We provide speech therapy online for children, adolescents and adults with feeding issues.
We are a registered NDIS provider and use an inclusive approach to therapy, where the person can be in the comfort and familiarity of their own home.
How can speech therapy benefit people with feeding issues?
Speech therapy can be highly beneficial for individuals facing feeding issues, often referred to as dysphagia or feeding difficulties. Here are several ways in which speech therapy can help:
1. **Assessment of Swallowing and Feeding Skills**: Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are trained to evaluate and diagnose swallowing disorders. They can assess the oral, pharyngeal, and esophageal phases of swallowing to identify specific challenges a person might face.
2. **Personalized Treatment Plans**: Based on the assessment, SLPs can develop tailored treatment plans that address the individual’s specific feeding and swallowing difficulties. This may involve exercises to strengthen the muscles involved in eating and swallowing.
3. **Oral Motor Skills Development**: Speech therapy can include activities to improve coordination and strength of the muscles used in chewing and swallowing, which are critical for effective feeding.
4. **Techniques to Normalize Feeding**: SLPs can introduce strategies to make feeding more comfortable and safe, such as specific postures, adaptive techniques, or modifications to the food or liquids presented (e.g., thicker liquids, pureed foods).
5. **Education and Training for Caregivers**: SLPs often provide education and training for caregivers or family members on how to assist individuals with feeding difficulties, including proper feeding techniques, positioning, and recognizing signs of potential swallowing problems.
6. **Communication Strategies**: Many feeding difficulties may be linked to communication issues. SLPs can work on enhancing communication skills, which can help in expressing preferences, needs, or discomfort related to feeding.
7. **Rehabilitation after Injury or Illness**: For individuals recovering from conditions such as strokes, neurological disorders, or surgeries that impact swallowing, speech therapy can play a critical role in rehabilitation, helping restore safe and effective swallowing.
8. **Integration with Holistic Care**: SLPs can collaborate with other healthcare professionals, such as dietitians and occupational therapists, to provide a comprehensive approach to treating feeding issues, ensuring that nutritional needs are met while addressing swallowing safety.
9. **Behavioral Interventions**: In cases where feeding issues stem from behavioral factors (common in children), SLPs can implement behavioral interventions to encourage positive eating habits and reduce anxiety around meals.
Overall, speech therapy offers a multidisciplinary approach to addressing feeding issues, focusing on improving both the physiological aspects of swallowing and the emotional and behavioral factors that may impact eating.
Services for children, adolescents and adults
We have speech therapists who work with children, adolescents and adults, and we have therapists who have experience with feeding issues. Read more about our therapists here.
NDIS registered provider
We are a registered NDIS provider and work with self-managed, plan-managed and agency-managed clients.
If your are an NDIS provider or support coordinator we can provide reliable speech therapy for clients with feeding issues in any location. Refer a client and we’ll connect you to the right clinician.
Is online speech therapy effective?
Yes! A growing body of evidence shows that online delivery of therapy can be as effective as face to face. Online therapy has many other benefits too, including being convenient and accessible for people in regional and rural areas.
How does online speech therapy work?
At Umbo online therapy is not just zoom plus business-as-usual. It’s much more diverse than simply videoconferencing. Umbo therapists provide an individualised approach to each person, using the latest evidence, and a variety of technologies and engagement techniques.
Umbo champions person-centred therapy. It means the person and their family/support people leads the conversation. We believe that the most effective therapy occurs when support is given in the environment where the person lives, learns, works or plays. Therefore we work with the family, and teach skills to you or to other supporters. This means you’re achieving real-life goals, rather than just achieving goals in a clinic.
We are a certified social enterprise helping Australian families access allied health services.