to see when I daily say MOMMMMM-Y or

MA

MA and he just gets this look and it's like he is stuggling or can't comprehend

or speak or

something.. it's hard to explain but it's just like he can't speak at all. He

doesn't make a

" MMM " sound or nothing.

I need to look more into that Go Talk stuff. I know they use devices at his

school now and I

really need to kick this up a notch for at home. My husband and I are going to a

assistive

tech fair here locally this weekend and I am hoping to see some devices and some

othet

stuff that may help .

Thanks guys!!

A.

>

> Carol,

> That must have been the most beautiful thing when she said " Mom " . I dream of

the day

Mikey will say that.

> Patty

>

>

> Re: Hi guys.. question about non-verbal children

>

>

>

> In a message dated 9/14/2006 12:20:26 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,

> momof3oneds@... writes:

>

> am 100% ok if he NEVER speaks.. but I guess I always wonder the " why " part,

> for peace of mind.

>

> It has been a long and slow process for Trisha. The introduction to sign

> language is what helped Trisha to do more verbalizing. At 14, she still cannot

> carry a conversation but between her sign and the one and some times 2 word

> utterances she has made tremendous progress. Because of her hearing loss

> (she is bi-laterlly aided) she doesn't hear all the letter sounds so she isn't

> always able to say the words clearly. For example, she says " eee " for monkey

> and " eee " for Becky so you really have to know what she is talking about to

> always understand her. Trisha prefers to sign when in public but uses both

> sign and speech at home with pictures for back up. She also uses modified

> signing so sometimes it's a guessing game no matter how she choses to

> communicate. When she is uncomfortable she will shut down and only use her

signs and

at

> school all last year she would not speak above a whisper but that has

> improved except for when she has someone new come in or someone upsets her. So

we

> have gone from having a few words when she was 2 and then losing them and no

> speech until she was about 5 when she started saying mom again to now she is

> using some sign, some 1 and 2 word utterances and this year she has learned

> to tell us about the 5 silly monkeys with a combination of sign and voice.

> She leaves part of it out but gets the main points in. :-) I don't know if

> Trisha will ever carry a regular converstation but at least now she can not

> only let us know her wants and needs but she is also starting to let us know

> some of what is going on inside that beautiful little head of hers. :-)

>

> Carol

> Trishasmom

> She isn't typical, She's Trisha!

>

>

[Guest guest]

Interesting thread, A. Thanks for starting it.

Charlie, turned 7 in July, had a couple of signs, very strong

on " more, " and approximated a couple of words, " puh " for up

and " bahpah " for backpack, when he was about 3 1/2. In the next 6 to

12 months, that all went away. He is totally nonverbal, though far

from nonvocal. Makes an interesting array of screeches, yells, pops,

and clicks, many of which I can't approximate. Really wish we could

take him swimming with dolphins, think he might speak 'dolphinese,'

at least could wow them with his version of clicks and whistles.

Developmental pediatrician has opined that he probably will pretty

much remain nonverbal, might acquire a few simple words but probably

won't ever speak, put them together. Will have to wait and see about

that.

But, yes, I think it's the autism; though, yes, it is hard to

separate the autism from the other things, delays, intellectual,

cognitive impairment, going on.

I would be thrilled if someday Charlie would say mom, momma, mommy,

or any variation, approximation thereof. But I keep working on da,

dada, daddy. Gives me something to do, and, as you know, I court

trouble. -- Bob, borrowing Lynn's id again

>

> Ok.. is 8 and still totally non-verbal. Do any of you have

older children that are still

> totally non-verbal? Is it JUST the Autism? Or was there anything

else going on? We have

> had evals before and year after year I realize it's not that

can speak and chooses

> not to, he truly CAN'T... so I keep wondering if medically if all

is ok. I am 100% ok if he

> NEVER speaks.. but I guess I always wonder the " why " part, for

peace of mind.

>

> Anyone else in the same boat?

>

> A.

