Hi SN,

I saw your message yesterday....I don' t think your baby is going to be affected by speech....I' m a mother of 4 years cleft lip and palate girl.My daughter also have hearing issues...but she is trying her best in her therapy session.....she already had 4 surgeries to correct her cleft lip and palate..she just had gone thru speech improvement surgery ( pharyngeal flap surgery )...even we do' t know as parents what' s her future...but .we are very optimistic...even we do' t know anybody who has gone thru this...as a mother i can understand ur feelings...but trust me it won' t affect your baby in any aspect...

Hi SS,

Sorry for I forgot to ask you in my earlier msg... Can you tell me the name of the speech therapist in Mumbai?

Thanks,
SN

Dear SS,

Thanks for the encouraging words regarding my baby... I am also going to consult speech therapist and also ask her pediatrician regarding the same... I am worried especially cos some small children with whom I interact.. when they repeat after me they say something else only and I know it is not their fault but cos they are hearing me like that... so I guess my child will also do the same.. hence the worry... :(
I know my speech is not that bad... and my family keeps telling me the same but for a new person it is difficult to understand... to tell you frankly I never try to hear my voice on the recorder.. but once I had heard it and I was in tears.. but recently I heard it again by chance.. and I guess it was ok.. not fine but ok...

Regarding your Daughter... it is good that you guys are doing the necessary surgeries early and also taking her for speech therapy which is very very important... Please dont stop her speech therapy until she is perfect in her speech, I know, you as parents wont stop it, but this is a humble request from my side who has experienced lack of speech therapy in her early years and kinda suffering now in self confidence now and then...
I had my surgeries for the palate and lip when I was 3 and 6 months old... and those were done nicely that too in that period almost 30 yrs back... so you can imagine.. but unfortunately there was no enough knowledge at that time regarding speech therapy.. though my father used to send me but that was when I was in 7th or 8th std... I feel speech therapy should start early for cleft affected child...

I know it is easier said than done but dont loose hope.. treat your child as a normal child cos she is one... Send her to normal school...
My parents never treated me as a cleft affected child but as a normal child and to be frank I never knew I was somewhat different until much much later and that too cos of outside ppl...

Having cleft is not the end of the world and this is from a cleft born child.. With today´ s medical advancement your daughter will be perfectly alright... Just give your daughter love, affection, support from your end and she will turn out fine..

If you have any queries you can post and I will reply to you when I will come online... Sorry if you felt hurt by any of my words...

All The Best to your family and your daughter for the future..

Take Care,
SN