DS has just turned 4. His speech delay was picked up since he was 2.5. We has gone through NHS all the waiting list and also had paid out of our own pocket for a pediatrician for an assessment at age 3. Nothing major was found so far, at least autism has been excluded.
We've been using a speech therapist since last summer. The improvement is there and he can express himself most of the time but the pronunciation is rather poor and , if you don't know him, you certainly wouldn't understand him at all. He also seems forgets words frequently and that made him reluctant to speak the whole sentence or form his whole ideas verbally. It feels terrible to imagine,when he gets to school this summer, how on earth he could cope.
During my constant research for explanations, I came across the concept of APD. A sudden click, as all the symptoms are virtually describing myself. More often than not, I "mishear" people and I can't hear the lyrics out of any songs and I need subtitles up for watching films and my husband has this eternal headache that he can't recall how many times he has to repeat the same sentence to me until I understand what he says. Over years, I got to know I can't deal with group meeting or office gossips, as I simply can't catch up.
I feel awful at this moment as this can run in family and for fact I know my mum and my brother both have the same issue. If this is part of the reason DS has this bad speech delay, he must have been feeling helpless with all these people talking can't reach him as he couldn't "hear" what they say.
I can't bear thinking DS has to go through the same thing during his life, as being half deaf really kills self-esteem and it creates a deep gap separating you from others.
So I would really appreciate if you have any advice/experience to share about this APD:
- I saw lots of positive results from auditory training, like Tomatis Method or the Listening Program. How much do they cost if we try them privately?
- I saw NHS does seem to take on the diagnosis of APD. Is there an age barrier for having a proper diagnosis? How long he will have to wait till a conclusion could be made?
- Would NHS prescribe these auditory training or not?
I'm just not sure if it is still worth going through the hassle to let NHS do something about it. Once DS starts school, the disadvantage would demonstrate fully and his confidence will inevitably take a big hit.
Can someone help and share your experience? I'd be grateful.
