Speech Therapy

Indigo Therapy offers a range of expert services tailored to address various speech and language needs. Our team provides comprehensive evaluations, assessments, and diagnoses, alongside evidence-based treatment for issues such as articulation/phonology, fluency/stuttering, voice, expressive and receptive language, social communication, and feeding difficulties. We are committed to delivering top-quality care by referencing guidelines from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and the South Carolina Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Additionally, we specialize in supporting children with Autism Spectrum Disorder through targeted early intervention to enhance their verbal, nonverbal, and social communication skills.

Translation Services include - English - Arabic - Spanish

Indigo Therapy provides translation services for individuals whose primary language is not English, ensuring effective caregiver engagement and accurate documentation. If you require an interpreter or need documents translated into your preferred language, please notify your supervising clinician. We offer translation services through internal staff or third-party providers, as needed. We are committed to accommodating translation requests for any language to support your communication needs.

Pragmatic Language : 

Pragmatic language encompasses the social aspects of communication and non-communication tasks. Difficulties in this area can present in several ways, including: inconsistent eye contact, not responding to his/her name, not using gestures (hello/goodbye), interacting alone rather than with peers, making automatic comments, making jokes/idioms/abstract concepts that are more literal.

Receptive and Expressive Language:

Expressive and receptive language encompasses both the ability to use and understand words. Difficulties in these areas may indicate a need to consult with a speech-language pathologist and should be discussed with your child’s pediatrician. Signs of potential language issues include: delayed play skills, decreased use of facial expressions, word retrieval difficulties, decreased production of sounds, decreased babbling, not understanding simple directions/commands, saying only a few words, misnaming items, difficulties answering “wh” questions (who, what, where, why) or yes/no questions, or repeating words/phrases immediately or later in the day.

Voice:

Voice involves the quality and perception of how we sound when we speak. Difficulties in this area can affect how the voice is heard and may include: a hoarse, breathy, or scratchy voice. The voice may also sound nasally as the sound is coming from the individual’s nose. The sounds /m/, /n/, and /ing/ are the only speech sounds that should come from the nose.

Fluency:

Fluency is also known as “stuttering”. It is how well the speech process flows. Some disfluencies are typical, however disruption in the flow of speech can impact communication. If you feel like your child’s fluency is impacting their communication or if your child has negative feelings towards speaking/communicating due to their disfluencies, an evaluation with a speech language pathologist is recommended. 

Feeding and Swallowing:

Feeding and swallowing difficulties can sometimes be mistaken for general fussiness or picky eating. However, these issues may be more than just preferences and could indicate underlying challenges. Possible signs of feeding or swallowing difficulties include: refusing to eat, eating only a little bit for a certain period of time, constant or excessive drooling and/or coughing, sensitivity to textures (how the food feels) and/or temperatures (how hot or cold the food is).

Procedural Skills:

In speech therapy, the procedures and techniques are tailored to each child’s specific needs, taking into account their diagnosis, age, and individual factors that contribute to their success. Treatment approaches are flexible and may be adjusted by the clinician to best meet the child’s evolving needs.

The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) and other reputable sources provide additional procedures and resources to ensure the most effective care. Evidence-based practices guide the therapy process, helping to determine the most appropriate strategies to support the child’s growth and development. This approach ensures that treatment is both effective and responsive to the child’s progress and changing needs.

Language:

Enhanced Milieu Approach

This naturalistic strategy leverages your child’s spontaneous communication attempts during everyday activities and play. By responding to and modeling language based on these attempts, caregivers and speech-language pathologists (SLPs) can create meaningful opportunities for the child to learn and practice new words and language structures in real-life contexts.

Child-Led/Directed Play

In this approach, the child takes the lead in play activities, allowing them to direct the play routines. This child-centered method creates a naturalistic environment where language development can flourish. By following the child's interests, the approach supports engagement and language growth in a comfortable, motivating setting.

Dialogic Reading

Dialogic reading involves interactive reading sessions where an adult and child engage in a dialogue about the book. This method includes:

  • Asking Questions: Prompting the child with questions about the story.

