FAQs for Speech Therapy

 

Speech-language pathology (SLP) is a specific type of therapy that focuses on the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of speech, language, communication, and swallowing disorders.

​

At All 4 Therapy LLC, we offer many different types and styles of speech-language therapy to various ages, ranging from infants to adults.

​

To find an answer to your question about our speech and language therapy services, please feel free to use the links below.

​

You can find answers to common questions, such as hours, location, communication style, and insurance, on our General FAQ page.

​

We also invite you to call our office; we welcome the opportunity to speak with you.

 

FAQs For Adult Speech Therapy

• Do you treat adults?

• Do you have a specific space dedicated to adult speech therapy?

• What conditions and disorders do you treat in adults using speech-language therapy?

 

FAQs For Caregivers And Parents 

• Are parents allowed to sit in on speech language therapy sessions with children?

• Do you have a waiting list for speech therapy?

• What makes your therapists qualified to offer speech therapy or language therapy to children?

• What adaptive equipment are you able to use in your office?

• What are some of the tools your speech therapists may use in a session?

• What are some of the techniques that your therapists may use in pediatric speech-language therapy sessions?

• Can I see photos of your indoor speech-language office?

• What are the underlying causes of the need for speech-language therapy? What conditions do you treat? 

 

FAQs For Adult Speech Therapy

Do you treat adults?

Yes. Although many of our clients are infants or school-aged children, we also see many adult clients as well. Adults are paired only with those therapists who have specific experience in working with adults.

 

Do you have a specific space dedicated to adult speech therapy?

Yes. Our office in Haskell, New Jersey, has a specific area for adult speech therapy sessions.

 

What conditions and disorders do you treat using speech-language therapy for adults?

The adults who come to our office for speech therapy are typically experiencing speech and language issues related to illness, disease, or age. These conditions can lead to slurred speech, difficulty with articulation, expression, and intelligibility, as well as cognitive-communication deficits.

 

Here are a few examples of the types of conditions that may lead an adult to need our speech-language pathology assistance:

​

• Stroke

• Traumatic brain injury

• Parkinson's disease

• ALS (Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease)

• Multiple sclerosis

• Head and neck cancer

• Voice disorders (such as those caused by vocal nodules, polyps, or paralysis of the vocal cords)

• Cognitive-communication disorders (such as brain injury, dementia, or other neurological conditions)

• Stuttering

• Accent modification

 

FAQs For Caregivers And Parents

 

What makes your therapists qualified to offer speech therapy or language therapy to children?

Each of our therapists is carefully chosen to bring a unique skill set to our practice. That said, all of our therapists are experienced in working with children, and they are truly passionate about the work they do to improve people’s lives. They have formal training at excellent colleges and universities as well.

We welcome you to learn more about the individual therapists at our practice by calling or viewing the professional biographies of our speech therapists.

​

Are parents allowed to sit in on speech-language therapy sessions?

Absolutely! In fact, we love when parents sit in on sessions with our speech therapists. Parents and caregivers play an integral role in children’s development. We welcome questions and we love when parents can learn from our techniques.

​

Do you have a waiting list for speech or language therapy?
Our availability changes throughout the year. We will do our best to accommodate your schedule while developing a treatment plan for your child’s unique needs.

​

What adaptive equipment are you able to use in your office?

To facilitate better communication, we sometimes use adaptive equipment in our office. Examples include:

​

• Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) devices: These are devices that can help individuals who have difficulty with verbal communication. Examples include speech generating devices, picture communication boards, and communication apps on tablets or smartphones.

• Articulation and phonology apps: There are many apps available for smartphones and tablets that can help children practice their articulation and phonology skills. These apps can include activities such as word repetition, sentence formation, and articulation games.

• Oral motor tools: These tools are used to improve the strength and coordination of the muscles in the mouth, tongue, and jaw. Examples include chewing tubes, tongue depressors, and bite blocks.

• Adapted writing tools: Children who have difficulty with fine motor skills may benefit from adapted writing tools such as pencil grips, weighted pencils, or electronic writing aids.

• Visual supports: Visual supports can help children with communication difficulties by providing additional visual cues and support. Examples include picture schedules, visual timers, and communication boards.

• Voice amplifiers: A voice amplifier can be used to help a child increase their volume and projection when speaking. It can be especially helpful for children with a soft or hoarse voice.

