May is Apraxia Awareness Month!

Gunnar received a proclamation from Mayor Skip Hall proclaiming May 14th to be Apraxia Awareness Day for the city of Surprise.

Apraxia is a neurological disorder in which a child’s brain has difficulty coordinating the complex oral movements needed to create sounds into syllables, syllables into words, and words into phrases. Thus leaving kids without the ability to speak or even communicate the most basic needs or feelings. It is not generally outgrown and treatment for apraxia of speech is intensive and may last several years through adulthood.

When you find out that your child has a diagnosis of Apraxia of speech, that they may never be able to speak, tell you that they love you or even their favorite color, words cannot express that heartache. After we received this diagnosis I found Apraxia-Kids.org which is the leading nonprofit for Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS) and learned that with 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫 intervention and support that there could be a positive outcome for Gunnar. He would learn how to speak, and tell us he loves us and that green is his favorite color. I did the math recently and can tell you Gunnar has completed over 4,000 hours of speech therapy so far on this ride. While his growth has been hugely impactful in his speech, this journey is far from over.

Apraxia doesn’t have the same treatment as other speech disorders so a proper diagnosis and early intervention are key. It is imperative that people learn about Apraxia for the children and their families who are affected by it and even more so for all those children who are still undiagnosed. We are working to create a future where more children can find the care they need because apraxia is understood, not unknown.

Thank you!