>

[Guest guest]

Hi ~ Dylan is 11 and non-verbal - with the exception of saying " yeah " on

occasion, not always appropriately. I can't say I've given up on him talking,

but I know, and am okay with, the fact that it's probably never going to happen.

If it does I will be thrilled, and we still encourage speech & sounds along with

sign. Even if he grunts for good-bye, or yells to greet someone we are happy.

When he was 5 or 6 we had a swallow study done and they said that his muscles

were very weak in the mouth, throat area, and that is a contributing factor to

why he is not talking. It makes me sad I will never hear mom, or hear about all

that's happening in his exciting life. I've learned not to dwell on those

things because I would never get through the day if I did.

People must think I'm nuts though, I will go with Dylan to a restaurant & we

have dinner together and I carry on this long conversation with him about things

pertaining to him & his day - he likes to be talked to, just doesn't answer.

It's actually kind of funny, but Dylan loves to do that, every now and then,

when he's in the right mood.

So, you are definetly not alone in Seth not talking.

Becky

Seth is ten years old and says NO words. Well, he did say a couple two

years ago. Freak things like *spring* and *queen* LOL. He still doesn't even

say mama or dada. I, too, don't care if he ever verbally communicates. Any

form is okay with me and he is doing well with his Go-Talk.

Gail :-)

Ok.. is 8 and still totally non-verbal. Do any of you have older

children that are still

totally non-verbal? Is it JUST the Autism? Or was there anything else going

on? We have

had evals before and year after year I realize it's not that can

speak and chooses

not to, he truly CAN'T... so I keep wondering if medically if all is ok. I

am 100% ok if he

NEVER speaks.. but I guess I always wonder the " why " part, for peace of mind.

Anyone else in the same boat?

A.

[Guest guest]

Carol, that's funny -- I always say becareful what you wish for!!

patty

Re: Hi guys.. question about non-verbal children

In a message dated 9/14/2006 1:25:47 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,

hamburgpatti@... writes:

That must have been the most beautiful thing when she said " Mom " . I dream of

the day Mikey will say that.

It was, but now to be honest I keep saying I'm going to change my name. I

hear mom over and over and over..... You wait for the day they say words and

then the very word you wanted to hear is now the very word you wish they

would not keep saying over and over.... Mom, mom, mom, mom, mom, mom " what " ,

mom,

mom, mom, what do you need, mom, mom, mom, use more words, mom, mom, mom,

and then finally show me what you want and she will then sign or find a picture

of what she wants and I wish I could say that at least she doesn't pull on

my skirt or pants on top of it but she does at times and now her new thing is

when she is in her room and wants my attention " she " knocks on her door and

waits until I come to see what she wants. I'm going to get her a bell at

least that would be better than pounding on the door. lol

But seriously, I love that she is saying more and more words, just wish she

would some more of those and less of the repetitive mom which I think is

because she knows that word and when she is stuck she will just stay on that

word

almost as if it's a record that is stuck.

Carol

Trishasmom

She isn't typical, She's Trisha!

[Guest guest]

I have a friend whose daughter has DS and Verbal Apraxia. You might want to

check with your professionals about this diagnosis possibility...

duffey48@... wrote:

In a message dated 9/14/2006 1:53:13 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,

lynnlb@... writes:

But, yes, I think it's the autism; though, yes, it is hard to

separate the autism from the other things, delays, intellectual,

cognitive impairment, going on.

I would be thrilled if someday Charlie would say mom, momma, mommy,

or any variation, approximation thereof. But I keep working on da,

dada, daddy. Gives me something to do, and, as you know, I court

trouble. -- Bob, borrowing Lynn's id again

Bob, you are bad...you should start off your posts identifying yourself, so

we don't think Lynn has gone crazy on us......JK dear!!

I responded but do want to add that I think it's important to *rule* out

other things, such as hearing issues. Cognitive impairment certainly is a

contributor, but then it's my understanding that there are some folks with just

autism, who are non-verbal, but don't know if the MR is the reason (I

believe 25% of those dx'd with autism do NOT have MR). Would be interesting to

see if there are kids with JUST DS out there, who are completely non-verbal,

like many of our kids dually dx'd are. I personally can't think of any.

