If you or your child are experiencing difficulties with speaking or pronunciation, you might be wondering what to do next. Struggles in this area could be a sign of speech delays in children or Parkinson’s disease or oral cancer in adults. In many of these cases, speech therapy might be a good fit. At Doctors of Audiology, we can provide a diagnosis and determine if speech therapy is the best fit for you.
What Is Speech Therapy?
Speech therapy is a treatment plan focused on helping patients with speaking, language development or swallowing.
Who Performs Speech Therapy?
Speech therapy is done by a speech-language pathologist – a professional with a graduate degree in audiology or speech-language pathology who focuses on speech, language, cognitive, communication and oral/swallowing abilities.
When Does Speech Therapy Help?
If you think you or your child might be experiencing a communication disorder, speech therapy may be beneficial. Speech therapy helps patients with:
- Articulation disorders: These cause difficulties pronouncing words correctly.
- Fluency disorders: These lead to interruptions in the flow of speech. Stuttering is the most common fluency disorder.
- Voice disorders: These refer to issues with pitch, volume or voice quality.
- Dysphagia: This refers to difficulty swallowing, which can also lead to trouble speaking.
- Speech delay: This condition results in difficulties keeping up with speech and vocabulary skills because of hearing loss, neurological disorders or other conditions.
What Are the Goals of Speech Therapy?
Speech therapy will be built around the individual needs of you or your child. Sessions might focus on language development, vocabulary, pronunciation or swallowing. If the speech-language pathologist is working with your child, they will provide exercises for you to complete with them at home. They will also be sure to answer any questions you might have about your diagnosis and treatment.
The duration of speech therapy will vary from patient to patient. One study found that speech therapy is most effective when it lasts for at least eight weeks.
Will Speech Therapy Work?
Speech therapy is an ideal next step if you or your child are experiencing a communication disorder. Because no two patients are the same, sessions can be customized to best fit your needs. No matter your age or severity of the speech disorder you’re facing, our team at Doctors of Audiology is here to support you.
Call Doctors of Audiology for more information or to schedule an appointment.