Treatment for Adult Aphasia, Acquired Apraxia, Dysarthria, Cognitive-Communication Challenges after Stroke, or
Parkinson's Disease

LIFE, Well-Lived.

You shouldn't have to live a lonely life in isolation because you struggle to hold your thoughts or find your words when you have aphasia after a stroke or other neurological condition.  

Having to repeat yourself over and over because others can't understand what you are saying when you have Parkinson's Disease.

At LIFE Speech Pathology we bring not only hope but a path forward.  Because you deserve to be seen, heard and understood.  

WE DON'T BELIEVE IN PLATEAUS, AND NEITHER SHOULD YOU

Move From the Sidelines to the
Center of Your LIFE

  • 👉🏻  Difficulties with personal, family, or social communication 
  • 👉🏻  Challenges in the community with stores, telephone, medical financial, or legal professionals
  • 👉🏻  Struggle with workplace communication or tasks
  • 👉🏻  Difficulties with communication needed for problem-solving, decision making or self-advocacy
  • 👉🏻  Experience some or all of the following challenges
● understanding questions
● listening to the television
● writing a grocery list and shopping
● listening to voicemail
● scheduling medical appointments
● understanding doctor's instructions
● reading medicine labels
● managing and ordering medications
● organizing repairs on the house
● recalling things to do
● completing financial transactions
● participating in hobbies

YOU DON'T HAVE TO LIVE YOUR LIFE
ON THE SIDELINES

Whole Person + Whole Family Treatment in a Three-Dimensional World

We recognize that aphasia transcends its medical definition, profoundly impacting individuals and their families. It's a journey that reshapes communication, relationships, and self-identity.

The Spectrum of Aphasia
Fluent vs. Non-Fluent Aphasia

Aphasia is primarily caused by damage to the brain from stroke, traumatic brain injury, tumors, infections, or neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's disease.

FLUENT APHASIA

⦿  Characterized by smooth, flowing speech that lacks meaning

⦿  Individuals may use made-up words or irrelevant words

⦿  Understanding spoken or written language is difficult

      ➡️  Wernicke's Aphasia: Speech is present but often lacks meaning

      ➡️  Transcortical Sensory Aphasia: able to repeat words and phrases

      ➡️  Conduction Aphasia: difficulty repeating despite good comprehension and production

      ➡️  Anomic Aphasia:  persistent inability to recall the names of everyday objects



NON-FLUENT APHASIA

⦿  Speech production is difficult, but comprehension is relatively preserved

⦿  Speech is often broken, halted, and effortful

      ➡️  Broca's Aphasia: Limited speech production and telegraphic speech

      ➡️  Transcortical Motor Aphasia: Similar to Broca's but with the ability to repeat words and phrases

      ➡️  Global Aphasia: extensive difficulties in speaking, listening, reading, and writing




PRIMARY PROGRESSIVE APHASIA

⦿  Progressive loss of language capabilities due to neurodegenerative diseases

⦿  Initially affects language skills, then may progress to other cognitive impairments

⦿  Speech is often broken, halted, and effortful

      ➡️  Nonfluent/Agrammatic: Difficulty forming sentences; speech is halting and effortful

      ➡️  Semantic Variant: loss of word meaning, leading to fluent but empty speech

      ➡️  Logopenic Variant: difficulty forming sentences with fair grammar and comprehension

Treatment Beyond Aphasia

APRAXIA & DYSARTHRIA

Acquired apraxia of speech is a disorder that affects the brain pathways in planning the sequence of movements involved in producing speech. The brain knows what it wants to say but cannot properly plan and sequence the required speech sound movements. Effective treatment targets communication.

Dysarthria is a speech disorder due to muscle weakness resulting from damage to the nervous system.  The muscles used to speak become damaged, paralyzed, or weakened. A person with dysarthric speech can sound slurred and often has a one-sided facial weakness.

COGNITIVE-COMMUNICATION

People with aphasia do not inherently have cognitive deficits. However, as with all neurologic conditions, language does not happen in isolation.

A growing body of evidence and research suggests that aphasia can also be affected and compounded by specific, and often invisible, cognitive deficits of attention + working memory.

