Iowa Speech Solutions, PLLC

Iowa Speech Solutions, PLLC Adult medical/neuro speech, language, swallow and cognitive services. Based in Des Moines, Iowa. Our visits are by appointment only.

Please give us a call and we will be as flexible as possible. We can offer in home options, depending on the case and location. We are currently accepting Medicare, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Midlands Choice. Pending enrollment with Medicaid and Humana. We are adult focused, personalized, specialized and flexible. Our clinicians have additional training in adult dysphagia (swallowing), Parkinson's Voice (SPEAK OUT! and LSVT LOUD), short program for ARK J Trismus, McNeill Dysphagia (swallowing) Program and Intensive Dysphagia treatment, AAC, and Dementia Practitioner.

🌿 Rest Radar: Signs You Need to Pause(Especially important for brain injury, concussion, or cognitive rehab patients)Why...
10/29/2025

🌿 Rest Radar: Signs You Need to Pause
(Especially important for brain injury, concussion, or cognitive rehab patients)

Why it matters for cognitive-communication therapy:
Rest isn’t “lazy.” It supports neuroplasticity, memory consolidation, and energy for therapy. Ignoring early signals can slow recovery or trigger cognitive/physical crashes. This checklist builds awareness of when your brain needs a break.

⸝

Physical Signs
☐ Unusual or increased fatigue
☐ Muscle aches, heaviness, or tension
☐ Headache, dizziness, vision changes, brain fog
☐ Unrefreshing sleep
☐ Flare-up of chronic symptoms

⸝

Cognitive, Mental & Emotional Signs
☐ Trouble focusing, remembering, or word finding
☐ Irritable, anxious, or emotionally reactive
☐ Low motivation for usual tasks
☐ Racing thoughts or hard to calm mind

Therapy tip: These signs show your brain may need a pause before continuing cognitive work.

⸝

Subtle / Delayed Signals
☐ Post-exertional crash after activity
☐ Appetite or thirst changes
☐ Heightened light/noise sensitivity

Therapy tip: Track patterns and share them with your care team for pacing strategies.

⸝

Practical Cues
☐ “Body/mind telling me to slow down”
☐ Crashes often hit 1–2 days after overdoing it
☐ Feeling low on energy or “bandwidth”

Therapy tip: Use these cues to plan tasks for when your brain is most ready.

⸝

✅ Rest Guidance
• Even 10–15 minutes of rest can prevent bigger crashes
• Pair rest with hydration, nutrition, and mindful breathing
• Rest protects neuroplasticity—your brain recovers faster when supported

Final thought: Rest isn’t just “doing nothing.” It can mean easing into your day, listening to music, or taking a slow walk. Create your own rest menu.

🐈‍⬛ Pepper prefers cat naps.

⸝

In neurorehabilitation, relevance drives neuroplasticity.If I hand someone a worksheet asking them to name zoo animals f...
10/22/2025

In neurorehabilitation, relevance drives neuroplasticity.

If I hand someone a worksheet asking them to name zoo animals from a yellowing 1980s manual, their brain might not light up with meaning; unless they’re a zookeeper or an animal lover, of course!

But if they love to bake, suddenly we can build a functional and meaningful word set:
🍞 What do you bake?
🥣 What ingredients do you use?
🧁 What are the steps in your favorite recipe?
🍴 What’s in your kitchen, and where do you keep it?

When therapy is personally salient, it strengthens attention, memory, and learning.
That’s neuroplasticity in action, the brain rewires best when it cares about the task.

Telehealth Speech Therapy: Bringing Care Across IowaAt Iowa Speech Solutions, we know access to quality speech therapy c...
10/16/2025

Telehealth Speech Therapy: Bringing Care Across Iowa

At Iowa Speech Solutions, we know access to quality speech therapy can be challenging—especially for older adults, caregivers, and those in rural communities. Telehealth has allowed us to bring therapy directly into people’s homes, supporting communication, memory, voice recovery, and more from the comfort of their familiar surroundings.

Update:
As of October 1, 2025, Medicare (CMS) has paused coverage for telehealth speech therapy. We’re hopeful this will change and will share updates as they become available.

In the meantime, private pay telehealth options may remain available for CMS clients who wish to continue virtual care.

Read the full blog on our website to learn more about how telehealth supports connection and independence across Iowa.

Interoception and Energy After Brain InjuryAfter a concussion, your brain may struggle to notice internal signals like f...
10/08/2025

Interoception and Energy After Brain Injury

After a concussion, your brain may struggle to notice internal signals like fatigue, tension, or stress.

In cognitive communication therapy, we help clients:
• Tune in to early signs of low energy
• Plan tasks during their best energy times
• Use pacing and cues to prevent overwhelm

Better interoception means better self regulation, communication, and participation in daily life without crashing.

What does your body’s low energy signal feel like?

Updates from Iowa Speech SolutionsWe’ve said goodbye to our brick and mortar Johnston office and now continue to see cli...
10/01/2025

Updates from Iowa Speech Solutions

We’ve said goodbye to our brick and mortar Johnston office and now continue to see clients in North Liberty (inside Breathe PT & Wellness).

Telehealth services are available across all of Iowa using secure platforms like SimplePractice and Doxy.me. Telehealth allows adult clients to:
• Join sessions from home, no travel needed
• Reduce stress & fatigue by being in a familiar environment
• Maintain consistency even during illness or weather changes
• Easily include family/care partners in therapy

⚠️ Coverage update: Starting 10/1/25, CMS (Medicare and Medicaid) will no longer cover speech therapy telehealth services. Private insurance and self-pay options remain available.

