Why would someone post an article about speech therapy on a physical therapy clinic’s website? It must be a slow week in physical therapy news, right? It turns out there’s a stronger connection between the two than what many would expect. The act of speaking is physical, after all, and both types of therapy can often overlap in meaningful ways. For instance, a person recovering from a stroke or neurological condition will often benefit greatly from both speech therapy and physical therapy.
What is Speech Therapy?
In simple terms, speech therapy helps people learn to communicate better through speech. This can include improving pronunciation and strengthening the muscles used in speech. It is often used to treat language and speech disorders as well as swallowing and hearing problems.
A language disorder impacts a person’s ability to distinguish between different speech sounds, name objects, or speak in complete sentences. In children, language disorders are often the result of hearing disorders, general delayed development, or developmental disorders. In adults, language disorders are almost always caused by brain injury or disease.
A speech disorder impacts a person’s ability to produce certain speech sounds or talk clearly or fluently. These can result from developmental disorders and potentially involve psychological factors as well1. A type of speech disorder called a fluency disorder involves distortions in the evenness or flow of speech. Again, in adults, speech disorders are often the result of neurological illnesses or injury.
A person who has trouble swallowing, or dysphagia, can also benefit from speech therapy to help improve the strength and movement of the muscles involved in swallowing. There are different types of dysphagia, esophageal and oropharyngeal2, with different symptoms and causes, but they are essentially the result of damage to muscles or nerves and can often be caused by sudden neurological damage like a stroke or brain injury, or by a disease like multiple sclerosis or Parkinson’s.
A person suffering from hearing loss – no matter the cause – will often benefit from speech therapy as well.
What is Physical Therapy?
This is obviously a popular topic on this blog, but to put it simply, physical therapy is a type of medical treatment that helps a person improve their body’s physical movements. It can include stretching, strength training, hands-on therapy, heat or cold therapy, and other techniques specifically intended to improve your body’s strength, flexibility, mobility and/or balance. It can be part of a general plan for pain management or a specific treatment after an injury or surgery3. It can also be a great help in preventing injuries or preparing for surgery before it happens.
Obviously, many of the people suffering from the injuries or diseases that cause them to require speech therapy will also benefit from physical therapy. Both therapies can be part of a comprehensive treatment plan to restore lost functionality.
Because physical therapists are trained to treat the body holistically and not simply focus on a cluster of symptoms, it is not unusual for speech therapy and physical therapy to work together in a collaborative way.
The Benefits of Collaborative Care
When a patient is treated as a whole person and multiple modes of treatment are available in a collaborative care plan, there are typically better outcomes. Clear and easy communication between therapists allows them to share insights on personalized care plans and patient progress. This can also give the patient more confidence and less confusion about their recovery journey. A more confident patient can make faster progress, which can lead to more confidence and more progress. Collaboration can also make it easier to address any setbacks that may occur.
At Strive! Physical Therapy, we have been providing this type of collaborative care for more than 40 years, and we recognize the benefits of having different types of therapists with different skillsets and experience to provide our patients with the highest quality care possible.
If you or a loved one feel like you could benefit from speech therapy or physical therapy, or just want an evaluation to feel more informed, call us at 1.352.351.8883 or email us today to schedule a free consultation. We would love to help you get the most from your health and live your best life possible!
Sources
- “What Is Speech Therapy?” www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG), 12 Aug. 2020, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK561506/.
- Mayo Clinic . “Dysphagia – Symptoms and Causes.” Mayo Clinic, 31 July 2024, www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/dysphagia/symptoms-causes/syc-20372028.
- Cleveland Clinic. “What Are the Types of Physical Therapy?” Cleveland Clinic, 7 Mar. 2024, my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/physical-therapy.
