By Ally Cowdell
Roxy was nine years old, and she was nonverbal.
She did not use spoken words to communicate, which meant the only way she could express herself was through an AAC device, an augmentative and alternative communication system designed to give her access to language.
If you are a parent of a nonverbal child, you already understand how much hope sits inside that one tool.
From the outside, it looked like Roxy had everything she needed. She had a communication device. She had access to words. She could press something and get a response. Anyone watching from a distance would have assumed she was communicating.
But when you sat with her, really sat with her, you could feel it almost immediately.
Something was missing.
Roxy would use her whole hand and press multiple buttons at once, or she would repeat the same button over and over again without looking for anything specific. There was no pause, no intention, no connection between what she was pressing and what she was trying to say.
What she had learned was simple.
If I press something long enough, someone will respond.
That is not communication.
That is survival.
Her parents felt it every day, even if they could not put it into words. Their daughter was present. She understood far more than she could express. She had preferences, emotions, thoughts, and reactions happening in real time, but the words on that AAC device did not belong to her yet.
She was surrounded by language, but she was still alone inside it.
If you are raising a child who is nonverbal or using an AAC device and something feels off, this is often the moment you find yourself in. You are doing everything you have been told to do, and yet your child still cannot fully tell you what they need, how they feel, or what is happening inside their world.
That disconnect matters.
This is when Roxy’s mom found us.
When Roxy came to us for speech therapy, we did not start by adding more words to her existing device or expanding her vocabulary. We started by slowing everything down and paying attention to her. We watched how she interacted with the device, how she touched it, how she responded when something worked and when it did not.
Because AAC therapy is not about how many words a child has access to. It is about whether those words have meaning.
The first shift we made had nothing to do with language itself. We focused on how Roxy used her body to access communication. We helped her move from using her whole hand to using a single finger, and that one change created intention.
For the first time, she was not just activating a device.
She was making a choice.
From there, we rebuilt her AAC system around her world. Her interests. Her preferences. The things that actually mattered to her. Because communication only works when it is personal. When a child sees themselves in the language, they begin to connect with it in a way that no generic system can create.
As those pieces came together, something began to shift.
Roxy started pressing one button and then waiting. She would look up, look back at the device, and then choose again. There was a rhythm to it now, a sense of purpose that had not been there before.
She was no longer guessing.
She was communicating.
Her world began to open in ways her family had not experienced before. Roxy could express what she liked and what she did not like. She could react to something funny. She could show preference, interest, and emotion in real time. She was no longer limited to responding to what others assumed she needed.
She could participate.
There was a moment when Roxy used her AAC device to tell her parents that she was sick. She had never done that before. For the first time, she was able to communicate how she felt in a way that changed what happened next. She stayed home. She rested. She was cared for in a way that matched what her body needed.
That moment carried weight.
Because communication is not just about interaction.
It is about safety.
It is about being known.
It is about a parent finally understanding what their child has been trying to say all along.
There was another moment that her speech therapist will never forget. Roxy reached toward her and pulled her in for a hug. When the therapist pressed “I love you” on the device, Roxy pressed it back.
“I love you”
There was no prompting.
No expectation.
Just a child expressing something real, in her own way, on her own terms.
That is what meaningful communication looks like.
As she continued to grow, Roxy began navigating her communication device in ways she had not before. She moved between pages, searched for words, and found what she was looking for. She was not just accessing language anymore.
She was using it.
For nine years, Roxy had been trying to connect.
And finally, someone met her in a way that made sense.
This is the depth of speech therapy when it is done well, especially for children who are nonverbal or using AAC. It goes far beyond providing a device or teaching isolated skills. It looks at how a child interacts with communication, how they access language, how they express meaning, and how they connect with the world around them.
An AAC device can open the door.
But it is the way that door is unlocked, supported, and personalized that allows a child to walk through it.
At Breaking Barriers, we follow the child. We adjust in real time, and we build communication in a way that belongs to them so it can carry into their everyday life, not just a therapy session.
If your child is nonverbal, using an AAC device, and something still feels off, trust that feeling. There is a difference between pressing buttons and being understood, and when that gap is closed, everything changes.
You are not alone in this.
There are answers for what you are seeing, and there is a way to help your child communicate in a way that is real, meaningful, and connected to who they are.
At Breaking Barriers, we take the time to understand your child as a whole, not just the tools they are using. We look at how they interact, how they access language, and what is getting in the way of them being fully heard.
From there, we build a plan that actually works.
If this story feels familiar to you, the next step is simple.
Schedule a consultation with our team.
We will walk you through what we are seeing, what it means, and what can be done to move your child forward.
Because your child has something to say.
And you deserve to hear it.
Have Questions About Therapy for Your Child?
Talk with our team about ABA, occupational therapy, and speech therapy at our Lehi and Saratoga Springs clinics.