Many people who stutter as adults may have started stuttering as teens or earlier. While there are those who have had speech therapy in CT, others have never tried it. There are also those who got the therapy at some point in their lives but they only did so for a short period and the stuttering may have come back. It is important to know that just because you have been to one therapy session in the past does not mean that you cannot consider it again.
It is not uncommon for attitudes and emotions on stuttering to change over time with new experiences. The teenage years come with many image issues and a stuttering teen can be at the receiving end of taunts. When you consider how sensitive these years are for your child, it is a good idea to consider speech therapy. The therapy can help the child to overcome the speech deficiency and it can make a huge difference in the life of your teen.
Reasons to seek treatment
The first thing you need to do when considering any treatment is to determine the objectives or motivation. Is the speech problem affecting the child in a negative way? How bad is the stutter and is it difficult to understand what the child is saying? Having a clear idea about why the therapy is necessary will help you to make the right decisions. It will help to determine the right speech-language pathologist, the length, amount and cost of treatment and the success you can expect. You should come up with possible goals for the speech therapy in advance.
Therapy amount and length
It is important to realize that different cases will require different solutions. The amount and length of therapy that your teen will need depends on different factors including the severity of the stutter. Some people require a longer time and more frequent therapy to achieve the desired results. The therapist will determine the stuttering therapy needed after carrying out an assessment. After an evaluation, a decision will be made about scheduling and the cost of the therapy.
The evaluation process
A thorough evaluation is necessary in order to come up with the best treatment program for your teen. The evaluation can take anywhere between two to four hours and the cost will vary depending on the location and therapy charges. It is very important to do your research so that you can be sure that you are getting the best therapy available at the best cost. It is also a good idea to find out if your health insurance covers the evaluation cost.
The type of therapy
The results of the evaluation will determine the best treatment option. The speech therapist will explain the results and offer advice about the length of time and how often the therapy will take place. The length and amount of therapy needed will depend on the type of therapy, the severity of the stuttering and your overall goals. There are different therapy programs and most of them have a standard amount of time. Understanding the different options will help you to make the right choice.
All in all, an experienced speech pathologist with the right skills can help your teen to make positive changes for his or her communication skills.
