1 Thing You didn’t Know about your Speech Therapist…

Here’s one thing that I bet you didn’t know about your SLP. I bet you didn’t know that your child is a blessing and a gift to us in more ways than you would ever expect. It’s way more than just the satisfaction of watching their communication skills grow or the joy of playing with them during therapy sessions. Rather, it’s the gift of your child making each of us a better therapist. With each child we treat, we are learning new ways to connect, new therapy techniques, and honing our craft.

I’d like to share a story about a child that had a significant impact on my own growth as a therapist. In July of 2020, Lylah was added to my caseload. At the time, I was a traveling therapist providing speech services to children in their homes. Lylah was a 3-year-old non-speaking child with spastic quadriplegia cerebral palsy. She communicated by smiling, laughing, crying and through eye-gaze. She loved Disney princesses and the color purple.

Prior to working with Lyla, my exposure to the AAC (Alternative Augmentative Communication) speech devices was limited. We ordered the device and when Lyla received her AAC, she and I dove into learning the technology. She had finally found a way for her to communicate with her family, friends, therapists, and classroom teachers. Through eye-gaze technology, she learned how to make requests like, “Lets blow bubbles,” make comments like, “I like it,” and answer questions about stories read to her. She especially loved singing songs and filling in the words, “Old MacDonald had a ____, and on that farm he had a _____.”

Lylah’s family also enjoyed exploring her speech device. Her older brothers often joined her therapy sessions. They loved to make her laugh by making up silly words on her device and accessing advanced vocabulary like dinosaurs and the solar system.

In the three years that we worked together, my AAC skills blossomed and her communication abilities grew. Lylah made me a better therapist. She challenged me outside of my comfort zone. She also taught me to not only celebrate the “Big Wins” in communication, but to also appreciate the moments of just “connecting with her” and how those moments are equally as important in my practice. Thank you Lylah for the opportunity to know you and for shaping me into the therapist I am today. -Mrs. Emily