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Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD)

Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD)

William’s Story

William is 5 years old. He was diagnosed with PDD.NOS and has been receiving services since he was 18 months old. He has received speech therapy, OT, ABA, social/behavior group therapy, pecs program, special needs learning software, nutritionist advice, to name the course of our journey so far. In preparation for kindergarten, I decided to try AIT in the summer of 2004 to try to increase Will’s focus and concentration. His issues consisted of speech delay, behavior, social and sensory problems. Will took to the headphones immediately, which surprised me very much. He actually enjoyed the sessions and commented that he liked the music. All in all, it went remarkably well.

Post AIT, regression set in and I was scared to death. His tantrum behavior worsened and nothing seemed to improve. Then, slowly and subtly things started to improve. He stopped holding his ears. We took him to a movie (first time ever) and he wasn’t bothered at all. At birthday parties he joined in to sing. His language started to increase; he seemed more comfortable, settled and happy. He was making more connections, his abstract thinking improved and he started talking in lengthier sentences. He recalled stories from a year ago! Never before had he been able to communicate memory recollection.

Overall, his hearing sensitivities decreased or disappeared, his language improved and his memory kicked in. I am thrilled for him and feel that aside from ABA, AIT therapy has been the most effective. William attends a collaborative kindergarten class with a regular teacher and a special education
teacher. He gets on the bus every morning and every afternoon, eats his lunch, and is doing remarkably well keeping on task and retaining information learned. He is reading and writing, things I wasn’t sure
would ever happen!

Zoe’s Story

My daughter Zoe has always been in and out of the hospital due to her sensory issues and behavior problems. She has a track record of multiple diagnoses. She was diagnosed first with Sensory Integration Dysfunction, and then with ADHD, ODD, severe insomnia, and last but not least, PDD/NOS this year.

Getting the necessary audiologist tests done was a challenge due to her behavior and developmental delays, but Sarah Gewanter had the answer to almost all of our problems. She sent us the disc set that included Speech Stimulation for language improvement.

It was very hard at the beginning to get Zoe to sit and tolerate the headphones, after about 10 minutes into a session she complained of her ears starting to hurt. Over a short period of time we experienced that Zoe started to be more verbal and by the mid-point of the training she was communicating in 3-4 word sentences. When I turned on the dreaded coffee mill she did not cover up her ears for the first time. Instead she smiled and wanted to help! Her overall improvement in expressive and receptive language is continuing to improve at a rapid pace. She is very sure of herself and wants to learn more.

Zoe has gone through a period of behavioral regression twice so far and we knew what we were ‘in for’. All I can suggest is to really have the ‘rules of the house’ in place and stay on the ‘same sheet of music’ with your partner in crime and it will pass just as quickly as the onset of the episode.

An interesting point to make is that Zoe was tested at school before her AIT and then again 6 weeks after her AIT and she showed an overall improvement in language and her IQ actually went from an overall 70 up to a 94.

I am aware that AIT is not a miracle cure for A.S.D or other L.D.’s but I do know that it is part of the solution to obtain what every parent wants for their child. A fair shot in life to become the best person possible. If given the opportunity I would let my daughter go through the program again. I am certain that in time when she is a little older she will continue to reap massive benefits from another treatment of AIT.

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Testimonials

The Berard Auditory Integration Training System has given us a ray of hope. Our daughter, Naomi, 4 years 11 months showed great improve

Tiffany

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“Thank you so much! Caleb is thriving! He attended Ohio Technical College and earned an Associate’s Degree in automotive repai

Jacalyn Newman

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Hi Sarah. Years ago, I did the AIT program through your ministry with my grandson Benjamin who was diagnosed with CAPD, autism, and sen

Kathleen

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We are seeing a definite improvement in how he is managing his life. Even though there is still a procrastination issue, he seems more

~Sherry C

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I am 31 years old and I have CAPD/APD. I was diagnosed in 5th grade with CAPD. They tried several strategies in school such as Ritalin,

Lacey Moody

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His listening went from K.6 (kindergarten 6 month) to 2nd grade 2nd month! This is amazing! I am excited about this. . . Thanks again

~J.D.

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Our son, Steven, was experiencing hearing sensitivity issues as a cashier which was causing him to miss some work. After doing the AIT

Warren R.

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Thank you for your help again. I do think this has been beneficial. We had an appointment the same day he finished his first [booster]

Annie E.

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Steven has just completed his 3rd 20-session AIT this time at 32 years old. We have seen a marked decrease in sound sensitivity and als

Steven Holady

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I found AIT easy and convenient to perform in the home. My son has shown some increased awareness of his surroundings and has been usin

~M. Lucas, 2015

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He LOVES AIT. We have a happier child that gets healthier and happier every week. My happy boy. This is a child that screamed all day

Jennifer Holloway

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He has gained lots of words, …much more understanding and great eye contact… He is smarter that kids his age…

Ben K’s Mom

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It’s like having a whole new husband!...happier, more relaxed, not depressed any more

Joy B. wife

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After AIT, Steph was like a different child. Happier, more normal voice tone, doing better in school. What a pleasure

Steph’s Mom

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Simeon “woke up” after AIT. He was able to focus and have better eye contact. He was able to “be there”

a. K Byrd, RN

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I first encountered Simeon when assigned to his case working pediatric home health. He was 4 1/2 years old at the time.....a beautiful

Kathryn Byrd, RN

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My eight year old daughter is a different child today as a result of the AIT program! She experienced 30 ear infections by the time she

Steph's Mother

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