About me
Cheryl Hosmer is a retired journalist and developmental editor who now writes full-time. She graduated from Madonna University with a BA in Interdisciplinary Studies and is earning an MA in Training and Development from Roosevelt University.
Cheryl specializes in biographies, poverty studies, Catholicism and the Rosary as well as MERLD. Other interests include family studies, history, genealogy and creative nonfiction (literary journalism).
Editing credits include: The Angel Letters (2008); Steve McQueen: The Last Mile (2007); Steve McQueen: Portrait of an American Rebel (1994) Elvis: Still Taking Care of Business (2007); Maravich, (2006); and Steve McQueen: The King of Cool (2010). She has written numerous newspaper articles for various publications and recently finished ghostwriting her first novel.
Cheryl and her family reside in Michigan with their dog, Frodo.
Hey Cheryl,
I have a 3 year old daughter, Ameila, who has been receiving speech therapy on and off since she was about a year old. We were told it was a developmental delay and that with therapy everything would improve. Now at the age of 3, we’re still struggling with her speech and cognitive skills. We’ve been to the school district, they told us Amelia is average, if not slightly above, average intelligence for her age. Our pediatrician has given her the clean bill of health…it wasn’t until we got her in preschool that her teachers told us to get another opinion. We’re waiting to meet with a behavior specialist…3 month wait list.
Up until tonight I had no idea what to even look for or what could be going on. I randomly stumbled on a youtube clip of a child with MERLD and couldn’t believe my eyes (or my ears). It was exactly what we see every day. I came across your blog and I’m just trying to get a handle on ways we can help Amelia.
Any information would be great. It’s also hard to get a read on recovery or if the child can learn to cope with the disorder. I read one article that said the child would grow up and have problems the rest of their life, it was pretty depressing. You seem to have a more positive experience. Amelia has been making significant progress since starting school…
Here is the youtube clip, btw!
http://www.youtube.com/user/liz185#p/u/6/wiu43VfNIiI
thank you!
tori
Great blog. I am so frustrated with my son’s pre-school. I don’t think they understand what MERLD is, and they keep asking for us to get a spectrum evaluation. After reading you information, I think I know that he just has MERLD and I need to explain to them that this is not just a “speech” disorder. I may still have a behavior analysis done on him as well….but this article was refreshing. Thank you.
Hey Cheryl,I have a 3 year old daughter, Ameila, who has been receiving speech therapy on and off since she was about a year old. We were told it was a developmental delay and that with therapy everything would improve. Now at the age of 3, we’re still struggling with her speech and cognitive skills. We’ve been to the school district, they told us Amelia is average, if not slightly above, average intelligence for her age. Our pediatrician has given her the clean bill of health…it wasn’t until we got her in preschool that her teachers told us to get another opinion. We’re waiting to meet with a behavior specialist…3 month wait list.
+1
Hi Hunter,
While you wait, make sure that speech therapy keeps up. You should be able to get it within your school district free of charge if your daughter is in either a public or private school once she has an IEP or Service Plan in place. Speech therapy should be at least twice if not three times a week. Keep involved and ask lots of questions. Sometimes MERLD is called “childhood aphasia” or simply “aphasia”. I’m told because MERLD is often a misunderstood diagnosis by insurance companies who are hesitant to pay for speech, but will pay for aphasia coding. Not all developmental delays are MERLD or MERLD related, so ask your speech and language pathologist exactly how to define what’s going on with Ameila.
Hi-
I have been trying to find more information about MERLD. My 6 and a half year old was just diagnosed with a mild form. I have known for years something has been off. She speaks well, but her performance and intelligence don’t add up. She has had these meltdowns that unlike other children get WORSE with age. I know it is all related. And I knew in my gut something was off. She is receiving speech privately now. I am trying to figure out the best way to get the school on board. Her teacher is very supportive, but doesn’t seem to get it. She says she doesn’t like reading or that she just takes longer. She does take longer, but its not because of an intelligence thing. Because it is a mild case and she has no issues at school (saves it for home, holds it together all day)… I am not sure how to proceed. The only thing I can think of was that on her OWLS she was low average in 2 sub scales but above average (significantly) in written expressive… could this be the springing point? Do you have any suggestions?
Dear Rebecca,
I have just stumbled upon this site and my heart is racing, my head spinning. I have a daughter, adopted from China, and from the moment I received her paper work I knew there was some type of delay in her speech. She was 11 months at the time. Fast forward to now, she is 11 years old. After many years of speech therapy, privately and in school and thousands of dollars in testing, again, privately and in school. I finally was able to achieve an IEP for her. All these years, I have never received a clear diagnosis of her problem. I had a psychologist tell me she had ADD and recommended medication. Medication was never an option. I know my child and I know her problems were deeper than attention deficit. When your child is unable to retain information, even with something as simple as a person’s name, after you have told it to them over and over again, and a minute later she forgets, something is going on. I have been told she has auditory processing problems, etc, etc. She has always tested in the average and low-average range. Like many of you, it was by chance that I stumbled upon the diagnosis of MERLD. Wow, the skies just opened up for me. This is exactly what Lily has!
My daughter finally received extra help in school in the form of resource classes last year, and she did ok. I found that the school pushed her along and overlooked some deficiencies, simply because there are too many children to service. After a full day of school, tutoring 2 days a week and tennis another 2 days a week, by the time we sat down to do homework, I felt like I was sitting across an empty vat. Her eyes glazed over as we tried to study or review. Her little brain could not take in any more information. As a result, I decided to homeschool her and will do so possibly throughout her school years. This has been the best option for our family and for Lily. I am also looking into some possible intensive therapy such as the Lindamood Bell program (any suggestions?)
My new quest is to find the right therapy for my child, as I have yet to find definitive help for children of Lily’s age. Most of the sites I have found are for early intervention.