• Digital recorders: A digital recorder can be used to record a child's speech and then play it back for them to listen to and analyze. This can be a useful tool for helping a child become more aware of their speech patterns and pronunciation.
   

What are some of the tools your speech therapists may use in a pediatric speech session?

What our speech therapists call "tools," a child may call "toys." Here are a few of the types of tools we may use during a pediatric speech therapy session:

​

• Articulation Cards and Worksheets: To practice specific speech sounds and help children with articulation disorders.

• Play materials: To engage children in speech and language activities (puzzles, blocks, games, sensory bins, bubbles and play food). We always ask what our pediatric patients are “into” so that we can make play fun!

• Books: To help children develop language skills, such as vocabulary, grammar, and comprehension. We love to read!

• Computer software: We may occasionally use interactive computer games to help improve speech and language skills.

• Mirror: to help children how their mouth moves when producing sounds; we also fog the mirror when working on breath control and certain sounds.

• Recordings: To help children practice and evaluate their speech and language skills, to facilitate active listening.

• Oral-motor tools: To help develop lip and tongue movement, oral coordination, and strength, our therapists might use. straws, chewy tubes, and oral-motor exercises.

• Picture cards: To help children learn new vocabulary, categorize items, and understand concepts.

 

What are some of the techniques that your therapists may use in pediatric speech-language therapy sessions?

Our therapists are trained in a number of techniques to help children improve their communication skills. Here are just a few of the speech therapy and language techniques our therapists may use during a session.

​

• Articulation therapy: Our therapists can focus on improving a child's ability to correctly produce sounds and syllables. This can increase a child’s intelligibility and lead to improvements in behavior. 

• Play-based therapy: We always love to play. Our therapists use toys and games to engage children in therapy and build communication skills in an organic, entertaining way. Children learn best when they are having fun!

• Language intervention: Our therapists can build on a child's ability to understand and use language appropriately. Children who can express themselves, and who can understand others, may see an improved quality of life.

• Fluency therapy: Sometimes, children struggle to “get the words out.” Our therapists can help children with stuttering or other fluency disorders.

• Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC): Our therapists know how to use tools like pictures, symbols, and communication devices to help children with communication difficulties. We are also able to work with parents to improve communication using AAC tools.

• Oral motor therapy:  Our therapists know how to address issues related to the strength and coordination of the muscles used for speech and swallowing.

• Social communication therapy: Our therapists help children understand and use social cues and appropriate communication in social situations. We also offer pragmatic playgroups to support children in their social and communication development.

• Cognitive-communication therapy: Our therapists can work with communication issues related to cognitive impairments, such as memory, attention, and problem-solving. These kinds of cognitive skills are essential to communication and speech-language development.

• Sensory integration therapy: By working with children to improve sensory processing difficulties and integrate sensory information more effectively, we can help improve communication skills in real-life situations.

 

Conditions Treated By Pediatric Speech Therapy

Speech and language issues can arise from numerous conditions during childhood and beyond.

Let’s take a look at some of the underlying conditions that can cause speech and language delays and challenges.

 

Physiological And Oral-Motor Disorders And Conditions Treated By Speech-Language Pathologists

Here are a few of the physical and physiological conditions that our therapists can treat:

 

• Tongue thrust: When the tongue pushes forward against the front teeth while swallowing, patterns of movement can lead to impaired speech sound production.

• Weak oral muscles: Muscle weakness can make it difficult for a child to produce certain speech sounds;  weak muscles may also impact chewing and swallowing.

• Dysarthria: When muscles used for speech are week or even paralyzed, speech can be slow or difficult to understand.

• Apraxia of speech: When a child has difficulty planning and coordinating movements necessary for speech, we call this apraxia. Apraxia is very common and treatable; our experienced speech therapists can help childhood apraxia conditions.

• Cleft palate or lip: Children with this structural condition often have their speech affected by the formation of the roof of the mouth or lip. Our therapists can work with children both before and after cleft-palate or lip surgery. 

• Orofacial myofunctional disorders: Our therapists are experienced in dealing with issues that arise from the muscles and functions of the mouth and face, including tongue placement and swallowing patterns.

• Tethered oral tissues (such as tongue-tie or lip-tie): Our speech (and feeding) therapists have seen their share of tongue and lip ties (where the tongue or lip is attached too tightly to the mouth). We know how to develop a treatment plan that can help with feeding, swallowing, and speaking (articulation and intelligibility).

