As landmarks across Ontario light up blue tomorrow evening for Apraxia Awareness Day, advocates are reminding people of the ways in which they can help those with Apraxia.
Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS) is a motor speech disorder where people struggle to form words despite knowing what they want to say. Though CAS is specific to children, apraxia can affect people of all ages, and it’s not something that kids outgrow. People with apraxia often work with speech-language pathologists and other professionals to improve the clarity of their speech.
Bracebridge resident Jody Hamilton is not stranger to CAS. Her son Nash, now 10 years old, was diagnosed with CAS at age two. He was non-verbal until the age of four, communicating only by sounds.
“When he was 18 months, he had five sounds. He then kind of started off talking with one word, and then two word sentences, then three word sentences, and now he’s can pretty much talk fluently,” Hamilton explained.
Hamilton said that Nash is still in speech therapy once a week, but if he becomes upset, angry, mad, or even excited, he can have trouble pronouncing words properly.
But that doesn’t stop Nash from doing what even kid loves – play sports.
“He plays basketball, he’s played soccer, he has done rock climbing, he is doing gymnastics right now, and he’s been bowling for about four or five years,” Hamilton said. “In his sports teams I’ll kind of let the coaches know that if Nash is having any difficulty, just to give him a little extra time.”
How to help those with CAS
Those with CAS may not feel comfortable in situations where they are speaking a lot. Hamilton said that the best way to help is to give the person some extra time.
“One of the biggest things I’m really trying to advocate for Nash, and that Nash is starting to advocate for himself, is that when he needs more time to process and thing about what he wants to say, he tells someone.”
Hamilton said that there are still times when Nash comes to her to ask for help saying hi to other children because he’s scared they won’t understand him. While she is more than happy to help him, Hamilton also reminds him that the best thing to do if they don’t understand is to take a deep breath and try again.
“He’ll tell them that he needs more time, and they are all really good at respecting that. Most of the kids in his school are pretty welcoming.”
Apraxia Day Recognition
On May 14, landmarks across Ontario, such as the CN Tower, Niagara Falls, and even the Bracebridge Falls will light up blue.
“Nash’s school will wear blue,” Hamilton said. “I’m going into Nash’s class to read a story about Apraxia and explain what it is to the children. I’ll also answer any questions they may have.”
To help support those with Apraxia, Hamilton encourages everyone to wear blue tomorrow.
To learn more about CAS, visit the Apraxia Kids website at https://www.apraxia-kids.org/
