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Looking for resources on working with clients with apraxia in music therapy?

Apraxia is a disconnect between the mind and body, leading to a person's body moving out of their control and impacting the way they communicate and carry out movements.

 

Though apraxia does not always occur in individuals with autism and can also co-occur with other diagnoses, Jeong and Darroch (2021) report that about 60% of people with autism have apraxia, meaning that it is quite prevalent though perhaps underdiagnosed. 

 

Music Therapy: An Introduction to the Profession, a respected textbook for music therapy students covering various populations relevant to the field, mentions apraxia in-depth in a rehabilitation context and later in a single vignette speaking to apraxia of speech in a child with autism (Knight et al., 2018). The book briefly references two music therapists, Hardy and LaGasse, who have researched abnormal movements connected to autism but does not mention apraxia. In other words, this textbook presents limited information on apraxia of speech outside of a rehabilitative environment and no information on working with clients with ocular, oral, or limb-kinetic apraxia to music therapy students.

 

This resource serves as a means to educate and equip music therapy students, interns, and professionals with background information, example interventions, perspectives to consider when starting to work with this population.

Photos and videos are included with consent of the clients and their guardians if applicable. When being interviewed or responding to surveys, individuals requested that their names be used. Disclaimer: All clients pictured use a form of AAC to communicate in sessions and prioritize motor goals; however, clients pictured may not represent the community of individuals with an apraxia diagnosis or identify as a speller.

References

Jeong, A.A.Y., & Darroch, B. (2021). Using letter boards in client-centred music therapy: "Autistics can teach if some are ready to 

listen." The New Zealand Journal of Music Therapy, 19, 34-53. https://www.musictherapy.org.nz/2021-2

Knight, A., LaGasse, B., & Clair, A. (Eds.). (2018). Music therapy: An introduction to the profession. American Music Therapy

Association, Inc.

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