Hmmmm.....maybe I will take a poll on the DS listserv.

Donna

[Guest guest]

From my understanding it's extremely difficult, if not impossible to DX verbal

apraxia in a

non-verbal child. I have been told this by a few professionals and we even

discussed this

last year at the clinic. They told me to truly DX that would have to

speak

something. I just don't know. I know I wonder this as well as other things...

but it probably

just is the Autism. " JUST THE AUTISM " .. .like it's so easy? LOL.. it took over

more like it!

A.

> In a message dated 9/14/2006 1:53:13 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,

> lynnlb@... writes:

>

> But, yes, I think it's the autism; though, yes, it is hard to

> separate the autism from the other things, delays, intellectual,

> cognitive impairment, going on.

> I would be thrilled if someday Charlie would say mom, momma, mommy,

> or any variation, approximation thereof. But I keep working on da,

> dada, daddy. Gives me something to do, and, as you know, I court

> trouble. -- Bob, borrowing Lynn's id again

>

> Bob, you are bad...you should start off your posts identifying yourself, so

> we don't think Lynn has gone crazy on us......JK dear!!

>

> I responded but do want to add that I think it's important to *rule* out

> other things, such as hearing issues. Cognitive impairment certainly is a

> contributor, but then it's my understanding that there are some folks with

just

> autism, who are non-verbal, but don't know if the MR is the reason (I

> believe 25% of those dx'd with autism do NOT have MR). Would be interesting to

> see if there are kids with JUST DS out there, who are completely non-verbal,

> like many of our kids dually dx'd are. I personally can't think of any.

> Hmmmm.....maybe I will take a poll on the DS listserv.

> Donna

>

>

[Guest guest]

Donna.. that is a great question! Could you please post that on the other

listserve? I too

would like to know what you come up with. I know for me, things like the non

verbalness I

only get answers here.. I know one mom in one of my groups elsewhere who's son

is

totally non verbal but he too has alot going on like . He is an older

boy. But other

then that, that's it. We talk about how old our children will be when they talk,

ect.. but

these are kids that JUST have DS and they engage with their parents, communicate

in other

ways, point, sign, ect.. and well, that kinda is different then what I am

experiencing.

I am glad I got alot of responses so far!! This has truly been on my mind alot

lately!!!!

A.

>

>

> In a message dated 9/14/2006 1:53:13 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,

> lynnlb@... writes:

>

> But, yes, I think it's the autism; though, yes, it is hard to

> separate the autism from the other things, delays, intellectual,

> cognitive impairment, going on.

> I would be thrilled if someday Charlie would say mom, momma, mommy,

> or any variation, approximation thereof. But I keep working on da,

> dada, daddy. Gives me something to do, and, as you know, I court

> trouble. -- Bob, borrowing Lynn's id again

>

>

>

> Bob, you are bad...you should start off your posts identifying yourself, so

> we don't think Lynn has gone crazy on us......JK dear!!

>

> I responded but do want to add that I think it's important to *rule* out

> other things, such as hearing issues. Cognitive impairment certainly is a

> contributor, but then it's my understanding that there are some folks with

just

> autism, who are non-verbal, but don't know if the MR is the reason (I

> believe 25% of those dx'd with autism do NOT have MR). Would be

interesting to

> see if there are kids with JUST DS out there, who are completely non-verbal,

> like many of our kids dually dx'd are. I personally can't think of any.

> Hmmmm.....maybe I will take a poll on the DS listserv.

> Donna

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Yep.. there you go Bob.. hijacking Lynn's ID again! LOL... Charlie sounds like

with

all his clicks and such. would be a great dolphin trainer partner with

Charlie!!!

A.

