Speech therapy services are a type of healthcare service that assesses and treats a range of speech-related problems, issues with swallowing, or cognitive impairments that impact speech and communication.
Here are six of the more common health conditions that benefit from speech therapy.
Alzheimer’s
Alzheimer’s affects around 6.5 million Americans. Speech therapists help in two key ways. First, your mom’s speech therapist can help your mom communicate her feelings and needs with others. Her therapist will show her ways to gesture or draw pictures to communicate as she becomes unable to speak.
Second, your mom’s throat muscles will weaken in time, which makes it hard for her to swallow. Aspiration pneumonia is a problem in the late stages of the disease. Her therapist can help her with throat exercises that help lower the risk of choking or being unable to swallow for as long as possible.
Aphasia
Aphasia is a condition where the area of the brain that controls speech and language comprehension deteriorates and impacts speech, comprehension, reading, and writing. A speech therapist is an important tool in maintaining communication between your dad and other people.
Hearing Loss
After losing her hearing, your mom will find it very hard to communicate with others because she cannot hear them. She’s going to have to learn alternative ways to talk to others, such as writing notes, sign language, and reading lips. She may need to learn how to use closed-captioning devices.
Stroke
After a stroke, your mom’s brain will need time and help to recover some or all of her past abilities. A speech therapist helps her rebuild her speech skills and also helps her with swallowing and control of the muscles in the neck and throat.
Throat Cancer
Throat cancer is pretty rare, but it can happen and affects about 1 in every 830 women each year. If your mom develops cancer in her throat, she’ll likely be referred to a speech therapist, especially if the cancer affected her vocal cords. She may have to learn how to breathe and speak through a stoma.
Traumatic Brain Injury
A traumatic brain injury that damages areas of the brain that handle speech will affect speech and language comprehension. It can happen in a car accident or if your mom falls and hits her head. Depending on the severity of the TBI, the difficulty with speech and language comprehension may be temporary or permanent.
A speech therapist can help your mom work on exercises to regain speech skills, focusing on enunciation and working from there to fluidity, comprehension, and language processing skills as others respond to her.
When your mom would benefit from sessions with a speech therapist, arrange an introductory appointment. You’ll learn more about speech therapy. Plus, your mom’s needs will be assessed to determine how often she should attend speech therapy sessions.
Sources: https://www.cancer.org/cancer/laryngeal-and-hypopharyngeal-cancer/about/key-statistics.html
If you or a family member need to hire Speech Therapy Services in Manhasset NY or the surrounding areas, contact the caring professionals at Star Multi Care Services today at (631)956-8835. We are the Right Choice for Home Health Care Services!
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