Well, we have been on a waiting list for speech therapy through the children's hospital for 2 months now. Someone from the children's hospital called & told me it would be a couple months before they could get the boys in so in the meantime we've continued therapy with the current therapist. I didn't want the boys to have a big lapse in therapy & possibly fall further behind. Our appointments have not been any better as far as the therapist canceling & rescheduling at the last minute. She took the last 2 weeks of December off & since the boys have been sick the past 2 weeks we have not had therapy since before Christmas.
Just before the holidays the boys 6 month re-evaluation was due.
I'd love to say that all 3 boys passed with flying colors but those of you that have kids in speech therapy know it's not that kind of test but even if it were, they would have not only failed but they would have been kicked out of class for misbehavior, lol...
The boys did not want to cooperate with the therapist at all! She tried sitting them at the table (like she does unsuccessfully for therapy) & asking them questions but they just kept getting down from the table & wondering away. Then she sat on the couch & tried asking them questions & they would laugh or screech & take off running down the hall.
She told me some of her concerns & the areas they didn't score well in (I can't believe she scored them at all) none of which did I agree with. I know that they know the things she asked like naming body parts or pieces of clothing. Of course they know their body parts & they know what socks & pants & hats & so on are! They also follow 2 step instructions & can name tons of objects on flash cards or in books but they did none of these things for the speech therapist.
As far as their actual speaking goes, Caden & Kellan have really taken off over the holidays! They are repeating EVERYTHING & are also starting to talk in sentences. They love to say everyone's names, even characters in books & on TV. They are getting really good about saying what they want & along with speaking more they are signing more, weird how that worked out. I love hearing their little voices & that despite the majority of their sessions being canceled or rescheduled they are still progressing very well on their own.
I'm considering canceling our service with early intervention now. I really really hate watching the power struggle between the boys & the therapist & Donna & I have decided there is absolutely no way we will be sending them to the preschool here for therapy after they turn 3. The good news is my sister is a speech therapist & has been able to coach me in how to continually work with the boys & encourage them to talk more until we do get in with the children's hospital.
It's so hard...because they say it's all about early intervention...but really. They are so little that it is hard to get a good evaluation.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you and am so happy that you have the resources that you do to do it alone.
Hello! I am a mother to 2.5-year old identical twin boys. We recently stopped doing speech therapy. Our boys scored HORRIBLY on their 18-month check-up and so we started speech therapy through the CDSA's early intervention. The boys were tested at our house on different days and one of them just did awful. It was heartbreaking because he actually did MORE for them then he did for us. The other boy did less for them than he does for us, but he scored horribly as well. Then they had a series of ear infections and failed their hearing tests as well... I was a very upset Momma. It was better when we actually started the therapy, but the gal they sent out was hands down wonderful. She came to our house because we did the speech therapy through the CDSA and scheduled back to back appointments and worked with both boys at the same time. They felt comfortable in their own environment and she never pushed them, as in starting the session as soon as she got there or forcing them to sit a certain way for her. She just let them be toddlers and worked in her therapy through play. Then she got a different job with the school system and a different speech therapist came to our house. She cancelled the first week, was late the second week, and really did not connect with the boys the two weeks she came (second week and third week). She was bossy and forced them to do structured therapy sessions. I couldn't believe when she tried to make my barely 2-year old toddlers do this puzzle that was too advanced for them (it was their 5-year old brother's puzzle). It was a disaster. I wanted to quit therapy then because we spent the therapy sessions frustrated and the boys were super clingy. I called our case worker who said we should try a different therapist and then reevaluate. Thankfully the third therapist was just wonderful. She was similar to the first therapist we had, working with our toddlers through play-- naturally! She did have some structured activities she wanted them to do, but she worked them in there in such a natural way, never making them sit just so for her or fighting with them. It was great. We ended moving states when they were almost 2.5-years old (my husband is Navy) and we decided against continuing therapy here. We did transfer our case with the CDSA from North Carolina to South Carolina so we *could* resume in-home therapy with them before the boys turn 3, but I don't see the need for that right now. We've recently had a burst in speech development for one of our toddlers, actually the one that scored so poorly at the 18-month evaluation. We've been doing a lot of speech based play recently as their speech continues to advance. Best of luck to you. I know how frustrating it can be. I really prayed we were doing the right thing for our boys and sometimes felt that I wasn't... or doubted whether we should continue or not continue with speech therapy...
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to reading more of your blog! Life with 3 boys is busy and life with toddlers is even busier!!! :)
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