Introduction to Speech Impairment: What Can Cause Speech Problems in Adults?

For most of us, there’s little reason to give thought to speech. It’s just something we do, like breathing or walking. For some of us, though, things aren’t as straightforward. When speech is difficult, when it’s impaired, we lose grip on a fundamental tool for expressing our thoughts, needs, and emotions. Losing a function we usually let run on autopilot can have a snowball effect on the rest of our lives. Think relationships, think career, think your mental health. 

We tend to think of speech impairment as an issue that affects the bookends of our lives, childhood and old age. The truth is, many adults experience it. Some gradually, others suddenly. Like anything with the potential to adversely affect your life, the more you know, the better. Together, let’s explore speech impairment in adults in a little more detail, including causes, diagnosis, and treatments. 

But first, what is a Speech Impairment?

Simply put, any condition that affects your ability to speak is a speech impairment. Critically, a speech impairment is not a language impairment; it concerns your ability to produce sounds, not your ability to understand or use words properly.

Speech impairments are challenging for anyone of any age, but as an adult, they’re particularly exhausting as they disrupt communication patterns. Imagine you’ve been tasked with presenting at the next stakeholder meeting at work; slurred words or complete speech loss isn’t a burden you want to bring with you to the boardroom. 

Adult speech impairments: The common types

Several speech impairments affect adults, all in different ways. 

Dysarthria

This impairment happens when your speech muscles (lips, tongue, etc) are weak or paralyzed. The result is often slow, slurred, or mumbled speech. Dysarthria can stem from degenerative conditions like Parkinson’s disease or muscular dystrophy, or things like stroke or alcohol consumption. 

Apraxia

Unlike Dysarthria, Apraxia affects the part of your brain responsible for speech. Your muscles can be fine, but your ability to coordinate speech movements isn’t. Brain injuries and degenerative diseases are the common causes of Apraxia. Anyone displaying inconsistent, distorted speech patterns is a likely candidate for Apraxia.  

Stuttering

This is the impairment everyone knows. You probably know it from your school days, but it’s common in adults too, with around 3 million adults in the US alone affected by stuttering. The stigma around stuttering can often seem more harmful than the impairment, as it’s fuelled by myths and misinformation. 

Vocal disturbances

While you could never fault your vocal cords for the amount of work they do, they are more fragile than you think. Overuse, incorrect use, or even too much caffeine will do them harm over time; you can expect speech impairments to follow. Also, things like throat cancer or growths on your vocal cords will do similar damage. 

Aphasia 

While Aphasia is a language disorder, it presents in similar ways. Typically caused by stroke or brain damage, if you experience Aphasia, you’ll likely have trouble speaking, understanding, reading, and writing. We’ve included it in this article to highlight how important a correct diagnosis is. 

What can cause speech impairment in adults?

We’ve touched on this a little already. A diverse range of things causes adult speech impairments, including:

Neurological Events

Stroke, brain tumors, and traumatic brain injuries top the list for the most common neurological causes. Of the three listed, stroke is the most frequent, with an estimated 800,000 adult Americans suffering a stroke every year. 

Degenerative Diseases

Think Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis (MS), and Alzheimer’s. If you’re unfortunate enough to experience these diseases, your speech will likely degenerate the more they progress. 

Medical Conditions

Anything that affects the parts of your body involved with speech. For example, if you’re diagnosed with Laryngeal Cancer, it may affect your larynx (your voice box) to the point where it must be removed. In other words, no more vocal cords. Brain diseases and surgical complications can have similar effects. 

Psychological Factors

It’s not always physical factors that cause adult speech impairments. If stress and anxiety are daily challenges for you, or you’re recovering from psychological trauma, the pressure these things bring can lead to speech problems. Often, non-physical causes can be harder to identify, which can delay treatment. 

Substance Use

Or, as is often the case, abuse. All the usual suspects, drugs, alcohol, and prescriptions, can adversely affect your ability to speak, temporarily or permanently. This is particularly the case if they begin to influence your central nervous system. 

Getting diagnosed: the first steps

Like anything medical, early, accurate diagnosis is the key that unlocks your door to recovery. It’s about paying attention to the details: small changes in speech, like hoarseness or persistent slurring, are enough to warrant investigation. Enough to warrant chatting with a Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP). 

SLPs are healthcare professionals trained specifically to assess, diagnose, and treat speech and language impairments. If you’re referred to an SLP by your GP, your evaluation will typically involve:

• Reviewing your medical/personal history
• Examining your oral/motor skills for coordination and strength
• An assessment of your language skills and cognitive communication
• Referrals (if needed) for neurological evaluations

SLPs are part of the wider healthcare network, which means they’ll work closely with other healthcare professionals, physicians, neurologists, for example, to develop a personalized plan for you. 

If you’re coming at this article from a study angle, great. It’s a fascinating medical field to become a part of. If you want to take that step and become involved, perhaps consider a SLP masters online or on-campus, as these pathways will give you the necessary qualifications. 

Getting treatment

Of course, your treatment path will depend on the severity and underlying cause of your impairment. Here are common interventions:

• Speech Therapy
• Assistive technology
• Medical/Surgical interventions
• Supportive approaches

Tips for dealing with speech impairments

A speech impairment is life-altering; there’s no way around this fact. That said, anyone who has to live with one knows they have control over how life-altering the impairment is. Many adapt and thrive with this challenge in their lives. Here are a few tips if speech impairment is something you now experience, or someone you love now experiences:

• Patience is a virtue. Just as the saying goes. If you’re working on fixing things, be patient; consistent therapy will yield results. 
• Embrace the visual and non-verbal. When speech becomes difficult, visual and non-verbal communication can become your norm. 
• Education is growth. The more you understand—the more everyone understands—the more support you receive. Simple. 
• Celebrate the small wins. Making a phone call. Saying a full sentence. No matter how big or small, simple or complex the progress, you must congratulate yourself. Recovering from a speech impairment isn’t a linear path. 

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In a perfect world, everyone communicates with clarity and precision. Of course, this isn’t the case. Effective communication is challenging for people without speech impairments; if you have to deal with this added barrier, the climb toward being understood is all the steeper. 

With a proper diagnosis and a personalized treatment plan, though, you can make the climb less steep. And with professional help, there’s every chance you’ll overcome your impairment permanently.