Speech therapy is a service that helps adults by teaching them how to speak. Speech therapy is most commonly associated with children who have issues speaking and learning, but it is also used for adults who have never learned how to speak or are having trouble speaking.
Speech therapy is the treatment of a communication disorder or impairment. It can also be known as speech and language therapy, language therapy, or speech-language pathology.
Speech therapy is often recommended for people who have a disability that prevents them from communicating effectively. Such disabilities include physical disabilities, hearing loss, mental health conditions, neurological disorders, intellectual disabilities, and autism spectrum disorders.
A speech-language pathologist (SLP) treats individuals with speech disorders including articulation problems (i.e., sounds), voice disorders (i.e., pitch and loudness), fluency problems (i.e., stuttering or cluttering), or a combination of these problems. The SLP also treats swallowing disorders such as dysphagia and apraxia of speech.
The SLP will work with the client to determine the correct treatment method tailored to their condition. Treatment may include exercises that improve vocal function, breathing control, and resonance.
Being an adult with any kind of speech disorder can be difficult in many aspects of life, from having trouble communicating with coworkers to finding it hard to ask for what one needs at a restaurant or store. Speech therapy helps adults who have any kind of speech disorder learn how to overcome these difficulties.
Speech therapy can have an enormous impact on the lives of adults. If you’re an adult who has trouble communicating with others, it’s likely that you have experienced what this feels like. You might feel isolated and alone because of your inability to properly express your thoughts, feelings, and needs to others. It’s possible that others are frustrated by this as well, because they may not be able to understand you or fully comprehend what you’re trying to convey.
In a speech therapy session, the therapist will want to get a full understanding of your communication difficulties in order to help you overcome them. Before anything else can be done, the therapist must first determine how it is that you struggle with verbal communication. Is it just a matter of volume or pitch? Is it due to a lack of vocabulary? Do you stumble over certain words no matter how often you say them? Are there certain words that cause you distress when they’re said?
Possible methods of treatment include verbal instruction, vocal training, working with articulation strategies, use of electronic devices such as text-to-speech software, and working on social skills in order to foster better relationships with others.
Speech therapy adults can help you improve your ability to communicate. Speech therapy is commonly used to help people with speech disorders (such as stuttering) as well as those who have trouble speaking due to a stroke, brain injury, or other neurological disorder. Some adults may also benefit from speech therapy if they have trouble swallowing or have been diagnosed with a throat cancer.