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What does a speech pathologist do to help me?

Have you ever considered using the services of a speech pathologist? You might have thought about it before—or maybe you’ve even visited a speech clinic in the past. If you haven’t, however, this article will explain precisely what it is that speech pathologists do. To put it simply, these speech therapy specialists help alleviate and eliminate problems associated with speech and communication difficulties.

To be be less laconic, a speech language pathologist is trained to work with patients in assessing, targeting, improving, and eliminating difficulties, disorders, and conditions that are linked to speech and communication—in other words, they engage in speech therapy. All kinds of difficulties are targeted, including stuttering, articulating words the wrong way—even if this problem is only occasional and not tied to a specific disorder—and even rhotacism (that is, when a patient has difficulty—or simply cannot pronounce—the “R” sound). They also deal with patients who have aphasia and similar disorders, whose issues prevent them from processing speech, or properly associating it with sound—to the point that, though they can hear words just fine, they cannot interpret them as words.

All of these disorders, and more, fall under the purview of speech-language pathologists, who have all the tools they need—from effective speech therapy techniques to extensive education to state-of-the-art equipment—to help treat and, in many cases, even eliminate them. A speech language specialist will also help alleviate and solve difficulties associated with drinking, eating, swallowing, and using their mouth and vocal cords in other ways not related directly to speech.

Children also often attend sessions with a speech-language pathologist because they need to overcome developmental speech delay that inhibit them from learning speech and literacy at the same rate as their peers. Indeed, speech-language pathology is practiced in all kinds of contexts, including clinical settings, educational institutions, rehabilitation centres, private residences, and residences for people of old age.

Other areas of specialisation include motor speech disorders, difficulties associated with pronunciation, challenges with communication in social contexts, and the speech-related rehabilitation of individuals who have developed strokes, aphasia, and other disorders or conditions that affect speech and communication.

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Should I sign up for the services of a speech pathologist?

As with other health issues, prevention is key. Of course, it’s never too late to enroll yourself, your child, or another loved one up for courses with a speech therapy specialist. However, the earlier you spot the difficulties, the easier it will be for that specialist to help the person to deal with it and try to improve the problem as much as possible. This is especially important in the case of severe communication disorders, with effects that are strong enough to last throughout the whole life of an individual.

​Even mild disorders or difficulties can cause significant difficulties in life, even when the person is doing something as simple as getting dressed for a night out, moving to a new home in another area, or buying a meal at a restaurant. These kinds of difficulties can have an effect in all kinds of contexts, including at work, at home, at school, when travelling, or in other social situations.

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What should I do if I need the services of a speech-language pathologist?

If you’re looking for a speech-language pathologist, then you can easily make an appointment with one of our professionals, either by filling out our form so that you can immediately schedule an appointment, or by calling us at 647-696-2556. We are a client-first clinic, dedicated to put the needs of our patients ahead of everything else. We are also an accessible clinic: you can send us an e-mail to make an appointment, at any time of day or night, and you can always call us by phone, during working hours, at 647-696-2556.

If you would like to make an appointment with a registered speech language specialist on our staff, you also don’t need to a referral from a family doctor. You can just make the appointment, by phone or by e-mail, and you’re good to go. Appointments can be scheduled for the daytime, evening, or weekend depending on when our specialists are available to tend to your needs.

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Why should I choose this clinic in particular?

A registered speech-language pathologist from the clinic will help you, your child, or your spouse with whatever issue may be developing, whether it’s stuttering, literacy skills, speech-language delay, and voice recovery following accidents or major surgery. The speech specialists are also qualified to deal with speech and language problems relating to Asperger Syndrome and other autism-spectrum disorders, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), and developmental speech delay. 

