When the speech therapist looks at Apraxia, they are most often looking at how the words are, how they sound, and how they can make them more understood by other people. However, Apraxia is more than not being able to be understood by other people.
It’s the disconnection from your brain to your mouth, and how those pauses feel.
It’s about not being able to get a particular word out, so in your mind, you search for a different word that you know you’ll be able to pronounce immediately.
You play this guessing game with your brain, not knowing which word won’t be able to come out next. Apraxia is known for unpredictable’s speech errors; this is what makes it different and so distinct from other disorders.
Here are some parts of Apraxia your SLP or other observers won’t be able to see fully.
1.) The disconnection from your brain to your mouth.
Something many people can’t see because it’s rather observant it needs to be self-reported is the disconnection between your brain and your mouth that results in the speech pauses. Many people don’t even know how to self-report; because how are you supposed to describe that to a person who doesn’t have the same speech disorder?
2.) Choosing alternative words, because others won’t come out.
There can be specific words I want to say. However, in my brain, I know that word won’t come out initially; I know I will have more trouble articulating it. So, I primarily go “word searching” in my brain, finding an alternative word that I will be able to say on demand. For example, if I’m unable to get out the word large initially, I’ll say the word big. A word that has the same definition and means the same thing, however, are different words.
3.) The time it can take to formulate speech and what it involves.
If you ask a person with Apraxia a question, you’ll often notice there’s a time gap between their answers. Why? Our brain takes time to formulate the speech we want to say, and it also takes time for that formulated speech to go to our mouth to say. Internally, what that can look like for the person can vary from person to person. It’s in my opinion, it is crucial individuals with Apraxia develop a healthy cognitive thought process. Many times, unfortunately, they can be hard on themselves. Like:
Ugh, why won’t this word come out, right? I can’t speak right.
Instead, using a cognitive approach, we want to wire our brains to think of nonjudgmental thoughts essentially. So, for example:
This word isn’t coming out right yet, but it will. I have to give myself time.
It’s okay if I didn’t articulate that word right the first time. I can try again!
Of course, we don’t know what’s going on inside the person’s brain. So, Apraxia doesn’t only affect speech individually. It affects multiple aspects of the person’s mind, thought processes, and social areas. Just because we can speak doesn’t mean you see everything.