Speech Therapy and Mental Health
May 10, 2023
It's All Connected
Speech and Articulation
- Not being understood can negatively impact overall communicative effectiveness
- For your kiddo this can be: sharing exciting news, difficult emotions, questions
- For some no be able to communicate clearly can impact feelings of self/perception of others
- In speech therapy, skills such as sounds and sequences are often practiced
- However, improving self-confidence, independence, and compensatory strategies are just as important
Language and Pragmatics
There are 3 areas of language that speech therapist focus on: Expressive, Receptive, and Pragmatic
Expressive/Reception
- In speech, therapist encourage articulating needs, wants, and gratitude
- The power to say “no” is more powerful than asking for “more” and is one of the first communicative acts often learned
- Whether that is through words, signs, or assistive technology - SLPs work hard to be sure that they give kiddos the best chance of communicating their wants/needs as effectively as possible.
Pragmatic
- This is social language! Conversation skills, inferencing/perspective shifting skills, and overall understanding of how others think/feel
- SLPs work with a lot with kiddos who may have difficulty connecting with peers/others due to pragmatic challenge
- We work on much more than conversation skills or reciprocal play. SLPs take on the roles of being friend/teacher/mentor/play-mate while building up confidence to continue trying these learned skills.
Tip* We have social groups for kiddos of varying ages with pragmatic deficits to learn/practice their skills and make new friends at PMC.
Fluency
- Fluency is more known to the general world as “stuttering
- SLPs are transitioning to a much healthier way of approaching fluency disorders in the past few years
- SLPs provide fluency strategies, seeing which ones are the most effective (and liked), and practicing those strategies in a way that they feel comfortable with
- Allowing kiddos to be self-paced in their journey decreases the negative stigma associated with fluency disorders from stutterers, professionals, and the community as a whole.
Exposing children to food through various activities like cooking, coloring and sensory play/projects enhances their understanding of food, leading to healthier eating habits. Try a sensory project, like making snacklaces!
A Fun Way to Introduce Your Child to Food!
Our Registered Dietitian (RD) has some practical tips to incorporate into mealtime for a more successful, enjoyable child-food relationship. The goals of these interaction are to create a positive relationship with food, enjoy happy meal times, reduce anxiety, reduce battles surrounding food, and fitting all types of food into a healthy lifestyle.
Apraxia is a motor speech disorder. Childhood apraxia of speech is a rare, but lifelong disorder that makes it difficult for individuals to move their mouth muscles in order to speak. The important thing to note about Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS) is that the child knows what they want to say, but may struggle with connecting the brain to the muscles that must accompany speech.
If you have a child who is a selective eater, learn about some time-tested eating tips including: nutrition guidelines, tips for parents during meal times, and types of food children tend to enjoy. Try a combination of these tricks and find what will work best for your family.
In a world often filled with uncertainty, Liam, a courageous six-year-old boy, has proven that faith, resilience, and the unwavering support of family can overcome even the most daunting challenges. His journey began on December 11th, 2023 when Liam fell down the stairs. What was thought to have been a seemingly innocent incident, quickly spiraled into a life-altering spinal stroke. Within moments, Liam went from a lively child full of energy to being paralyzed from the neck down, which left his family in shock, grappling with fear and confusion as they navigated the unknown.
