Communicating..

Alex and I had the most astonishing time communicating interactively this afternoon using a PECS (picture exchange communication system) picture. The reason I say astonishing is the fact that communication has always been a big issue with Alex. Aside from a very limited list of words, she is not verbal. She had suffered a grade I brain bleed in the BROCA region while she was in the NICU. This combined with seizures, illnesses and meds these past 9 years left its mark on her communication ability. It all started to change about a year ago when one of her therapist started working with her on the ABLLS (Assessment of Basic Language and Learnig Skills) program which opened up a whole new world for her in terms of object recognition, expressing needs and wants, some signing as well as some verbalization. In order to practice her skills, Alex was carrying a PECS picture of me this afternoon. She sat near me on the couch, smiled and handed the picture to me. I played dump and prompted her to tell me who was in the picture. She kept smiling, brought her face close to kiss the picture, pointed and then giggled. I still prompted more. After repeating this for a few times, she finally said “Mama”. At that point she gave me such a mischievous look and a smirk on her face that just about said: Don’t you think I know who this is in the picture Mama? The expression just melted my heart as I hugged her. She may not be very verbal but she sure can get her point across..

©Copyright 2007.Najwa S. Hirn. All rights reserved.