Adult Speech Therapy

What’s the first thought that crosses your mind when you hear the phrase speech therapy? Do you envision someone who stutters? Maybe you see a child practicing their pronunciation of r sounds at school. Perhaps you imagine an individual striving to modify their accent. While speech therapy encompasses all of these, it also covers a much broader range of services!

Why Would an Adult Need Speech Therapy

Adults may pursue speech therapy to improve their communication skills, ensuring they express themselves more clearly and effectively. Additionally, speech therapists can offer a service known as cognitive rehabilitation. This type of therapy aids adults in improving thinking skills, such as attention and memory. Interestingly, a speech therapist can also assist adults with swallowing difficulties by strengthening the muscles in the mouth and throat in order to facilitate eating and drinking. 

Below is a list of common issues that prompt adults to seek out speech therapy:

Speaking after a Stroke
When an individual suffers a stroke, some affected areas of the brain can lead to significant changes in communication abilities. You may find that your speech is less clear, you struggle to express your thoughts, or understanding others becomes quite difficult. These changes can result in frustrating communication breakdowns. Speech and language therapy for adults can:

Enhance your speech fluency

Improve your comprehension of others

Boost your reading and writing accuracy

Decrease the frequency of communication breakdowns you encounter

Voice changes related to Parkinson’s Disease or Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
Both Parkinson’s and MS are progressive disorders that can impact your voice, making communication with others a challenge. For adults still in the workforce, these voice changes can negatively affect your ability to earn a living. Voice therapy for adults can:

Strengthen your voice for greater loudness

Equip you with strategies to manage vocal fatigue

Difficulty Swallowing
Signs of swallowing difficulties may include coughing or choking while eating, trouble chewing, the sensation that food isn’t going down, excessive drooling, or spilling liquids from your mouth. There are various reasons someone might experience changes in swallowing. Treatment options for swallowing issues include:

Enhancing the strength and function of the muscles involved in swallowing

Identifying effective swallowing strategies to ensure proper nutrition and hydration

Safeguarding your airway from ingested foods to prevent infections such as pneumonia

Decline in Cognitive Skills
Cognition refers to our mental processes that allow us to think clearly. You might notice changes in your cognitive abilities if you find yourself more forgetful or confused than usual, struggle to maintain focus on tasks, or feel overwhelmed by everyday challenges. These changes can accompany long COVID, people who have received chemo treatment for cancer, people with dementia, and many other medical conditions. Cognitive therapy for adults can assist by:

Engaging in exercises designed to boost memory and establish backup memory strategies

Increasing attention skills for both simple and complex daily tasks

Helping you organize better to effectively manage your daily responsibilities

What to Expect at Your First Speech Therapy Appointment

It can be beneficial to have a loved one or caregiver accompany you during your first speech therapy session. They can assist in sharing any pertinent medical history or reviewing the information provided on your initial intake forms. There may even be a conversation about any previous experiences with speech therapy.

During the initial appointment, a comprehensive evaluation will take place. The speech pathologist will use this time to understand your concerns, conduct necessary assessments, and determine the need for speech therapy. Additionally, this session serves as an excellent opportunity for you to discuss your goals, outlining what you aim to achieve through the therapy process.

What Happens after a Speech Evaluation

Upon completing the evaluation, your speech pathologist will spend a few moments discussing the initial findings and outlining a preliminary plan of action to address them. Following your appointment, your therapist will complete a more detailed written report and treatment plan. These can be shared with you and relevant professionals, such as your doctor, with your consent. 

The treatment plan will list long term goals to be reached at the end of your treatment. However, it will also highlight short term goals that will be built on in order to reach your long term goals. How long an adult spends in speech therapy will depend on factors such as:

Your diagnosis

How severe your diagnosis is

Attendance and consistency of your speech therapy appointments

Your ability to follow the home exercises that are a part of treatment

As demonstrated, there are numerous reasons an adult might seek speech therapy for issues pertaining to speech, swallowing, or cognitive functions. Furthermore, a speech pathologist can provide assistance regardless of whether these challenges are new or long-standing. The treatment plan and targeted goals are tailored specifically to your individual needs and preferred outcomes.