Our Approach To Speech Therapy: Holistic/Total Care Within the Treatment Room
Here at Resonate, we are driven to spread meaningful, useful, and neurodiversity affirming information about our services with our community. Whether you’re entirely new to speech therapy or it’s a familiar concept, we know that there can be many questions and feelings that arise when you or a loved one are seeking support from a speech therapist. This post is essentially an open conversation about our therapeutic approach- we interviewed our Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) and our speech therapy clinical fellow to share what speech therapy looks like at Resonate!
Question #1: “What is your approach to speech therapy?”
Our speech clinical fellow, Reid, answered, “My approach to speech therapy is client-focused. This means considering client interests, working closely with families, evaluating cultural considerations, and providing an open therapeutic relationship to encourage collaboration and success towards goals. Within this focus, I care about holistic communication. I prioritize fostering a neurodiversity affirming approach, which includes communication of all types (speaking, AAC, body language, gestures, ASL etc.) that feel affirming to my clients.”
Client-focused care entails quite a few considerations, so what might this look like in practice? This could be engaging a client in intrinsically motivating games with special interests. This could be following the client’s lead and modeling preferred forms of communication. We also educate families and loved ones to join in on our approach! Our knowledgeable and empathetic therapists are always ready to hear the thoughts and concerns of the people closest to our clients. In short, our therapists are on the side of the client, and what will truly benefit their ability to live whole, authentic lives. Our team is always ready to advocate for client autonomy, while engaging with each person with the respect and dignity they deserve.
Question #2: “How do you go about speech assessments?”
Our SLP, Sarah, responded, “First, I want to know what the client’s concerns are. If there are loved ones involved in treatment, I want to know their concerns as well! That leads me in my initial direction, but I always go into assessments with an open mind and prepared to look at everything. As I observe and talk to clients and families, I dial in. I tend to go about sessions in a relaxed and play-based manner. I focus on observing, building my connection and rapport with the client, and engaging in conversations with the client. My assessment is always ongoing as I get to know the client and as they become more comfortable with me.”
What does it mean to build rapport, and why do we focus on this? Building rapport means building a trusting, empathetic relationship. We start with curiosity and respect towards each client and their interests, and this allows us to build a safe therapeutic relationship. At Resonate, we treasure the ability to make meaningful therapeutic connections with our clients. Research shows that high levels of rapport with a therapist, whether the client is a child or an adult, result in increased positive client outcomes. We never build trust to later abandon it in the name of skill building- trust IS the intervention and priority.
Question #3: “I have a child in speech therapy services. What can I do at home to support progress towards my child’s speech goals?”
Reid replied, “One of the clinical foundations at Resonate is incorporating collaboration into our services. This includes brainstorming with parents about ways to create opportunities to practice goals at home. This can be modeling language, utilizing AAC devices, using compensatory strategies, and articulation practice. Our goal is generalization, so we will always collaborate.”
What does generalization mean for your child? Well, generalization is the ability to use acquired skills across a variety of settings. This includes being able to communicate with you, their peers, and new people. This also includes being able to communicate at the park, at their favorite places, and at home, not just in our clinic. To do this, our SLPs take the time to create naturalistic opportunities in session and educate families to carry over these skills outside the session. Generalization is important to us regardless of the client’s age. If you’re an adult in services with us, we care about how speech therapy services are functioning for you, both in and out of the treatment room!
Question #4: “How does speech therapy help my child reach their goals?”
Sarah responded, “I think speech-language therapy helps families to see what all can impact speech and how to support their child holistically, not just through talking. Therapy not only gives direct treatment to the child; it also provides caregivers with tools and strategies to use in everyday settings outside of therapy. Therapy at Resonate also creates a space for each client to be themselves authentically, which promotes optimal success towards goals.”
Holistic communication can be so impacted by a variety of factors, including but not limited to regulation, life circumstances (met/unmet essential needs), trauma history, and more. At Resonate, we focus heavily on the emotional regulation of our clients and follow their lead on what feels best to them in each moment. It is so much harder to work on challenges when we are feeling dysregulated. To us, articulation may come naturally: we don’t have to think about where our tongue is to say ‘L’ words. However, for our clients, that may take much more effort. To help our clients reach their goals, we focus first on making sure they are regulated and following their lead on communication.
At Resonate, we welcome everyone, as well as questions about our services. If you have any questions regarding speech therapy, we would love to hear from you. Our team would be happy to provide any insights on beginning speech therapy with us- if we can’t help, we’ll connect you with someone who can. Welcome to our community, and we hope to see you in our clinic soon! Feel free to email us at staff@resonatemt.com, fill out one of our website forms, or text/call us at 719-354-0893.