🏡 For clients in the Iowa City metro, we also provide in-home visits (availability, needs, insurance, and travel radius apply).

No matter the setting, our mission is the same: to provide compassionate, evidence-based care that meets you where you are.

A recent conversation with my spouse brought me back to my college and graduate school years. I remembered the late nigh...
09/24/2025

A recent conversation with my spouse brought me back to my college and graduate school years. I remembered the late nights balancing work, classes, and health struggles… the pressure of trying to “do it all” for a coveted spot in a speech language pathology program.

One of the hardest choices I ever made was changing universities and moving to a new state in search of growth, versatility, and a career I deeply wanted. It was mentally, physically, and emotionally exhausting. I had supportive friends and family, but truthfully it was one of the loneliest seasons of my life.

💬 To all the college students, future SLPs, and new grads:
It is hard. You are not imagining it. This path asks a lot of you, and it is okay to slow down, to rest, and to not have it all figured out. Give yourself grace, let others help you, and remember you are more than your profession. Learn who you are outside of your work. Lead with love, always.

I do not know of another career I would want, but I do know there is still so much work ahead to support both new and experienced SLPs. 💙

What would you like to hear more about from my journey into the field? Do you have a story to share?

New Blog for September! ✨  This month, we’re diving into the relationship between speech therapy and mental health couns...
09/18/2025

New Blog for September! ✨ 
 
This month, we’re diving into the relationship between speech therapy and mental health counseling; how they’re different, how they overlap, and why they’re often most powerful when working together.  
 
Healing isn’t about “one or the other.” For many people, progress comes from pairing both approaches; addressing communication + cognitive skills and supporting emotional wellness. 
 
When we recognize the value of collaboration between speech therapy and counseling, we open the door to a fuller, more sustainable path to recovery. 🌱 
 
📖 Read the full blog now at
https://lnkd.in/gXuZbKhV 
 


New blog announcement graphic. Photo shows two stones balanced on top of other stones. Text reads: “Discover the relationship between speech therapy and mental health counseling.”

New Blog for September! ✨  This month, we’re diving into the relationship between speech therapy and mental health couns...
09/16/2025

New Blog for September! ✨ 
 
This month, we’re diving into the relationship between speech therapy and mental health counseling; how they’re different, how they overlap, and why they’re often most powerful when working together.  
 
Healing isn’t about “one or the other.” For many people, progress comes from pairing both approaches; addressing communication + cognitive skills and supporting emotional wellness. 
 
When we recognize the value of collaboration between speech therapy and counseling, we open the door to a fuller, more sustainable path to recovery. 🌱 
 
📖 Read the full blog now at
www.iowaspeechsolutions.com 
 
 

New blog announcement graphic. Photo shows two stones balanced on top of other stones. Text reads: “Discover the relationship between speech therapy and mental health counseling.”

📊 Our Clients’ Voices Matter in Speech Therapy   In adult speech therapy and rehab, progress isn’t just about standardiz...
09/10/2025

📊 Our Clients’ Voices Matter in Speech Therapy  
 
In adult speech therapy and rehab, progress isn’t just about standardized test scores or therapist observations; it’s also about how clients feel they’re doing. That’s where Patient-Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) come in. There are numerous free
or easily accessible PROMS out there for many areas of a SLPs large scope of practice.
 
 
-PROMs let clients share their own perspective on communication, confidence, daily participation, and quality of life. 
-They help guide therapy goals and track meaningful change. 
-Most importantly, they keep therapy centered on the person. 
 
Because progress is more than numbers. It’s about impact. 💡 
 
List your favorite PROMS in the comments and bonus if you tell us why!  
 
 
 

Slide 1: “What are PROMs?” with question marks. Slide 2 explains PROMs as Patient-Reported Outcome Measures, client views on progress. Slide 3 lists benefits: sharing perspective, guiding goals, tracking change, centering therapy.

📢 Medicare Telehealth Coverage for SLPs at RiskAs of right now, Medicare coverage for speech therapy via telehealth is s...
09/04/2025

📢 Medicare Telehealth Coverage for SLPs at Risk

As of right now, Medicare coverage for speech therapy via telehealth is set to expire on September 30, 2025.

I’ve been searching for any recent updates or legislation that might extend coverage, but as of this weekend, I haven’t been able to find anything significant.

Telehealth has been a lifeline for many of my clients, especially those with mobility challenges, transportation barriers, or chronic health conditions. Losing this option would be a huge step backward for access to care.

👉 If you’ve come across updates, bills, or advocacy efforts in progress, please share—I’d love to connect and keep the conversation going.

The Power of Repetition and Routine in Rehab In adult speech therapy and rehabilitation, progress isn’t usually made thr...
09/04/2025

The Power of Repetition and Routine in Rehab 
In adult speech therapy and rehabilitation, progress isn’t usually made through “one big breakthrough.” Instead, it’s the steady rhythm of repetition and routine that helps the brain and body heal. 
 
Repetition strengthens new neural connections, while routine creates structure that supports follow-through outside of therapy sessions.
 
 
-Repetition rewires pathways. 
-Routine builds confidence. 
-Together, they make progress stick. 
 
In adult rehab, those “little things done often” are what create big changes.  
 
 
 

Graphic with a bluish ombre background fading to light blue at the bottom. Text reads: “Little things done often create big changes. Repetition rewires pathways. Routine builds confidence. Together, they make progress stick.”

Address

6165 NW 86th Street Suite 238
Johnston, IA
50131

Telephone

+15152197254

Website

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