Understanding Speech Therapy

Speech therapy is the more commonly used abbreviation for the longer term speech and language therapy, carried out through the work of a speech and language therapist.

As the fuller name suggests a speech and language therapist is not only interested in the speech sounds used by a child/young person or adult, but also the language systems used by that person.

A speech and language therapist working with Children and Young People would want to assess and understand the persons;

• Attention and listening/concentration skills
• Play and imagination skills
• Understanding of language concepts – e.g do they know concepts such as big, little, on, under, above, below, tall, short.
• Understanding of language structures – can they follow and understand words in sentences “pick up the big apple”.
• Expression of language concepts – can the person use concepts such as big, little on, under appropriately?
• Expression of words in sentences – are the order of words in sentences correctly used?
• Social communication and understanding of social rules; can the person take turns in conversation, understand humour, repair conversations.
• Use of language – can they use language to greet, to comment, to request, to refuse, to question?
• Behaviour; often many people present agitated and frustrated behaviour patterns as a result of not being able to communicate their needs effectively.

How do you train to provide Speech Therapy?

A speech and language therapist carries out a degree course in Speech and Language therapy at one of only 10 Universities offering the course throughout the U.K.

Most courses run over four years and two or three Universities offer a post grad entrance following a previous degree.

Candidates require A levels to enter onto the course, although some equivalent qualifications may be accepted.

The course itself Is very intensive, running across five days a week, plus placement. Throughout the course training speech therapists should gain lots of practical experience of Paediatrics and adults through their weekly or block placements.

When qualifying a newly qualified practitioner must meet the Royal CollegeSpeech and Language therapists Competencies with the first year or two of practicing.

Speech therapy is registered under;

• The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapy (RCSLT) – who provides each qualified therapist a certificate to practice.
• The Health Professions Council (HPC) – who register all speech and language therapists to enable them to practice.
• Association of Speech and Language Therapists in Independent Practice (ASLTIP) – who provide a support forum for speech therapists working in the Independent Sector.

Where you will come across Speech Therapy?

Speech therapists can work for the National Health Servicesor Independently as part of the therapists own practice, or where they are employed directly by a school/care setting.

Fixing a Lisp Speech Disorder Fast

When you speak out loud, you are overcome by fear all of the time. You focus on just trying to get the words to come out clear and slush free, but you know those s sounds just don’t sound right. Then you hear people snicker and giggle around you because they think it is kind of funny. Little do they know how much this upsets you, little do they know that you’re constantly thinking about your lisp speech. You try so hard to speak clearly, but you can’t do it. All you want is for your lisp to go away so you can be normal.

A lisp speech disorder is a big speech impediment that people all over the world have. If you have a lisp speech, then you know that life can be very difficult when talking, especially in public. It’s really hard meeting new people wherever it may be because you are nervous of your lisp, and when this happens, your lisp get worse. All you want is peace with the way you speak so that you can talk to people without being worried all the time.

The good news is that there are steps that you can in the comfort of your own home to get rid of that lisp. For example, reading a script out loud can help to weaken your lisp. When you read out loud, you start to practice how words should roll off of your tongue. The more you read, the better your speech will become. Another way to overcome lisp is to not make direct eye contact with the person you are talking to. When you make direct eye contact, you get nervous so look at the bridge of their nose and you will be able to focus on your words.