• Bruxism (teeth grinding) or clenching: Speech that has been impacted by wear and tear on the teeth can see improvement through our therapist’s assistance.

• Oral hypersensitivity or hyposensitivity: Sometimes, the mouth is overly sensitive or under-sensitive to touch or texture, which can impact feeding and speech. Our therapists are attuned to children’s needs, and we can help offer practical solutions for both hypersensitivity and hyposensitivity.

 

Behavioral Conditions That Can Be Treated by Speech Therapy (SLP)

For some children, the underlying causes of speech and language challenges stems from behavioral or neurological conditions.

​

Here are a few of the conditions that our experienced speech therapists are able to treat:

​

• Selective mutism: When child consistently refuses to speak in certain social situations (even though they are capable of speaking in other settings), speech interventions may be needed. Our therapists have practical skills in working with selective mutism, and we love offering parents and caregivers practical tools and strategies to improve communication overall.

• Autism spectrum disorder (ASD): When a child is “on the spectrum,” speech difficulties can impact communication, social interaction, and behavior. Our speech therapists are experienced in working with children with ASD, and we love offering viable techniques to mitigate autism-related challenges.

• Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD): Children with ADHD may find it difficult to focus and pay attention, which can lead to speech and language delays. Our speech therapists not only keep children with ADHD engaged (through play therapy, and other techniques), but we also help children expand their attention spans with our whole-child approach to therapy.

• Anxiety or depression: Mental health conditions can affect children as strongly as they affect adults. Sometimes, mental health conditions can affect speech and language development, in the short- or long-term. In either case, our caring speech therapists are ready to help.

• Reactive attachment disorder: Sometimes a child will have difficulty forming healthy attachments with caregivers. This can impact language development and social communication. Our speech therapists can help with communication (and also development).

• Developmental delays: Children who are delayed in meeting milestones related to speech and language development may become frustrated. This can impact behavior and social communication. Our therapists work with children who are faced with developmental delays in order to improve speech, language, and communication.

• Down syndrome: Children with Down syndrome often have challenges with speech and language due to a variety of factors such as low muscle tone, hearing loss, and cognitive delays. Speech therapy can help address these challenges through various techniques and exercises tailored to the individual's specific needs and abilities.

 

Audiological Disorders And Conditions That Can Benefit From Speech Therapy

Hearing loss can stem from many causes. Our therapists are able to treat many types of communication issues that stem from hearing loss.

​

Here are a few conditions that can lead to hearing loss and communication challenges:

​

• Ear infections: Children who suffer from repeated ear infections may have hearing loss, and this can lead to communication issues. We can help children recover from the damage that is done by hearing loss from ear infections.

• Auditory processing disorder: When the brain has difficulty processing auditory information, children may experience a negative impact on their ability to understand speech and language. This can present as difficulty following directions or difficulty focusing or comprehending in noisy situations. Our therapists have lots of experience in auditory processing disorders, especially in children.

• Sensorineural hearing loss: Damage to the hair cells in the inner ear or to the auditory nerve can cause hearing loss. Damage can be congenital or acquired, and it can range from mild to profound. Our therapists regularly see children and adults with hearing loss.

• Conductive hearing loss: When sound waves are not able to pass through the outer or middle ear due to blockage or damage, a person may suffer hearing loss. Conductive hearing loss can also be caused by conditions such as ear infections, fluid in the middle ear, or malformation of the ear. Our therapists are trained in working with hearing loss stemming from many causes; we are ready to help.

• Tinnitus: This is a condition in which a child experiences ringing or buzzing in the ears. It can be caused by exposure to loud noise, ear infections, or other conditions. Our therapists can offer strategies to mitigate communication problems stemming from tinnitus.

• Hyperacusis: More than a normal sensitivity, hyperacusis is a condition in which a child is extremely sensitive to loud sounds and may experience discomfort or pain in response to normal levels of sound. Our therapists can recommend strategies to decrease discomfort and improve communication skills.

• Auditory neuropathy spectrum disorder: Sometimes, hearing loss occurs due to a problem with the transmission of sound from the inner ear to the brain, resulting in difficulty understanding speech, especially in noisy environments. Our therapists are trained in helping children and adults thrive in real-world situations.

 

Schedule A Speech-Language Evaluation At All 4 Therapy LLC

To learn more about how to schedule a speech-language session at our Haskell (Wanaque) office, please reach out to us by phone or email.

​

We appreciate your interest and look forward to hearing from you!