daisy!

slt student :)

[epistleii]

idk man. i just think itd be really cool if sign language classes were mandatory throughout primary school. yeah because it would make communication with deaf kids and autistic/nonverbal kids much easier. and those kids would be accessible to the others so they could make friends and have healthy relationships. yeah. and kids would eat that shit up man. like their own little secret language? they love that.

[faeriekit]

"It's so hard to teach kids consent 🥺" WRONG! Library books be upon ye!

Yes Means Yes, by Elaine Tai: "The various, "everyday" scenarios include the desire to touch someone's hair, play that can frustrate or hurt someone, and how someone might feel uncomfortable being touched or approached. Children will learn the importance of using their voice and listening when others use theirs, and parents can use the scenes as a foundation for further conversation."

Connor Kissed Me, by Zehava: "After Connor kisses Miriam on the playground, she tells a number of people who have differing reactions to the incident, until her mother encourages her to listen to and stand up for her own feelings."

Talking to kids about important topics goes way easier when you give them a basic expectation of what these experiences and situations might look like!

Additionally:

Emphasize to children that barring all necessary medical or safety interventions, their body belongs to them, and shouldn't be touched without permission. Yes, this does mean the conversation about vaccinations is going to take longer than usual. Consider it a trade-off.

Emphasize the affirmation, not the rejection! Sometimes people say no, and we respect that, and sometimes friends say YES to hugs and cheek kisses, and we get to share that with them!

There are plenty of alternatives to hugs and kisses! Don't want a hug? How about a high five? How about a pinky-promise? If you can't hold hands, why don't you hold onto my jacket, or I can hold onto your sleeve? Teaching kids how to ask for and offer alternatives when their peer says "No" goes a long way.

Encourage little kids not to keep "body secrets" at the request of others from their parents. If someone is asking them to hide something about their body from their parent, that's a huge concern.

Ask before hugging. Ask before kissing. Make other adults— yes, even nosy relatives—ask your child before a hug or a kiss. You can even model asking for physical affection with the co-parent if you have one. Modeling respect is worth it.

Lots of daycares are working harder to teach consent to younger children at younger ages. Some daycares are very proactive. Some are not. If you are in a position where you are interviewing multiple facilities about whether or not to place your child there, it's something that you can ask. "Do you have a stance on hugging between children, or between children and adults? What does it look like? Do you encourage boundary setting?"

And I like to think that we're beyond telling children that their bullies are secretly interested in them or want their attention but stop telling children that the other children who are harassing them are showing interest. 🔪 Stop it.

Children deserve safe, strong, respected boundaries! 🫂

[zegalba]

The nerves connected to the human jaw

[daisybslt]

Speech & Language Pathology Stroke Terms

Disorganised list of terms used in slt for stroke- for study/quick reference.

AAC- Alternative augmentative communication.

ABI- Acquired brain injury (anytime after birth).

Agnosia- Inability to process sensory information (in Greek gnosis- "not knowing").

Aphasia- Impairment of language, affecting the production or comprehension of speech and the ability to read or write, depending on the affected area of the brain. (Greek a/without + phásis/speech").

Apraxia- Inability to execute purposeful, previously learned motor tasks, despite physical ability and willingness. (Greek a/without + praxis/action).

Aspiration- Food or fluid accidentally enters the lungs through the windpipe, often as a result of dysphagia.

Bilateral- Involving or affecting both sides, usually referencing both sides of the body.

Capacity- Ability to reason, make decisions and consider choices, express views and receive and understand information (AWI= Adult With Incapacity).

Cerebro-Vascular Accident (CVA)- Stroke.

Cognitive function- Anything involving thinking.

Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT)- Blood clot forms in a deep vein.

Deglutition- The act of swallowing.

Dementia- Decline of function in the brain causes cognitive problems such as difficulty with memory, understanding and mood.

Dysfluency- Any type of speech which is marked with repetitions, prolongations and hesitations; an interruption in the flow of speech sounds. Commonly known as stuttering or stammering.

Dysarthria- Collection of motor speech disorders.

Dysphagia- Swallowing difficulties.

Embolism- Blockage of a blood vessel by a blood clot or piece of fatty material or other debris in the blood stream. An embolism is a type of stroke.

Enteral feeding- Feeding through a tube connected to the person's stomach.

FAST test- 'Facial drooping, Arm weakness, Speech problems, Time to call 999'

Fluency- Smoothness with which sounds, syllables, words and phrases are joined together during oral language.

Hemorrhagic stroke-  Caused when a blood vessel in the brain bleeds into the brain tissues or the space around the brain.

Hemianopia-  Loss of one half of your visual field. 

Hemiparesis- Weakness on one side of the body.

Hemiplegia- Complete paralysis on one side of the body.

Hypotonia- Abnormal decrease of muscle tone.

Ischemic stroke/ Infarct- Damage to the brain caused by lack of blood flow, usually from a clot. An area of tissue that is dead because of a loss of blood supply. This is the most common type of stroke.

Infarction- A sudden loss of a tissue’s blood supply causing the tissue to die.

Ischemia- Blood flow (and thus oxygen) is restricted or reduced in a part of the body. 

Ischemic penumbra- Areas of damaged but still living brain cells arranged in a patchwork pattern around areas of dead brain cells.

Lacunar stroke/infarct- When a small artery deep in the brain becomes blocked, causing a small area of damaged brain tissue.

Left hemisphere- Controls speech, comprehension, arithmetic, and writing.

Muscle tone- The degree of natural tension in a person's muscles. Abnormally high muscle tone can lead to muscle tightness and stiffness (spasticity). Very low muscle tone can cause floppiness (hypotonia).

Muscle tension- When muscles of the body remain semi-contracted for a period of time in the resting state.

Naso-gastric (NG) tube-  Medical catheter that's inserted through your nose into your stomach.  Used both to deliver substances to your stomach and to draw substances out.

Neglect- Not being aware of one side of the body and/or environment.

Neuron- Nerve cell.

Neuroplasticity- The ability of undamaged parts of the brain to take over the jobs of damaged areas.

Nystagmus- Continuous uncontrolled movement of the eyes.

Paralysis- Partly or entirely unable to move the affected parts of the body.

Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG)- Feeding tube placed through the abdominal wall and into the stomach.

Right hemisphere- Controls creativity, spatial ability, artistic, and musical skills

Stroke- Occurs when something blocks blood supply to part of the brain or when a blood vessel in the brain bursts.

Spasticity- Abnormal increase in muscle tone or stiffness of muscle

Thrombolysis- An early treatment for some types of strokes caused by a blood clot.

Thrombosis- A blood clot that forms in an artery.

Transient Ischaemic Attack (TIA)-  sometimes called a “mini-stroke”. Blood flow to the brain is blocked for a short time, usually no more than 5 minutes.

Vertebral artery dissection (VAD)- A tear in the walls of an artery at the back of the neck, blood can then get between the layers of artery walls and can lead to a clot forming, causing a blockage (a stroke).

Visual field loss- The loss of sight in a particular area of visual field.