Testimonials


"Chris Byers has been working with my 4-year-old son, who was recently diagnosed with Autism, since he was just over two years old. Quite frankly, we don't know what we would have done without her. Her depth of knowledge concerning autism and all related disorders has been life saving to my son. Without her guidance and support, I would most likely still be in denial that anything was wrong with my son. She guided me to numerous resources - i.e. special education advocacy, UCLA Autism Evaluation Clinic, etc - with the kindness and understanding that it takes to speak to a new mom receiving the news that her first born son may have more challenges than a typically developing child. I highly recommend Chris Byers for anyone looking to make a difference in the life of their special needs child."
"I have known Chris Byers for many years. What has always impressed me about Chris is her dedication to the children. She looks at each child as an individual and creates a program to meet his/her specific needs. She is knowledgeable and experienced in a wide variety of interventions. Chris tailors each program to fit the child instead of trying to fit each child into a generalized program. She has experience working with children with a variety of disabilities including Autism, Down Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, and Traumatic Brain Injury. Chris is kind and caring and knows how to get the best out of each of her students. I recommend Chris to anyone who is looking for a dedicated, intelligent and caring speech pathologist."
President, Greenhouse Publications


"Our daughter was born with Hydrocephalus due to a brain hemorrhage and has cerebral palsy. She had little to no speech. She started receiving treatment from Chris Byers at the age of three, using Beckman oral motor therapy, and it has made all the difference in the world for our family. Her speech is much more intelligible with no limitations to the amount of words used, her drooling has decreased and her chewing and swallowing has improved so much. I no longer need to puree foods for her and her swallowing is more controlled, decreasing her choking and coughing. Due to damage she had from the brain hemorrhage, I was worried she may never have speech. With the help of Chris Byers using the specific techniques of Beckman therapy, she has made great progress."
"As a church pastor I have had recurring and persistent hoarseness and soreness in my throat for over 30 years. It always worsened during times of occupational stress and when I had to speak a lot. Because a pastor's voice is his/her primary tool, I often felt discouraged and began to consider a career change. A few years ago I tried voice therapy without lasting change. Several months ago, I started having persistent pain in my neck and had medical tests done. The doctor found no pathology but referred me to Chris for voice therapy. I met with her for several weeks and experienced a dramatic change in voice strength and ease of speaking, which I attribute to Chris's skill and the multi-disciplinary approach she used in addressing my problems. When I am mindful of the skills and practices Chris taught me, my speaking is so much easier and the tiredness and soreness all but disappear. Chris is not only well trained in her profession, but she has pursued education in a wide range of healing modalities. She draws from these appropriately and within the comfort level and spiritual orientation of the patient. Chris had her own voice issues in the past. She sometimes shared her experiences as a way of giving me insight and encouragement which was very helpful. I recommend Chris highly as a proficient, caring therapist. "


"My daughter, Sophia, is 4 years old and has worked with Chris Byers for the past year. She is diagnosed with cerebral palsy, dysarthria, and apraxia. A year ago she was only able to produce a few sounds (m,b,vowel sounds) and was nonverbal. She communicated using signs which made her frustrated and resulted in aggressive behaviors. We had been told by several speech therapists as well as doctors that Sophia would most likely not be able to speak functionally and would require a device or other modes to communicate. We were also told numerous times that oral motor therapy was not beneficial but I always knew deep down that this is what Sophia needed. Within a month of beginning the oral motor therapy, Sophia was able to produce many new sounds. Within 6 months she was able to produce pretty much every sound in the alphabet. Now a year later, she has more than 300 words. Her classroom teacher comments everyday on how amazed her speech has progressed in this last year. She is learning new words every day and most importantly she is so proud of herself and her self-confidence has improved tremendously. She is able to tell me “I love you mommy”-words that I wasn’t sure I would ever hear from her. I cannot begin to express my gratitude to Chris. I can whole heartedly recommend Chris Byers to anyone who is looking for an experienced, knowledgeable, caring and dedicated speech-language pathologist. Thank you Chris for giving our daughter a voice and for never giving up on her."