Samuel
Can you describe your overall experience with SCT?
Our family is so grateful for our experience at SCT. When we found out our birth to three therapist was leaving and we were going to have to make another therapist change I once again started the difficult search for a qualified SLP. When I came across SCT the week before Christmas I was so excited. I left a voicemail not expecting to hear back until after the holidays. Not only did Lisa return my call on Christmas Eve but she opened the office that week for us to come in for a visit. I knew from the moment we walked into the office that we had discovered something special. SCT feels warm and inviting. It feels like a family place rather than clinical. You can tell the SLPs enjoy working there and team likes being together. We have been lucky to work with several of the speech therapists at SCT. Sam is currently working with Kyle. Kyle is a speech rock star. He has an amazing ability to get Sam to participate in ways previous SLP’s could not. He knows just when a game of office hockey is needed to get Sam’s little engine running and how to get the best performance and practice out of him. He is silly and kind, yet still expects kids to work hard.
What specific conditions did your child need help with?
Sam was diagnosed at 27 months with moderate to severe motor speech disorder. He has received therapy for dysarthria, dysphagia, feeding disorder and Childhood Apraxia of Speech.
What were your expectations about speech and language therapy?
We learned quickly from our previous experiences that Sam needed us as parents to participate in the process. Surprisingly, we found it difficult to find a place that would encourage us to be involved in the therapy. When meeting Lisa she assured us that whatever was in the best interest of our child she would support. We were welcome to not only observe the sessions but participate.
What improvements has your child made since beginning therapy?
When we arrived at SCT, Sam was 50% intelligible and had intense fears of therapy. He wasn’t talking in public and wouldn’t engage anyone outside of the family. Two years later he is now a successful kindergartener! He has friends and loves school. He is understood almost all of the time and has strategies to use when he is having trouble. He is a confident and chatty 6 year old!
Did you try other treatments, therapies or speech therapists before coming to SCT?
Before coming to SCT we worked with two different birth to three therapists and two private speech therapists. We also got evaluations from both Seattle Children’s and University of Washington. Sam struggled to make personal connections with our previous speech therapists. He is slow to warm up to new people and situations. He didn’t make a lot of progress because he felt so much pressure to perform. When we arrived at SCT I again described Sam’s anxiety about speech and asked the therapists to use a low pressure playful approach to gain his trust. I asked that he be rewarded for just showing up rather than talking. The therapists here were able to engage Sam in a way we hadn’t seen before. He loves going to speech and we no longer dread the sessions.
Would you recommend SCT to a friend whose child suffered from a speech or language disorder?
I would absolutely recommend any family with speech concerns come to SCT. One of the benefits is being able to meet with Lisa and share your concerns. She is able to determine which therapist will be the best fit for your child. Also, because there are several therapists there is always a second opinion.
—Sarah P., Samuel's mom