Terminology: What do all those speech terms mean?
When we get phone calls at our clinic from caregivers seeking out services, we always ask questions to try to determine their main concerns. That way we are prepared to complete the correct type of evaluation, and we pair your family with the therapist that is best suited to address your concerns.
Speech Language-Pathologists (SLPs) can provide treatments in a variety of areas, including the following: articulation/phonology, language, augmentative alternative communication (AAC), feeding, swallowing, voice, fluency, and orofacial myology. SLPs may also specialize in specific disorders (ARFID, Apraxia, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Down Syndrome, etc.) or specific ages (infants, birth to three, children and adolescents, adults, geriatric, etc.). We believe that specializing in specific areas helps us to be better therapists and to provide the best treatment for our patients. It’s difficult to know and be good at all the things!
At Expressions, our therapists are trained to work with children from birth to 18 years old (and we have even been known to take adult myofunctional patients on a case-by-case basis). We have therapists trained in the following areas: sensory-based feeding disorders, motor-based feeding disorders, swallowing disorders, myofunctional disorders, language delays and disorders (including receptive, expressive, and social language), AAC, motor-based speech disorders, articulation disorders, and phonological disorders.
If you are calling to seek an evaluation, or even if you are already a patient who is attending therapy at our clinic, you may find it helpful to gain a deeper understanding of the differences between some of the terminology we use to describe speech, language, and/or feeding disorders.
Speech: Speech refers to the actual spoken sounds that make up verbal output. This is the way your child’s speech sounds and is related to the way the mouth is used to produce the sound, as well as the quality and clarity of the sound.
Language: Language can be better described as the content of what’s being said. Language consists of both being able to express yourself through a variety of communication modalities, as well as being able to understand what others are trying to communicate. Receptive language refers to how a person understands and comprehends the communication attempts of others. Expressive language refers to how a person uses communication to connect with others and share their thoughts, feelings, and ideas. Expressive language does not always have to be verbal or spoken. Language is not limited to speech alone, because people can use a variety of methods to express themselves, including the following: body language, facial expressions, gestures, hand signs, speech, written language, or Augmentative/Alternative Communication (AAC).
Feeding: Feeding disorders that people seem to be most familiar with usually include “picky eating” or swallowing disorders; however, there are a lot more difficulties that fall under the feeding therapy umbrella. Other feeding difficulties that your child may be experiencing could include the following:
Infants
Difficulty latching or inability to latch (both breastfeeding or bottle feeding)
Loss of liquid through the lips
Excessive drooling
Limited intake
Excessive fussing or crying during or after eating
Reflux symptoms
Toddlers/Children
Difficulty gaining or maintaining weight (including Failure to Thrive)
Transitions to age appropriate textures and consistencies
Picky eating or food aversions
Feeding tube or supplement (i.e. PediaSure) dependence
Difficult mealtime behaviors or routines
Delays in meeting feeding milestones
Trouble with textures that require more chewing (i.e. meat, vegetables)
Gagging, vomiting, or spitting out foods
I hope that some of this information is helpful to you, and that it makes some of these terms more clear!
If you have any questions or suspect that your child may be experiencing difficulties in any of these areas, please contact us at 205-739-2066 or frontdesk@expressionspediatrictherapy.com
Author: Danielle Allen M.S. CCC-SLP