Adult Speech Therapy
Adult speech therapy helps adults regain speech, language, swallowing, and thinking skills after a stroke, traumatic brain injury, or cancer treatment, and helps adults with progressive conditions like Parkinson's disease, MS, and ALS hold onto function longer. Advanced Therapy & Wellness Center provides adult speech therapy in Crest Hill, Illinois, including VitalStim (NMES) treatment for swallowing disorders.
Losing the ability to find words, follow a conversation, or swallow safely changes everything about daily life. It's also more treatable than most families expect. The brain rewires with the right practice, and swallowing muscles respond to targeted retraining.
We treat adults one-on-one, at a pace set by you, with goals that come from your life: order your own coffee, get back on the phone with your grandkids, eat dinner with your family without fear. Recovery goals should sound like that, not like a chart.
What we treat
- Aphasia: difficulty finding words, speaking, or understanding language, often after stroke
- Dysphagia: coughing or choking while eating, food sticking, wet-sounding voice after swallowing
- Dysarthria and apraxia: slurred, weak, or hard-to-coordinate speech
- Cognitive-communication disorders: memory, attention, and executive function after injury or illness
- Voice and communication changes from Parkinson's disease, MS, or ALS
- Speech and swallowing recovery after head and neck cancer treatment
Who it helps
We work with adults of all ages: stroke and TBI survivors, adults living with progressive neurological disease, and patients recovering from cancer treatment. Family members are welcome in sessions, and often become the best part of the home program.
What treatment looks like at ATWC
We start with a thorough evaluation of speech, language, cognition, and swallowing, plus your history and your goals. You'll leave the first visit knowing what we found and what the plan is, in plain language.
For swallowing disorders, we offer VitalStim therapy, a neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) treatment that pairs gentle stimulation of the swallowing muscles with targeted exercise. Margaret is VitalStim-certified, and we use it where the evidence supports it, as part of a complete swallowing program rather than a gadget on its own.
For progressive conditions, therapy is about staying ahead: keeping speech loud and clear, keeping swallowing safe, and adapting strategies as needs change. We coordinate with your neurologist and physicians, and we adjust the plan as you do.
Frequently asked questions
Can speech really improve years after a stroke?
Yes. Recovery is fastest in the first months, but the brain continues to adapt with consistent, targeted practice, and adults make meaningful gains in speech and language years after a stroke. An evaluation establishes an honest starting point and realistic goals.
What is aphasia?
Aphasia is a language disorder, most often caused by stroke, that affects the ability to find words, put sentences together, or understand what others say. Intelligence is not affected, and therapy focuses on rebuilding language skills and effective ways to communicate.
What is VitalStim and does it work?
VitalStim is an FDA-cleared form of neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) used during swallowing therapy to help retrain the muscles involved in swallowing. It is used together with targeted swallowing exercises, and our clinicians are certified in its use.
Do you treat swallowing problems from Parkinson's, MS, or ALS?
Yes. For progressive conditions, swallowing therapy focuses on maintaining safe, efficient swallowing as long as possible, with strategies and diet adaptations that change as the condition changes. We coordinate this care with your medical team.
What are the warning signs of a swallowing disorder?
Common signs include coughing or throat-clearing during meals, a wet or gurgly voice after swallowing, food feeling stuck, longer mealtimes, and repeated chest infections. These signs deserve an evaluation because swallowing problems can affect nutrition and lung health.
Is adult speech therapy covered by insurance?
ATWC is in-network with BCBS PPO, and superbills are provided for out-of-network plans, which frequently reimburse for medically necessary speech therapy. Call 815-782-4196 and we'll help you verify your benefits.