Each speech specialist who works with us is very qualified and perfectly professional. They are all graduates from the Canadian Accredited Programs, as recognized by CASLPO, the College of Audiologists and Speech-Language Pathologists of Ontario; they have consequently received a valid certificate of registration with the CASLPO. As part of their education, they have completed 14 or more clinical hours under the supervision of a fully accredited speech-language pathologist; these hours need to have been completed, in a setting related to communication disorders, and in a educational, paid, or volunteer capacity. They have also passed either the Police Record Check (PRC) or Vulnerable Sector Screening (VSS). In other words, our highly trained staff members in speech therapy Toronto are always ready to give you the best possible tools so that you can communicate better and flourish in social contexts.

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How can a speech therapy specialist help people in everyday life?

Speech disorders occur all the time in everyday life, and in fact might be even more common than you initially thought. For example, they are associated with different conditions on the autism spectrum, including Asperger Syndrome, and cerebral palsy. In particular, children who are born with these kinds of difficulties will naturally have more difficulty relating to others—and the problem can get worse if it is not treated early enough by a registered speech pathologist.

Further, people who have conditions that affect their speech—such as Parkinson’s disease and strokes—can also benefit from working with a speech pathologist using techniques for speech therapy, Toronto. Perhaps most evidently, speech language pathologists are well-equipped to deal with the problems of those who are deaf, whether they were born deaf or developed this condition later in life. This is particularly important because hearing problems can often lead to difficulties in literacy skills. 

Another area in which a speech-language pathologist can play a role is in terms of occupational speech therapy. Just as a hairdresser may develop sicknesses related to constantly being in the same room as multiple chemical substances, a teacher may develop difficulties with his or her voice, no doubt the result of speaking with their students every day, often at a louder tone than they would employ in everyday competition. The same can be said for politicians, motivational speakers, foreign-language interpreters, actors (of TV and film as well as theater), singers, sports commentators, and other performers, including MCs, hosts, and even magicians. 

Finally, speech-language pathologists have a role in the field of literacy problems. Often, literacy problems are not due to lack of education or learning disabilities, but instead due to difficulties in associating and process both spoken and written language.

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Causes of speech disorders

There are many reasons for which speech and communication disorders and conditions develop in the general population. Of course, for many people, these conditions are the cause of their having been premature babies born before their due date. Other causes for these issues include autism-spectrum disorders, cleft palate, nodules on the vocal cords, deafness or other hearing disorders, and degenerative neurological diseases, including Parkinson’s. Brain damage is another cause associated with speech disorders, as is Moyamoya disease, a condition which in some cases has caused patients to lose their ability to process music as well as speech.

Communication disorders can be congenital (present from birth), which is the case if they have developed as the result of premature birth, low birth weight, low oxygen to the brain during birth, or other complications arising from labor and delivery. However, they may also develop as a result of a traumatic event, as in the case of brain damage, or as the consequence of a disease, as is the case with Parkinson’s.

Consequences of living with speech disorders

It is self-evident that people who have speech difficulties will have more problems with communicating with others, particularly with their peers, coworkers, and higher-ups as well. However, there is also a high correlation between difficulties in communication and lowered mental health conditions. This is particularly alarming when considers that marginalized populations—such as First Nations people, the children of whom are much more likely to have hearing problems than their non-Indigenous counterparts.

These kinds of difficulties can affect not only speech and verbal or oral communication, but written communication as well. In other words, because the patient has difficulty processing sentences or putting them together verbally, he or she finds that it affects his or her ability to read words—or, if the patient is still a child, his or her ability to learn how to read words and put them in sentences. As a result of all this, patients with disorders related to speech and language also have problems in communicating with their peers, as well as developing interpersonal relationships, in many cases.

In the long term, these kinds of difficulties and disabilities can cause poor grades and achievement in school, mental-health issues, lowered self-esteem and reduced sense of self, and a reduction in the available opportunities in the job market. When these patients are deprived of the appropriate care they need to rectify their problems, they will also experience emotional problems because of their disorders, including frustration, anger—going up to rage in some cases—embarrassment among other peoples, or even grief at the prospect of losing their hearing and processing capabilities. They have difficulty communicating their needs, tastes and dislikes to others, which can result in their feeling like their emotions are being ignored or disregarded.

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