Why Holistic Speech, Language and Feeding Therapy?

 

In order to address the complexity of communication and feeding disorders, my holistic therapeutic approach combines traditional therapy exercises alongside breath-work, and mindfulness and meditation techniques to form a unique, client-centered therapy experience. By acknowledging that we are all energetic beings, processing a multitude of emotions on a daily basis, we can begin to better understand the communication disorder at a deeper level and therapy can take on a more profound role. 

 

Speech, language and feeding disorders can be brought on or exacerbated by environmental factors (e.g., toxicity, nutritional deficiency, etc.), social emotional issues, pre-existing medical conditions (e.g., autism, ADHD, voice disorders, head and neck cancer, speech and language delays, language learning disabilities, etc.) and/or traumatic events, to name a few. Therefore, holistic speech-language therapy targets not just the disorder, but also the social, emotional and energetic components that result from it. For this reason, holistic speech-language therapy is unique and compassionate and never a one-size-fits-all approach. 

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So what exactly does a holistic speech-language therapy session look like? 

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This unique, naturalistic approach is specifically designed to be client- and caregiver-centered. Parents and caregivers are often under-acknowledged in large institutional settings (e.g., hospitals, rehabilitation centers, schools, etc.) due to time and space constraints. Holistic speech-language therapy sessions are online and as such, completely individualized and family-centered. Virtual sessions allow for greater access to parents and caregivers who are the client's closest advocates and truly an asset to the speech-language pathologist. Each teletherapy session will be uniquely set up so that both the client and the caregiver have the space to feel listened to and be a part of creating a therapeutic plan that works for them. 

 

In addition to the conventional exercises that a traditional speech therapy session provides,  holistic speech and language teletherapy also addresses the importance of the breath through mindfulness, visualization and meditation techniques when applicable.  Holistic speech-language therapy also aims to increase the client’s social-emotional awareness.  

 

So often we look to speech-language therapy as a method to get clients to produce more sounds, words and sentences. However, the sounds that result in meaningful communication have their foundations beyond the physical. Speech, language and feeding are deeply impacted by the quality of our breath, the coordination of our muscles and  our ability to consciously connect to others. A holistic and integrative approach to speech-language therapy means recognizing that when it comes to treating speech, language and feeding disorders, the visible symptoms are just the tip of the iceberg.