tvcap

What can go wrong with communication?

Tue, 19 Sep 2023 15:59:51 GMT

Hopefully, we are now clear on what we mean by “communication”, we can now think about what happens when things break down.

At the Thames Valley Communication Access Program, we care deeply about effective communication because we work with people who have developed a communication impairment. We want to help people regain their skills and help manage their continued difficulties.

A communication impairment is a condition that impacts your ability to give and receive information. Brain injuries, strokes, dementia, ALS, Parkinson's Disease and MS are some neurological developments and diseases that you are likely aware of. If you have or know anyone who suffers from these conditions, you may be able to relate to the devastating impact they can have on communication. Difficulty talking, finding words, understanding, or remembering what others say, reading and writing are all possible consequences.

You may find you have difficulty communicating even without a neurological impairment. For example, if you are under a lot of stress, if you’re on medication that makes you drowsy, if you’re not sleeping properly, if you speak a different language than the people you’re talking to or if you have difficulty with your vision or hearing. These situations can certainly have an impact on one’s ability to give and receive information.

A communication impairment can have a significant impact on your quality of life and ability to function. No matter what the reason, a speech-language pathologist could provide speech therapy or communication coaching to help you improve skills and help you find new ways to communicate. At TVCAP, we are here to offer long term support so that you don’t have to be alone on your journey.

Do you have experiences with good communication or communication breakdowns that you would like to share? Please share your stories with us!

Communication is key to connection. Stay connected!

Yours Truly,

Natalie & Crystal

Let’s be clear... “Communication is…”

Tue, 19 Sep 2023 15:53:04 GMT

When you hear that someone has “excellent communication skills,” what do you think of?

Able to provide clear answers?
Excellent writing skills?
A persuasive speaker?
An active listener?
Warm body language?
An engaging public speaker?

Many ideas may come to mind. There is no doubt that communication is a multifaceted, complex process. But what exactly do people do to communicate? Let’s break it down.

Communication is the dynamic exchange of information between two or more people. Wait...2 or more people? “What if I’m talking to myself?” you might ask? Fair enough....but that’s a topic for another day!

Let’s stick with two or more people for now. We are consciously and subconsciously doing things to receive information from others, and we are doing things to give information to others.

What do we mean “receive information”?

Listening to someone talking, the words they are using and their tone of voice . . ...a presentation, a story, instructions, an opinion.......

Watching the speaker’s body language, gestures, and facial expressions ......are they confident, are they anxious, are they excited......

Looking at visuals the speaker may be holding or showing ....photos of their pet, a new watch they got for their birthday, the tools they are teaching you how to use.

Maybe reading something the speaker is showing us ........a text message they want you to read to get your opinion, a funny birthday card, an advertisement for an event they want you to go to.

We do an awful lot of listening throughout the day, and we automatically take in visual and auditory information, integrate it with what we already know and ultimately receive the information from the speaker.

What do we mean “give information”?

Well, just the opposite of receiving information, except when you give information, you’re the one choosing the words, using non-verbal skills (tone of voice, body language, gestures, facial expression, etc.) and choosing if there’s anything else you want to show your listener to layer on top of your talking to help express your ideas. Imagine you just came back from a trip, and you’re telling your friend all about it. You’re going to talk about everything, but you will also want to show them pictures, show them items you purchased, maybe show them a blog post or two to add additional details. These are all things we can do to “give information.”

There IS one more important aspect of communication: The verification process. As I’m sure we can all relate, one does not always give or receive information as intended. There are often misunderstandings! And so, taking the time to make sure you’ve communicated your message clearly and/or you’ve received the message correctly is a crucial step to communicating effectively. More on this in another blog post!

Best,

Natalie & Crystal

Welcome to the Thames Valley Communication Access Program!

Tue, 12 Sep 2023 19:32:07 GMT

You may be wondering, “What is the Thames Valley Communication Access Program?”

Well, hopefully the website so far has given you a good overview of who we are and what we are hoping to achieve. But if you’d like more details about our inspiration, please keep reading…..

We found our calling as speech-language pathologists and have loved the work from the very second we started. We loved helping people, connecting with people and most importantly, supporting people to show who are they are; to shine their light!

We have worked with adults with communication impairments for over 15 years. As much as we love the work, it can be heartbreaking. We’ve seen the devastating impact of acquired communication impairments. Whether the communication disability is due to a stroke, brain injury, Parkinson’s Disease, ALS, anxiety or Alzheimer’s Disease, we’ve witnessed many of these individuals be alienated from their loved ones and peers, unable to participate fully in activities they love to do and ultimately not be able to fully engage in their lives and be who they want to be.

Some have been blessed with compassionate, creative and skillful individuals in their worlds who help reduce communication barriers by using effective communication strategies and modifying the environment to make it accessible and inclusive. Reducing communication barriers maximizes life participation.

Living and working in the beautiful Thames Valley region in Southwestern Ontario has been a blessing. We have met so many incredible people who are willing to go through speech therapy to try to recover and manage their communication impairments to the best of their abilities. The problem has been resources simply do not exist for the intensity and longevity of the services required to help people reach their full potential, to help loved ones feel capable and supported in their partnering roles, and to educate the community on how to modify the communication environment to make the world communicatively accessible.

Communication groups exist in many parts of Ontario and have been able to prove their necessity. Having a supportive environment with trained professionals, volunteers, peers and loved ones experiencing a similar journey is paramount to helping to improve communication skills, feel connected to their community and improve quality of life.

Such groups do not exist in Southwestern Ontario. Enter the Thames Valley Communication Access Program. We knew we had to create these opportunities here. We endeavor to emulate these establishments to provide our own community with the best opportunity to live fully with communication impairments.

Our dream is to have all those with communication disabilities and differences be able to engage in their lives to their fullest potential.

Tell us, what is your dream? Why do you do what you do?

Thank you for doing what you do. And thank you for supporting the Thames Valley Communication Access Program!

Stay tuned ��

Natalie & Crystal