> >

> > Ok.. is 8 and still totally non-verbal. Do any of you have

> older children that are still

> > totally non-verbal? Is it JUST the Autism? Or was there anything

> else going on? We have

> > had evals before and year after year I realize it's not that

> can speak and chooses

> > not to, he truly CAN'T... so I keep wondering if medically if all

> is ok. I am 100% ok if he

> > NEVER speaks.. but I guess I always wonder the " why " part, for

> peace of mind.

> >

> > Anyone else in the same boat?

> >

> > A.

> >

>

[Guest guest]

Hi, Hannah's 9 and a half and she is totally non-verbal. When she was around

2 or 3 she would occasionally say words. She said hi and waved at age 1. One

day the therapist asked her if she wanted to play with the doll or the animals.

Clear as day " animals " . We were all stunned. She has said a few other words

like colors, and dad. But then they got fewer and fewer until it was one word,

once a year. Now it's been nothing for years. We have pretty much regressed to

just vowel sounds.

I don't get it either.

a

[Guest guest]

Mic is 6 and has some words, hes knows bye bye hi, out Puff the cat he says arf

for dog he says mama when my dh is yelling at him or hes in distress. Mic can

say I woove ooh for I love you I believe Mics apraxia gets in the way of alot.He

tries very hard to talk.Somedays he will repeat me saying maybe 3 words " like go

get that " clear as day and never does it again.I try to sit down on the bed with

Mic every nite and we sing and bounce on the bed. I sing my hat it has 3 cornors

and he knows hat and signs my.The singing has helped with both his signing and

his words. It takes Mic time to process so I go very slow and clear.If he gets

frustrated I change songs. Plus he loves to jump bop on the bed.I think most asd

kids have some form of apraxia and it hinders their speech along with low tone

small mouth etc. Laurie

[Guest guest]

Hi Adrienne,

My son's speech therapist at school mentioned that some children with DS may

have apraxia and that there are exercises that can be done to encourage speech

production. I don't know if this is the case for your son, but perhaps it is

worth investigating. Apparently, many children with apraxia have excellent

receptive language, but experience a disconnect between what their brain

understands and the motor skills that are required for speech.

Just a thought- best of luck!

Mom to 3 years old

DS-PDD/NOS

To: @...: momof3oneds@...: Thu, 14 Sep

2006 17:38:50 +0000Subject: Re: Hi guys.. question about non-verbal

children

hasn't grasped all of signing yet, but we use total communication and he

gets more out of it receptively. The stuggle with ANY verbal sounds or speech is

truly facinating though, let me tell you. He can't make ANY sounds... except for

all his throaty sounds, grimmaces, ect. (I posted a few months ago asking more

about Tourettes). I don't know about your kids... but to see when I

daily say MOMMMMM-Y or MA MA and he just gets this look and it's like he is

stuggling or can't comprehend or speak or something.. it's hard to explain but

it's just like he can't speak at all. He doesn't make a " MMM " sound or nothing.

I need to look more into that Go Talk stuff. I know they use devices at his

school now and I really need to kick this up a notch for at home. My husband and

I are going to a assistive tech fair here locally this weekend and I am hoping

to see some devices and some othet stuff that may help .Thanks guys!!A.

>> Carol,> That must

have been the most beautiful thing when she said " Mom " . I dream of the day Mikey

will say that. > Patty > > > Re:

Hi guys.. question about non-verbal children> > > > In a message

dated 9/14/2006 12:20:26 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, > momof3oneds@... writes:>

> am 100% ok if he NEVER speaks.. but I guess I always wonder the " why " part, >

for peace of mind.> > It has been a long and slow process for Trisha. The

introduction to sign > language is what helped Trisha to do more verbalizing. At

14, she still cannot > carry a conversation but between her sign and the one and

some times 2 word > utterances she has made tremendous progress. Because of her

hearing loss > (she is bi-laterlly aided) she doesn't hear all the letter sounds

so she isn't > always able to say the words clearly. For example, she says " eee "

for monkey > and " eee " for Becky so you really have to know what she is talking

