The monkey started speech therapy in December of last year. The first month was terrible. He hated it. On our way to there, we got beaten, scratched, kicked. You name it, he did it.

Change is very difficult for him. Our amazing in-home trainer provided PECs so that we can show it to him to prepare him on those dreadful days we had to drive there.

But it didn’t work. We were even contemplating cancelling the therapy all together. This was just too hard.

The first therapist assigned to us said the monkey was very difficult to handle and she recommend that we end the therapy. She was nervous hed get hurt or hurt her. She was new at therapy, and we knew our son made this a huge challenge for her.

But then the owner started helping. She told us she can work with him herself. But she didn’t want to use the tablet. She wanted to work on his actual voice.

We call her the Autism-Speech Whisper (in reference to the Dog Whisper LOL 🤣). Her methods are very different. His prior therapists asked that he sit down for the entire session, just like in school. But this therapist plays with him. She sings songs with him while watching the television, the YouTube channel. She follows him while he moves around the office. If he wants to color, she will color with him. If he wants to play on his i-Pad she will play sing along with him. If he wants to jump on the ball she will get another ball and jump next to him. Whatever he wants to do, she will follow him.

But while he is enjoying this, she will ask him to say things. “You are coloring the bear brown. Can you say Brown? Say Broooowwwn.” And she moves his lips to show him how to do it.

Siince we have started the sessions with her, he is so much more vocal now. He has said the words brown, papa, pink, mama, and a few others. It’s amazing hearing them during their sessions. He is laughing and giggling without a clue that they are actually working.

He loves it so much that he struggles to leave. We have to bribe him with candy or other things to get him to say his goodbyes and jump inside our car.

I cannot count the number of therapists we have had since we started our autism journey. He’s had speech therapist, occupational therapists, and physical therapists. And in most cases, they didn’t last much. The monkey is a handful, and they struggled a lot with him. Wed constantly be assigned new ones.

But our current speech therapist is phenomenal. She has made it her mission to get him to be vocal. She always tells us: He wants to talk. He wants to communicate. And we need to teach him how to do this. ❤️

I am not sure what the future will bring, but right now, we think it looks pretty bright.

I am so thankful to all of these professionals that have chosen to work in this field, in helping kids and adults on the spectrum. We didn’t choose autism. Autism chose us. But they chose to work with kids like my son. And I am extremely blessed for their services. 🙏❤️