  • Building on Answers: Expanding on the child’s responses to enhance understanding and vocabulary. This approach fosters new vocabulary acquisition, introduces story structure, improves verbal fluency, and develops storytelling skills by making reading a more interactive and engaging experience.

Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC)

AAC encompasses various methods to support communication, including:

  • Gestures and Signs: Non-verbal ways to convey meaning.

  • Low-Tech Communication Boards: Tools with pictures or symbols for communication.

  • High-Tech Devices: Electronic devices designed to assist with speech. AAC is used to complement verbal speech, not replace it. It provides additional ways for individuals to communicate and supports the development of their verbal language skills.

These approaches are designed to enhance communication skills in a supportive and effective manner, catering to individual needs and promoting overall language development.

Articulation:

The Cycles Approach is designed to address phonological disorders by focusing on specific patterns of sound errors over time. Treatment cycles target one phonological pattern at a time, with each cycle lasting several weeks before moving on to the next pattern. This method helps improve speech intelligibility by systematically addressing and remediating patterns of sound errors.

Minimal Pairs

Minimal Pairs therapy involves using pairs of words that differ by only one sound (e.g., "pat" and "bat"). This approach helps children recognize and produce contrasting sounds more accurately, improving their ability to differentiate between similar sounds and enhance overall speech intelligibility.

Maximal Oppositions

Maximal Oppositions therapy uses pairs of words that differ by multiple features (e.g., "cat" and "shoe"). This approach targets contrasting sounds that are significantly different from each other, aiming to improve the child’s ability to articulate a broader range of sounds and patterns, thereby increasing speech intelligibility.

Melodic Intonation Approach (MIA)

The Melodic Intonation Approach is a technique that uses musical elements such as melody, rhythm, and intonation to support speech production. It is particularly effective for individuals with severe speech impairments and focuses on using singing and rhythmic patterns to facilitate verbal expression and improve intelligibility.

Rapid Syllable Transition Treatment (ReST)

The Rapid Syllable Transition Treatment (ReST) is designed to improve speech fluency and articulation by practicing the rapid production of complex syllable sequences. This approach helps children with apraxia of speech and other articulation disorders by training them to produce sounds and syllables more smoothly and accurately.

Summary

Each of these research-based approaches is tailored to enhance speech intelligibility and articulation by focusing on different aspects of sound production and pattern recognition. The speech-language pathologist will evaluate your child's specific needs and select the most appropriate method to support their speech development and improve overall communication.

Fluency:

Desensitization Therapy

Desensitization Therapy focuses on addressing the emotional aspects of stuttering. This approach aims to reduce the anxiety, fear, and negative feelings associated with stuttering. Techniques may include:

  • Gradual Exposure: Helping individuals gradually confront their fears about speaking situations.

  • Cognitive Restructuring: Changing negative thought patterns related to stuttering.

  • Desensitization Techniques: Engaging in activities that help reduce the emotional impact of stuttering, such as role-playing or simulated speaking scenarios.

The goal is to help individuals feel more comfortable and less anxious about their speech, which can contribute to overall fluency improvement.

Fluency Shaping & Modification Therapy:

Fluency Shaping and Modification Therapy focuses on the mechanics of speech, including tension, movement, and flow. This approach involves:

  • Fluency Shaping: Teaching new ways of producing speech to improve fluency. Techniques may include slow speech, smooth transitions between words, and controlling breathing to enhance the flow of speech.

  • Fluency Modification: Modifying the way speech is produced to manage and reduce stuttering. This can involve adjusting speech patterns to minimize stuttering behaviors and increasing overall speech fluency.

Both strategies work to improve the physical aspects of speech production and help individuals achieve smoother and more controlled speech patterns. The specific techniques used are tailored to the individual's needs and may be adjusted over time based on their progress.

Tips and Resources:

Collaborative efforts to propose synopsis information was brought by the American Speech Hearing Association (ASHA) as well as the Indigo Therapy Services LLC team. Please reference the links below for more information in regards to speech and language for your child. However, please reach out to Indigo Therapy Services LLC for any other comments or concerns.