The Alternatives

So, you may be one of those people whose insurance has stopped paying. Maybe your insurance doesn't cover speech therapy or you don't have insurance at all. There are several options that may be available to you. I'm going to just discuss speech since this is an aphasia blog, but there may be similar options for other therapies.

If you want to continue to work on your speech, I recommend that you attend a local aphasia support group to get ideas of what resources there may be in your area. You can find a list of aphasia support groups online at the National Aphasia Association (http://www.aphasia.org/). There is also contact information on this website for state representatives. These representatives, such as myself, will tell you what options or services may be available in your area. The NAA also lists research opportunities for which you may qualify. You may be able to receive free therapy for a period of time.

Is there a nearby university that has a Communication Disorders clinic? These clinics usually offer group and individual therapies for a low fee or for free. It's cheap because the sessions are conducted by graduate students, who are supervised by licensed clinical instructors.

There are the software programs as mentioned previously, such as Parrot software or Bungalow software. These are great ways to work on your language skills on your computer. They are not a substitute for real live speech practice, however. While these programs may have indirect effects on your speech or writing, I would recommend doing some research to decide which program would be the most beneficial. Determine if there are demos available before purchasing and test out the different programs.

Some people have obtained grade school grammar or other language books for practice. Or purchased workbooks that some clinicians use. Is there an aphasia program near you? Do some googling to find out.

Some persons have contacted local speech pathologists to find someone who will help them privately. The fee varies depending upon where you are, but there may be someone who can help you. I encourage you to continue to work to continue your improvement. Remember, you get what you pay for, so choose your time investment wisely. It may be worth it to you to pay for an intensive aphasia program so that you make great results with a minimal time investment. Or it may be worth it to you to spread out your recovery over a longer span of time to save money. Whatever your choices, do as much as you can! The only limits placed on you are those you tell yourself! Don't believe the doom-and-gloom story other medical professionals may hand you.