Local teen shares her experience on living with Apraxia

Apraxia is a condition which can affect speech and communication, making it difficult to communicate with others. It can also lead to speech impediments and volume control issues.

One local teen has been living with the condition all of her life, and she explains exactly how it affects how she speaks.

"It's a neurological speech disorder that affects the movement of your mouth, so the mouth movements do not happen properly in the brain," says Samantha Sewell. "I myself have an Apraxia accent, a lot of people think I'm from Yonkers, New York actually."

May is Apraxia Awareness Month, which aims to reduce the stigma surrounding the disorder. Apraxia can be difficult to diagnose, and it will affect most people for the rest of their lives.

The stigma is definitely still apparent, as Samantha has dealt with bullies for a long time.

"In high school it was hard, I was bullied by a lot of people, including teachers," she says. "It's been hard, but I'm very thankful to be an advocate for it now."

On May 14, people are encouraged to wear blue to show their support for those living with Apraxia as part of the awareness month.