Our approach is comprehensive: addressing attention, working memory, and executive function is built into our innovative treatment program.



NEUROLOGICAL CONDITIONS

We offer specialized treatment for Parkinson's Disease, including LSVT and Speak OUT therapy.

Our team is experienced in providing effective support for individuals with Primary Progressive Aphasia (PPA) and their families.

When dealing with neurological conditions, we emphasize a personalized and cognitive treatment approach tailored to the unique needs of each client and their family. Regardless of the condition, our treatment plans are customized to meet you where you are in your journey and address your specific requirements.

Language is Complex

Thought — concept — meaning — intention — words — word order — intonation — articulation = MESSAGE

  Language can break down at any of these junctures, and it’s our job to figure it out and improve it!

PERSONALIZED TREATMENT FOR EACH PHASE OF LIFE

Young Adult

After a stroke or a neurologic diagnosis, the needs and aspirations of a young adult may vary from those of an individual who is well-established in their career and social circles.

To offer a holistic treatment and goal-setting strategy, we consider various social, emotional, psychological, health, language, and cognitive factors. Our program is tailored to prioritize patient-centered goals, including pursuing a new job, furthering education, or engaging in dating. We are devoted to supporting you throughout the entire process.

Career

At the peak of your career, experiencing a stroke can significantly impede your chances of a successful return to work. At LIFE Speech Pathology, we recognize the impact of aphasia on your language and cognitive abilities for employment and the toll it can take on your self-assurance.

Our therapy method integrates job-specific skills, vocabulary, and situations into targeted and practical objectives. Through detailed assessments and the utilization of patient feedback assessments, we will work together to create a holistic plan aimed at supporting your professional reintegration

Retirement

If you are dealing with minor or major health issues, we are here to provide personalized care catered to your individual needs.
Our team is well-equipped to assist you in enhancing your communication abilities, allowing you to make the most of your retirement. We empathize with your current situation and comprehend your requirements, aiming to support you in reaching your desired objectives. Whether it's organizing a trip, handling household chores, or navigating interactions with mechanics, we can empower you with the necessary tools to excel in this exciting phase of your life.

I am not what happened to me.
I am what I choose to become.
— Carl Gustav Jung

Zooming to You Online via Telepractice

Go Online with Us on Zoom!

Easy and Secure Online Sessions
Dive into your aphasia treatment sessions via Zoom, our chosen platform for all appointments. It's safe, follows HIPAA guidelines, and works perfectly on computers and iPads.

Why Zoom? 
More Choices, Customized Care
Zoom isn't just about convenience; it's about connecting you with the best aphasia rehab experts, no matter where you are. Don't limit your options to the local clinic down the street. Zoom lets you choose your specialist, ensuring you get customized treatment tailored to your needs. It's all about having choices and receiving the best possible care.  

Interactive and Engaging
Zoom's interactive tools, like typing, drawing, and highlighting on a virtual whiteboard, make our sessions lively and engaging. Plus, it's great for any internet speed, ensuring everyone, everywhere, can join without hassle.  

Keep Learning Between Sessions
With Zoom, we can save our whiteboard work right into your file for easy review. This means you can keep practicing and building on what we learn together, session after session.

 Join us on Zoom for a seamless and engaging telepractice experience in aphasia treatment. Let's make progress together, no matter where you are!     

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

At our center, we empower our clients to take control of their rehabilitation journey by harnessing the power of neuroplasticity. Neuroplasticity refers to the brain's remarkable ability to heal itself. Our focus is on strengthening the fundamental skills necessary for effective communication, and we tailor our approach to meet each client at their current stage of recovery. Our primary aim is to help you achieve your communication goals, and we possess the specialized expertise needed to analyze your unique situation and develop a personalized, step-by-step plan to help you reach your life goals

Mindfulness refers to consciously attending to thoughts without placing any judgments upon them. We train our clients to think first, say what they are thinking, reflect, and then make calm repairs, if necessary. Mindfulness combats aphasia stress which is detrimental to rebuilding neural pathways in the brain.  

