Virtual Speech Therapy for Stuttering
Discover How Our Online Program Can Help You Speak with Confidence
What is Stuttering?
Stuttering is a type of speech disorder that impacts the fluency and clarity of speech, causing frequent repetitions or prolongations of speech sounds, syllables, words, and phrases during speech. Stuttering can also cause frequent and uncontrollable blocks or pauses, making the individual unable to produce the desired sounds when speaking. These speech disruptions are known as disfluencies, and they can have a profound effect on an individual’s ability to navigate daily life and communicate effectively.
Current statistics show that more than 80 million people across the globe are affected by stuttering. It is estimated that over 3 million Americans struggle with a fluency disorder of some kind.
Causes and Symptoms
While the precise causes of stuttering still largely remain a mystery among scientists and researchers, there are some contributing factors that have been identified in the development of stuttering, including:
Neurological Causes: Most experts agree that stuttering has a neurological component that affects the ability to process speech and language effectively.
Genetic Factors: Stuttering tends to run in families, as research has shown that children who have a close relative with a stutter are three times as likely to develop a stutter themselves.
Environmental Factors: Some environmental aspects or stressors have been identified as contributors to instances of stuttering. The presence of stress and anxiety, pressure to speak promptly, demands to speak publicly or deliver a presentation, or changes in routine and major life events can all increase the frequency and severity of stuttering.
When discussing these causes, it is important to note that stuttering is not connected to intelligence or adaptability, which is a common misconception.
Symptoms of Stuttering
The most common symptoms of stuttering are clear and frequent speech disruptions or disfluencies, which are categorized as repetitions, prolongations, and blocks.
Repetitions: Repetitions involve repeating a single sound or syllable (for example, “in-in-in the house”) or one part of a word (such as “a-a-above” or “ha-ha-happy.) Some repetitions are simply repeating a consonant sound without a vowel sound (for example “c-c-cat.”)
Some individuals who stutter will repeat multiple syllables or whole words together (such as “I want-I want-I want something to eat.”)
Prolongations: A prolongation occurs when a single sound or syllable is stretched and extended beyond the normal flow and rate of speech (such as “mmmmmmmay I have a bite?”)
Blocks: The term “block” refers to when no audible airflow occurs and no sound is produced. These appear as tense and involuntary blocks in which the individual opens their mouth, but no sound comes out, and air is not flowing freely.
Benefits of Virtual Speech Therapy for Stuttering
Online speech therapy services are highly effective at helping individuals of any age overcome a fluency disorder such as stuttering. In addition to being just as successful as traditional in-person speech therapy, virtual speech therapy offers some added benefits, such as:
Privacy & Comfort: When you work with Great Speech, you can connect with your speech therapist from your home. This provides added comfort and ease to those who may feel nervous or unsure about speech therapy and means that all speech therapy appointments are completely private.
Flexibility & Convenience: We know how hard it can be to fit appointments into busy family routines and daily lives, which is why we offer convenient and flexible scheduling. With the option to book speech therapy appointments during evening and weekend hours, it’s easier than ever to make speech therapy fit into your schedule.
Cost Saving: By bringing speech therapy to our innovative online portal, we also save you money by eliminating costs related to commuting, parking, and lost income due to taking time off work. We are committed to offering online speech therapy services with competitive pricing and multiple payment options.
Our Approach to Stuttering Therapy
Starting online speech therapy for stuttering always begins with an initial assessment to identify the particular challenges, obstacles, learning styles, and communication goals of each individual. From there, we connect each person with an ideally suited speech and language pathologist who possesses specific experience and expertise in the area of need. They then create a customized treatment plan that involves tailored techniques and approaches to address the instances of stuttering. The speech therapist will also provide techniques to reduce stress and anxiety, manage breathing, and reduce negative feelings surrounding stuttering.
Progress is tracked regularly, and as goals are met, new ones are set. The speech therapist will also identify which approaches are working and which may not be as effective as the speech therapy process progresses.
KNOWLEDGE BASE
Most Popular Questions People Ask
How long speech therapy for stuttering takes depends on a variety of factors including the severity of the fluency disorder, the age of the individual, the frequency and duration of speech therapy appointments, the level of commitment to home practice, and the presence of contributing factors or underlying causes.
While some individuals may see significant improvements within a few months of starting speech therapy, others may work with a speech therapist for a year or more before they begin to improve. For many individuals who struggle with stuttering, speech therapy is an ongoing support resource to ensure they maintain their speech skills and solidify proper speech patterns.
Speech therapy sessions for stuttering typically occur once or twice per week, for half an hour. The more frequent the sessions are, the faster individuals tend to progress towards their goals.
Yes, all of our speech therapists provide a variety of exercises and techniques to be practiced at home between sessions. These help to solidify newly developed skills and support the learning of the individual when they aren’t working directly with their speech therapist.
Great Speech offers private-pay options, but we also partner with a number of insurance providers.Whether your health insurance plan will cover online speech therapy for stuttering depends on several factors, such as your insurance provider's policies, your specific diagnosis, and your insurance plan, to name a few. To determine whether speech therapy for stuttering will be covered, we recommend contacting your provider directly. At Great Speech, we are proud to accept insurance coverage from the following providers:
- Cigna Medicare & Commercial
- Molina Healthcare Florida
- BCBSIL Medicare & Commercial
- Geisinger
- Healthnet
- NAMM / Optum CA
- Zenith American
- Devoted Health Plans Florida
- CarePlus healthcare plans Florida
- AVMed
- Amerigroup New Jersey
- Aetna Medical Solutions Texas
- Careington
- DialCare
- Healthcare Highways
If your provider isn’t listed above, you may want to contact them to see if your plan provides out-of-network benefits that could reduce your cost for therapy. We also accept HSA/FSA and private co-pay options.
Contact Us Today
If you'd like to learn more about whether online speech therapy is right for your child or are ready to get started, simply schedule your free introductory call today!
Each of our therapists are highly-specialized, allowing our clients to be matched to address their specific communication needs. This level of specialization allows us to deliver the best service possible.