What Therapists Say
BAVX AND APRAXIA OF SPEECH
As a speech therapist the opportunity to use a tool such as Bal-A–Vis-X is truly revolutionary. I first took the training in December 2009 and then again in the summer of 2010. Subsequently, I have used BAVX with neurologically impaired adults who were dealing with either a progressive or acute disorder. Goals of treatment included improvements in focused attention, joint attention, sequencing, self evaluation/monitoring and self correction. For my patients, BAVX provides an active forum for new dynamic learning requiring sensory-motor-cognitive integration.
ROYCE
In June 2011 I met with a new out patient, Royce. He had suffered his second stoke at the age of 42, he presented with severe apraxia of speech. Initially he was unable to make volitional verbal or non-verbal movements, i.e. he was unable to shape his lips or tongue or imitate any sounds on request.
Royce was given the time of one year to regain his speech and return to work. As therapy began Royce’s sheer determination and effort could not be capitalized on for results by traditional therapy alone.
Previously I had predominantly used BAVX with cognitively impaired patients. So I introduced Royce to BAVX for the purpose of facilitating controlled movements. The early sequences improved in coordination, timing and rhythm with the help of his incredible wife, Susan, who learnt and practiced in our bi-weekly sessions and at home with Royce.
As BAVX exercises improved, Royce appeared to be also benefitting from multisensory cueing for phoneme/vowel combinations, e.g. ma/ba/ta/ka/la.
RESULTS
Royce steadily made progress with both an increasing complexity of BAVX exercises and speech demands through to May of 2012, when he returned back to work!!!! Work communication needs, for Royce, involve providing instruction and solutions for mechanical equipment failures, and at times in noisy and difficult environments. Royce now has conversational speech with back-up strategies of scripting [practicing anticipated speech, silently or aloud] and writing and visualizing speech targets as needed.
BAVX definitely assisted in Royce’s improvements. It provided visual-motor evidence of controlled movement, it allowed brain-body integration and eventually supplemented his efforts with traditional speech therapy in a way I have never witnessed before. Royce’s accomplishments have given me the confidence to tackle this very challenging disorder of speech apraxia with future patients.
Taruna Patel, Speech-Language Therapist
“Bavx helped me improve my handwriting , and it relaxes my mind so I can fall asleep easily, I also enjoy my sessions with Mrs Angela a lot …we laugh a lot . My mom says I focus better now too ….Thank you Miss Angela and thank you Bavx “ ~Tala
Tala’s handwriting change after 6 weeks of Bal-A-Vis-X
I attended the 3 day BAVX workshop last summer. I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who does mental health counseling. I work with kids and adults, including clients with PTSD and a variety of other diagnoses.I have been incorporating BAVX into my mental health counseling, and thought I would share some stories of success:
1) A 31 y. o. female — depression and anxiety diagnosis. Very linear thinker. Remarkable change when standing on the balance board in being able to summarize and process the big picture, rather than only telling excessive details of a story and not being able to process the meaning of it. Four sessions of therapy from assessment to discharge.
2) A 22 y.o male – Autism. Used the balance board and 1-2 ball/bag exercises in sessions. Remarkable progress in developing ability to shift focus from tunnel vision to more wholistic thinking. Ability to sort out big/medium/small problems increased. Learned to relate to others better in his job as a park ranger. Reported that it helped him reduce obsessive thinking, gain more productivity in his job and in his writing articles to submit for publication.
3) Married couple – late 20’s in age – marital therapy – wife highly anxious. Used 1-2 bag oval with one another while discussing marital conflicts. The wife was so anxious at first that she couldn’t express herself, was ‘tongue tied.’ Immediately, when doing the 1-2 bag oval with husband during session, she began expressing herself fluently and expressively. The couple reported that they spontaneously started using same technique at home, on their own, when needing to discuss issues between them!
4) A 28 year old female – trauma victim – PTSD diagnosis. Used balance board, and occasional 1-2 bag exercise, while reviewing rational thoughts to replace fearful thoughts. Afterward she said, “When you put me on balance board, I thought you’d lost your mind, but the balance board helped me not over-think because I also had to pay attention to my balance.” Successful completion of therapy for this client.
Just thought I would share.