Swallowing/Stroke Rehabilitation

What is dysphagia?

Dysphagia is defined as problems involving the oral cavity, pharynx, esophagus, or gastroesophageal junction. Simply put, if there is any trouble with consuming food, liquid, or medications once it is placed in the mouth, then this is dysphagia.

This includes the chewing or manipulation of food or liquid inside the mouth, as well as difficulty, pain, or discomfort swallowing.

Dysphagia can result from stroke.

More than 65% of persons who suffer a stroke have a diagnosis of dysphagia.

Depending on what kind of stroke someone suffers, there can be other effects, such as facial droop or weakness, difficulty with speech, tongue weakness (which affects eating and speaking), etc.

Some of these can be addressed in the hospital or a skilled rehab facility, but what happens when you or your loved one is discharged?

Recovery takes time.

Insurance companies play a role in deciding the length of stay in the hospitals and rehabilitation facilities. The number of days has progressively declined over the years.

Unless the stroke was extremely mild, patients need a longer time to recover and receive speech therapy services.

Serenity Speech Therapy can offer the skilled intervention that is needed at a pace with which you or your loved one is comfortable. There is no rush to make room for the next person.

You and I can discuss what is comfortable and feasible for you.

How can I help?

When facial droop or weakness occurs, you or your loved one looks different. The cheek and/or lip(s) will droop or sag. The lax cheek/lips mean the muscles in the face have been affected by the stroke.

A lot of times, the appearance is not the only thing that occurs. One also can experience difficulty keeping food, liquids, or saliva in the mouth. There are exercises and techniques that I can facilitate and teach to strengthen those muscles.

Lingual or tongue weakness can result in difficulty producing intelligible speech or safely consuming food, liquid, or medications. The tongue is responsible for quite a bit when we talk, eat, or drink.

When there is weakness, or it doesn’t work like it once did, there is a multitude of problems or complications that can arise. I can provide you with necessary exercises and compensatory strategies to address this.

Help is available!

What are you waiting for?

Contact Serenity Speech Therapy today and get started with a treatment plan that is right for you.

Just give me a call at (828) 548-3155 and let’s set a time to have a brief 20-minute consultation.