Group Therapy
Sisskin Stuttering Center is known for outstanding programs of group therapy for stuttering. Avoidance Reduction Therapy for Stuttering (ARTS®) groups are available for school-age children and adults. We have many group options including groups for tweens, young teens, older teens, adults, and some special groups devoted to women who stutter. We offer a group with a special focus, Trauma Informed Practices for Stuttering (TIPS-ARTS) for those who may benefit from this specialized counseling approach.
While group therapy provides support, these are not “support groups”. Rather, they are “therapy groups”. Each group member follows an individualized therapy plan, is provided with rationale and instruction, and formulates weekly assignments that are meaningful and functional. Extensive guidance is provided to formulate successful assignments that lead to positive change toward one’s own goals that lead to ARTS® therapy outcomes:
- Efficiency in communication
- Comfort in communication
- Confidence in communication
- Spontaneity in communication
- Joy in communication
Individual Therapy
Individual therapy sessions are generally 60 minutes in length and are carried out weekly. Some of our clients opt for 30-minute sessions if shorter sessions meet their unique learning style. All clients are provided with individual treatment plans listing agreed upon goals and outcomes. Many of our clients benefit from a combination of group and individual therapy.
Families of young children may participate in indirect, direct, or operant approaches to therapy. Parents are included in session for young children, as training and modeling help generalization to home and community contexts. All of our associates have experience in supporting young children and their families through a variety of approaches. Two team members are trained in Lidcombe Therapy.
Consultation and Assessment
Hour-long consultations are offered to new clients to determine if the services we provide will meet individual needs and to ensure that we are a “good fit”. During consultations, we provide diagnostic impressions and general recommendations for services and resources. Details about setting up a consultation are on our Contact page.
We are not offering comprehensive speech-language evaluations as a separate service at this time. However, we will often carry out a full assessment within the context of therapy for our ongoing clients.
Word-Final Disfluency
Our Center has developed a unique protocol for reducing atypical disfluency, for example, presentation of word-final disfluency (“game-ame”; “we-hee”). We have excellent outcomes with short-term therapy (1 to 6 months) with a behavioral approach.
Parent Community
Periodic support groups are offered for parents of children receiving services through the Sisskin Stuttering Center. Separate support group meetings are held for parents of young children and parents of school-age children. Meetings are facilitated by our associates who work directly with the children and families. These meetings provide support and community, with opportunities to speak with other parents about their feelings and experiences, home strategies, school issues, and to gather needed resources.
Connection and Support
The Sisskin Stuttering Center maintains a private Google Group for adults who are either current and past participants in Avoidance Reduction Therapy for Stuttering (ARTS®) through our Center. This is an active community where members post questions and share experiences.
Additional Expertise
We have specialized experience and expertise in working with clients with co-existing diagnoses or conditions, especially autism. We find that the cognitive learning style in autism, as well as the profile of symptoms, may require some special programming.