😺 Why it's hard to say "kitten"

When people with aphasia can't get words out, they often feel silly. Or stupid.

It can bring on a whole range of emotions: frustration, sadness, confusion, anxiety, anger, embarrassment, and more. 😭

For some patients and family members, it can be helpful to explain word retrieval, so they understand that saying words is actually a complex process.

Let's take the word "kitten" for example:

I often start by reassuring them... "You don't have to memorize everything on here. I just want to show you how complicated it is to say a word."

A diagram that shows the different steps of word finding and the errors that may occur — 👆 This graphic was made with patients in mind. See the SLP version here.

First, the concept forms: a baby animal that meows and has pointy ears, whiskers, and fur
Then, we map that concept to grammar: it's a single, countable noun
We also need the sounds of the word: /’kɪt.ən/; two syllables, stress on the first
Then, we need to make sure the sounds are in the right order: not "nitten," or "kintin," or "kitchen"... but rather, "kitten"
Then, we need the correct mouth movements and timing: our mouth, tongue, lips, and vocal cords need to move in the right ways, at the right times, to say the word out loud

When a patient sees these steps, word finding difficulty stops feeling like a personal failure and starts feeling like a complicated neurological task – because it is!

A huge part of speech therapy is counseling, education, and encouragement. Technology cannot replace the human connection we have with our patients. 🫶

But technology can help with the rest.

If time constraints, productivity standards, or insurance limits have you racing through sessions, let the Virtual Rehab Center take the prep off your plate.

You get functional, research-based, updated materials that are ready to go.

Which gives you extra time to do what you do best: explaining, reassuring, reading the patient's frustration in real time, training communication partners, and working on strategies.

A screenshot of word-finding treatments in the Virtual Rehab Center + the ability to assign them as free homework — More time for counseling, education, and support – without sacrificing treatment intensity.

There are 7 word-finding treatments, including Semantic Feature Analysis, VNeST-inspired sentence building, Phonological Components Analysis, and video-based action naming.

Plus, you can assign any of these for unlimited home practice. This is included in your membership and free for your patients! 🙌

Try the Virtual Rehab Center

Free for 21 days. Credit card required. Cancel anytime with one click.

All the best,
-Megan

P.S. A few more resources to help in your sessions:
1️⃣ What SLPs Need to Know: Anomia – a clinical overview for SLPs
2️⃣ Word-Finding Strategies for Aphasia – a patient-facing guide with tips for how to communicate when words get stuck

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😺 Why it's hard to say "kitten"

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