by admin | May 11, 2016 | news
In many cases parents or patients are not sure which professional to turn to when there are difficulties in oral or written communication. Other times it is difficult to recognize warning signs in children and valuable time is wasted waiting for the child to move forward on his own. For this reason it seems convenient to me to share some general information in order to know the professional profile of the Language Therapist and when to go to his consultation.
The medical association of Costa Rica has defined the professional profile of the language therapist based on the Profile of the Comité Permanent de Liaison des Orthophonistes-Logopèdes de l'Union Européenne (CPLOL) and has published in the Official Journal La Gaceta No 134 the professional profile of the licensed language therapist (the language therapist does NOT have an academic doctor's degree). According to the 2012 CPLOL, the function of the speech therapist is to prevent, evaluate and assume responsibility, with acts of re-education that constitute treatment, disorders of voice, articulation and speech, as well as disorders associated with the understanding of oral and written language and its expression. Speech Therapy also consists of providing the learning of other forms of non-verbal communication to complete or supplement these functions. Likewise, their work consists of informing, orienting and supporting the family or relatives of the patients since some language disorders are associated with brain damage, hearing damage, intellectual deficit or motor impairments that, in addition to the intervention of the therapist, require treatment and supervision by other health professionals.
There is an idea that speech therapists work only with children, but they are also responsible for caring for adult patients who come to speech therapy for various reasons, for example after surgery, a brain vascular event or when they suffer disorders that were not treated in childhood such as articulatory difficulties. In older adults with degenerative diseases such as dementia, Alzheimer's or Parkinson's disease, speech therapy has been shown to be of great help in maintaining patients' skills and quality of life.
Symptoms and warning signs in children.
The most common childhood disorders occur during the language acquisition period and can be resolved with temporary intervention.
There are many cases in which parents attend the consultation on the recommendation of third parties such as a family member or teachers. To make it easier for you to identify some of the warning signs of possible difficulties, you can review this list:
- Your child has infantile speech (from a younger child) and is difficult for the adult to understand or in settings outside the home.
- His vocabulary is reduced and he tends to use a telegraphic language, that is to say with absence of verbal links such as articles and pronouns.
- Abuses gestures, signs and mime to express himself and when they don't understand him he gets frustrated.
- He omits certain sounds that he cannot pronounce ("ammon" for "ham", "duck" for "shoe" or "nano" for "banana").
- He substitutes some sounds for others that are easier for him to pronounce ("tero" for "quiero", "pezo" for "peso").
- It distorts language and gives rise to almost unintelligible words. It's got its own jargon.
- Repeat one or more syllables many times during the broadcast of a phrase.
- Breathe with your mouth open
- He suffers from drastic changes in his voice with frequent dysphonies.
If your child has to go to speech therapy, you should be interested to know. What is therapy? What are the keys to its success?
The duration of each session varies depending on the disorder to be re-educated but most sessions have a duration of 45 to 50 minutes. The total time of the intervention process may vary depending on the difficulty, consistency, and role of the parents during the intervention. It has been shown that when the family is actively involved in the process, recovery is faster.
My recommendation is always that, when in doubt, you should consult a qualified professional who will guide you through the process. This will save you headaches in the future, especially when your son or daughter starts the formal education process. In the case of therapy in children will always be more successful that starts early. If you want to guide you in the process do not hesitate to contact me , Licda Rocío Vargas Mo
by admin | Jul 29, 2014 | news
Many parents are concerned about the implications of exposing children to a bilingual parenting environment. There are many questions about the delays or confusion a child may experience when exposed to two languages at such an early age. Many parents are even discouraged because they are wrongly advised that learning two languages can confuse their children and cause speech delays. It's not like that.
One of the most widespread myths is that a child who learns two languages at the same time becomes confused and uses the two languages without differentiating one from the other. But according to Barbara Zurer Pearson, researcher at the University of Massachusetts expert in bilingualism and author of the book "Raising a Bilingual Child" the baby a few days after birth can already differentiate between one language and another especially if these two languages are very different from each other and in the case of more similar languages the child manages to differentiate them around 6 months of age.
It is important to mention that there is a possibility that when the bilingual child begins to speak he will begin to get his vocabulary from both languages and therefore construct phrases such as "drink milk" but this does not mean that he does not differentiate between the two. Bilingualism experts agree that mixing two languages is transitory and disappears as a child's vocabulary increases in both languages.
It is likely that the myth of language confusion has its basis in fairly old research which claimed that learning two languages at such an early age was counterproductive and thus caused many professionals to erroneously advise parents to avoid bilingualism and continue to do so to this day.
Current research shows that being bilingual has many advantages, such as the ability to think more flexibly. At the semantic level, bilingual children have two or more words for each concept, which translates into more than one way of solving problems. Other studies maintain that children exposed to several languages are more creative and their brain circuits are programmed so that in the future the child is more prepared to learn more languages; they also have a better metalinguistic development that is the ability to understand the structure and components of language, a very important skill for learning. It has also been shown that these children have a greater ability to focus attention when it is needed.
It is true that some bilingual children usually take a little longer than monolingual children, but this is not a general rule and if it were to happen, it would be a temporary delay again.
Numerous researches on bilingualism reveal that the vast majority of bilingual children reach the various stages of language development at approximately the same time as monolingual children.
As all children develop skills at their own pace, specific ages vary from child to child regardless of whether they are spoken in one or two languages. Some children say their first words at one year of age while others say them at one and a half years of age and this is no different in the bilingual child.
This is normal if we can confirm that the child understands passive language, i.e. follows instructions and tries to respond in non-verbal ways to communication in the second language, even if he does not yet use expressive or verbal language.
It is important to stop believing that bilingualism can be harmful to the child's language development. However, if you have doubts about it, it is best to consult a professional. If you want to provide a bilingual education to your child my recommendation is that each parent address him in the language he speaks most since at this age the most important thing is to provide your child with a correct linguistic model. For example, if one parent speaks better English and the other parent speaks better Spanish, then each parent should speak with their child in the language in which he or she speaks best.
Lic. Rocío Vargas
Speech, Language and Voice Therapist.
by admin | Jun 13, 2014 | news
Last May we began care in our new Language Therapist's office located in Guadalupe. After several months of planning we always think about the comfort of our users. We try to create a functional space not only for speech therapy but also for all the services we have integrated this year. In a later post we will introduce you to our new collaborators.
In terms of space, we thought of creating a cozy place for both children and our adult users. For our kids we think of an environment that is not threatening that first time they come with anxiety and distrust. For our adult patients a place where they can relax and enjoy the time they are here.
We are located in Oficentro Centauro, in front of the south side of the Catholic Clinic in Guadalupe Centro. It is a very convenient area where you will also find other health professionals both in the office and in the Catholic Clinic. You will also find safe parking, cafeterias and restaurants, clinical laboratories, gymnasium, pharmacies, etc.. We are very happy to grow! Thanks to all the people who have trusted our work over the last few years. We look forward to seeing you soon!
Rocío Vargas Moya
