Speech Language Therapy

The special problem of achieving gender appropriate speech and voice is a concern of great importance to many transgendered individuals. As is the case with any person, when speech interferes with one's attempts to effectively communicate, or when the quality of one's speech or voice calls negative attention to the speaker, then we say that speech and language therapy may be warranted.

With transgendered clients, the general goal of Speech Language Pathology intervention is to enhance the overall gender appropriateness of communication behavior and presentation, through addressing both verbal and non-verbal features. Specific areas that may be addressed include voice modification (e.g., pitch, intonation, quality), speech/ articulation (manner of speech sound production), language (e.g., vocabulary usage), and non-verbal communication (e.g., conversational style, social skills, body language, gesture, facial expression).

Participation in Speech Therapy begins with an initial evaluation, during which each client's individual speech/voice goals are established. Follow-up individual sessions are aimed at helping clients to learn the specific techniques needed to meet their objectives. Depending on enrollment, scheduling, and client needs, group sessions may also be available to clients. Group therapy goals would typically focus on practice, carryover and generalization of newly learned verbal and non-verbal skills, as well as to provide opportunities for social skills exploration, role-playing, and peer support and feedback.