What Should Parents Know About Speech Therapy For Autism?
by Julia Gregory
If your child has recently been diagnosed with autism, you're likely already well aware of the benefits that can come from early intervention. One of the most important therapies is often speech therapy, which can help your child exercise the neural pathways that help them speak. However, learning to speak (or to speak more clearly) isn't the only benefit that can come from speech therapy. Learn more about some of the ways in which speech pathologists can help children with autism, as well as what services you may wish to pursue to improve your own child's development.
What Can Speech Pathology Do?
Autism manifests differently in everyone, and not every autistic child's needs are the same. Some individuals with autism can't speak at all, while others have speech impediments that can make them difficult to understand. Still, others may have no problem speaking or being understood but may struggle to understand others' non-verbal communication and language cues that can be an important part of having a conversation.
Speech pathologists also work with autistic individuals who may have difficulties with eating and swallowing. In some cases, the muscles that control chewing and swallowing (which are also the same muscles used to form and project words) can be underdeveloped, which can increase the risk of choking. Speech therapy can help strengthen these muscles and reduce the risk of self-feeding.
What Should You Expect From Your First Speech Therapy Appointment?
During your child's first appointment with a speech pathologist, he or she will be evaluated to see what speech- and language-related issues (or feeding issues) they may be dealing with. As the parent, you'll also be asked a series of questions that can help the pathologist gauge what services will be most beneficial. Some of the skills the pathologist may work on with your child include the following:
- Matching pictures of objects with words while saying them (or hearing them) aloud
- Doing exercises that can strengthen the lips, palate, jaw, and neck
- Matching facial expressions with the emotions they're conveying
- Listening to and responding to questions
- Using electronic speech apps to communicate without speaking
As therapy continues, the speech pathologist will continue building on these basic skills with your child while re-evaluating your child's progress and continued needs. In many cases, strengthening certain skills can reveal deficits in others, so maintaining consistency with your child's appointments can be the key to ongoing, sustained progress.
Contact a clinic like Eastern Carolina Ear Nose & Throat-Head to learn more.
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About Me
The decision to move one of my parents into assisted living was one of the most difficult I have ever made. I had extreme feelings of guilt that led to me being at the facility with my parent practically around the clock. It took a few months before I realized that I could not let my own life fall apart from the guilt I was feeling. I also learned that my parent was fine without me constantly hovering around. Since that time, I have had several friends express similar feelings of guilt. I started this blog to help others in the same situation understand not only their feelings about assisted living, but those of their parents.