I had rehabilitation in the home & speech therapy was one area.
If anyone wants to read more about the other aspects of it or my story you are welcome to visit my msn site. There is one section on therapy that covers all this as well as the other specialists I had.

Please visit my page on msn for poems & my story.
http://pennysue1961.spaces.msn.com/

Speech therapist

The speech therapist came & worked with me 2 or 3 times a week. She assessed my speech, word finding skills (or lack of), & gave me strategies to assist me to improve.

The first four strategies she gave me are the ones I refer back to most.
Strategies for clearer speech
1 - Slow down
2 - Exaggerate your sounds
3 - Break up words eg: con-fi-scate
4 - Ensure your listener can see your face

Breath control was worked on next & that was done by holding each sound as long as I could.

Take a deep breath & push from the stomach.

Feel your stomach move as you hold the sound.

Keep a smooth, clear sound flowing.

Focus on pushing in from the stomach & keeping your voice & throat open & relaxed.

Ah â?? far

Er-Her

Or â?? For

Oo-Moo

Ee â?? see


I also had a variety of exercises for dysarthia which were moving lips, mouth, tongue & repeating sounds that I was having trouble with. (this has to be worked out with each individual depending on what sounds you are having trouble with. Also I practiced various sounds, then words with the letters in that I had most trouble & then syllable recognition. This meant breaking words up into syllables to be able to say them.

Tips to manage Dysarthia â?? speech

· Slow down the rate of speech.

· Speak louder/softer.

· Take a deep breath before speaking so that there is enough breath for speech.

· Start speaking as soon as you breathe out to make full use of breaths.

· Break the sentence up into short phrases, so that you can â??top upâ?? your air supply after every few words.

· Break up long words into separate syllables, eg elephant â?? el-e-phant

· Over exaggerate mouth movements to make speech clearer (practice in front of a mirror to get used to doing it I found helped.

· If the listener does not understand a particular word, try another word that means the same thing. E.g. â??dateâ?? for appointmentâ??.

· Remove background noise & distractions. Turn off the radio/TV or move to a quieter room.

· Schedule appointments/important discussions when you are likely to be less tired. Fatigue will have a negative impact on your speech intelligibility.

· Face the person you are talking with.

· If you are not being understood even after trying the above tips, try writing down all or part of the message.


Tips to manage swallowing difficulties

· Sit up straight in a supportive chair.

· Take small bites/sips.

· Take your time. Hold the food or drink in your mouth & think about swallowing, then swallow.

· Concentrate on one mouthful at a time. Make sure you have swallowed all of the food/drink before you put more in your mouth.

· Keep your chin down. This will help to lower the chances of food or drink going into your windpipe.

· Eat often. Eating small meals frequently rather than 3 large meals helps to minimize fatigue. (A dietician can advise you further on this).

· Stay sitting upright for 10-15 minutes after eating, drinking or taking medications.

· Drink lots of liquids. If you are dehydrated, your saliva is likely to become thick increasing swallowing difficulties.

· Swallow a couple of times for each mouthful.

· Choose your foods carefully. Eating food which is easy to manage will minimize risk of it going down the wrong way. Food which is easier to manage, or requires less chewing may be preferable when fatigued.

· Alternate between swallowing food & drink.