Online, telepractice delivery allows us to reach a greater number of clients with chronic aphasia without the limitations of a physical location. We have delivered innovative treatment over telepractice since 2014 before telepractice was mainstream due to the public health emergency. Our clients continued to receive communication treatment they would not have realized without the internet and our ability to deliver a comprehensive, quality speech and language program. Clients receive their therapy, regardless of their location, or ours. We see clients across the USA and abroad.

Absolutely! WE DON'T BELIEVE IN PLATEAUS! Working with chronic aphasia, defined as six months after the stroke, requires a specialized therapeutic toolbox and speech pathology mindset and approach.  Chronic aphasia treatment requires a Whole Person + Whole Family approach.  We utilize innovative, mindful, neuroplastic philosophies, methodologies, and treatment techniques to achieve patient-centered communication goals. Utilizing out-of-the-therapeutic box thinking + motivated clients = successful communication. 

We are an enrolled provider for Original Medicare Part B (outpatient services).  Medicare will be billed directly for qualified services.  Medicare pays 80% of the allowed rate and your secondary insurance will be automatically billed the remaining 20% per visit.  If you do not have secondary insurance, you will be responsible for the co-payment at the time of each session.

We are Out-Of-Network (OON) Providers for Medicare Advantage and all private insurance.  We'll provide you with an Insurance Benefits Worksheet that will guide you through the questions to ask your insurance provider to determine your OON benefits.  OON services are paid by the client at the time of service.  If requested, we are pleased to provide you with a Superbill (like a receipt) for the evaluation and treatment so that you may obtain reimbursement directly from your insurance company.

We offer transparent pricing for all of our services and this will be discussed during the consultation call.  We will provide you a Good Faith Estimate for the services recommended so there are no surprises.

A valid credit card is to remain securely on file for the entirety of treatment.

You do not need to have a referral from your physician to start therapy.  However, Medicare regulations state that a physician must sign the plan of care within 30 days of starting treatment.  Speak to your physician about starting telepractice speech therapy.  We like to partner with your physician to provide excellent care and communication.  A physician referral is a great first step in this relationship.

However, neither LIFE Concierge Wellness Coaching nor LIFE Aphasia Academy require a physician referral.

No, LIFE Speech Pathology cannot see your loved one in the hospital.  We provide only outpatient services, under Medicare Part B. If your loved one is admitted to the hospital, those services will be covered under Medicare Part A.

Our services can be reestablished via a reevaluation AFTER your loved one is discharged from the hospital.

Are you still making progress?  You call the shots!  Some clients work to reach a couple of specific goals and others choose to continue regular sessions in our wellness program.  Some choose to take a break from therapy or shift their treatment to group opportunities where their communication is supported, as needed, by the speech pathologist.  

We are clinicians who work out-of-the-box.  Your treatment can be adjusted for time, intensity, and tasks.  Our clients continue to work with us because they believe in and see the progress they make in their communication.  We work with you to meet your goals, whatever that may look like to you.

Many of our clients choose to continue treatment to work on higher-level communication goals that exceed what is referred to as ‘medically necessary’ by Medicare. For those clients who want to keep working, we offer an individualized Communication Wellness program to meet your communication goals. In general, the cost is based on the session length of time and frequency per week. Group treatment is also available for the carryover of learned techniques.

Under Original Medicare Part B, speech-language pathology and physical therapy ‘share’ the same pot of therapeutic money. We can definitely see you for speech pathology services, reimbursed by Medicare for services that are medically necessary.

Overall, both our clinic and the physical therapy clinic will have to monitor for benefits utilized and actively monitor for claims reimbursement. Often, once the allowed therapeutic amount of money has been utilized for the year, many of our clients transition to our Communication Wellness program to continue working towards their speech-language-communication goals.

I TALK TO MY GRANDDAUGHTER

“Telepractice therapy has been a great opportunity for my dad to continue his speech therapy. He was unsatisfied with his speech when he was discharged from outpatient therapy 4 months ago. Genevieve is so compassionate. She has helped him focus on the quality of his speech, make eye contact, and think first before speaking.

He has progressed so much and can now talk on the phone to his granddaughter, who is away at college.  We are so grateful to work with LIFE Speech Pathology.”  

- OP, Daughter