about to > always understand her. Trisha prefers to sign when in public but uses

both > sign and speech at home with pictures for back up. She also uses modified

> signing so sometimes it's a guessing game no matter how she choses to >

communicate. When she is uncomfortable she will shut down and only use her signs

and at > school all last year she would not speak above a whisper but that has >

improved except for when she has someone new come in or someone upsets her. So

we > have gone from having a few words when she was 2 and then losing them and

no > speech until she was about 5 when she started saying mom again to now she

is > using some sign, some 1 and 2 word utterances and this year she has learned

> to tell us about the 5 silly monkeys with a combination of sign and voice. >

She leaves part of it out but gets the main points in. :-) I don't know if >

Trisha will ever carry a regular converstation but at least now she can not >

only let us know her wants and needs but she is also starting to let us know >

some of what is going on inside that beautiful little head of hers. :-) > >

Carol> Trishasmom> She isn't typical, She's Trisha!> > [Non-text portions of

this message have been removed]> > > >

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[Guest guest]

I dream of the day speaks as well. She says sometimes, only in

babble, ma, but thats is it. And just nonsense sounds, ya know? The

last time she said dada was before her heart surgery at 6 months and

then the Autism kicked in. She cannot speak at all and she does not

sign, so its always a guess to as what she's thinking or feeling.

[Guest guest]

Theres a yahoo group on apraxia childrensapraxianet I lurk in

this group alot. I get different ideas. Oral motor therapy for apraxia helps its

hard to find an slp good at oral motor therapy but isnt that hard to do. Just

making faces and mouth movements.Using a tooth brush and we used to use a nook

for stimulation in the mouth, be prepared to get bit once in awhile.Tongue rolls

amazing I can remember chewey tubes theres alot of info out there its finding an

slp willing to work hard at it. I m afraid I rarely get to go inside Mics mouth

anymore but we do alot of face making tongue clicking and cheek rubbing to wake

up his mouth.We play little games with our faces Mics reaction to my blinking my

eyes is or raising my eyebrows is very cute he just cant figure that out yet.He

just scrunches his whole face up but he tries and is memerized I can do that.Ill

look for more info. Laurie

[Guest guest]

, that is how my husband and I feel.. always wondering what is

thinking and

feeling! Unless he is growling or giggling! LOL

A.

>

> I dream of the day speaks as well. She says sometimes, only in

> babble, ma, but thats is it. And just nonsense sounds, ya know? The

> last time she said dada was before her heart surgery at 6 months and

> then the Autism kicked in. She cannot speak at all and she does not

> sign, so its always a guess to as what she's thinking or feeling.

>

>

[Guest guest]

This so strange that most of our children are mostly non-verbal.

used to say eat, drink, bye bye,no, and then about 3 yr old ago he

had a teacher that did not know what to do with him.The 2nd yr she

had him he quit talking.Now he is back with a teacher he had before

this teacher took over and slowly is talking. Not is sentences

but saying Mom, mean, dad.He used to say a complete sentence like I

caught the ball or I threw the ball. I want so much to help him but

I do not know how. is 11 yr old and it is really torture when he

screams and he cannot tell me what is wrong.Like is he sick, mad,

or something hurts him. The Dr.'s really do not know what to do

either.I love to hear him giggle and he will laugh appropriately at

funny things I say or that is on tv.I know he understands more than

what he can say with his voice but I do not know how much.A child

can only have so many picturess for what he wants to say.I am afraid

if he does not get the right help soon he will never talk. The

experts say regression in speech is common for autistic children but

regressed because his old teacher did not know how to teach

him.There has to be another way to promote talking?? Cyndi

>

> , that is how my husband and I feel.. always wondering what

is thinking and

> feeling! Unless he is growling or giggling! LOL

>

> A.

>

>

> >

> > I dream of the day speaks as well. She says sometimes,

only in

> > babble, ma, but thats is it. And just nonsense sounds, ya know?

The

> > last time she said dada was before her heart surgery at 6 months

and

> > then the Autism kicked in. She cannot speak at all and she does

not

> > sign, so its always a guess to as what she's thinking or feeling.

> >

> >

>