Mykiah (Owner)
Why Speech-Language Pathology?
- During my senior year of high school, a virus attacked my six-year-old brother’s heart. He went into cardiac arrest six times throughout the night and was dead for over nine minutes the last time. He was put on life support, and the machine malfunctioned causing a stroke. He was taken off of life support. His organs started working on their own. He survived, and his extensive therapy journey began. A therapist would come in every day and check his swallowing. It was very interesting to watch, and I loved seeing him progress and transition back to solid food. At the time I didn’t know that the therapists were Speech-Language Pathologists (SLPs), but I just knew that they were contributing to his improvement.
- Two weeks before the start of my freshman year of college, my second exposure to the field occurred. I was a cheerleader and was thrown a few stories high in the air and wasn’t caught. I sustained a traumatic brain injury which led to post-concussion syndrome, short-term memory loss, stuttering, and seizures. I was admitted into an intensive rehabilitation program, and there is where I first heard the term Speech-Language Pathologist. The Speech-Language Pathologist helped me get a new, positive outlook on life. For this reason, I decided to become a SLP.
- Not only do I know what it's like to have a family member undergo services, but I also understand what it's like to receive services. Now, I get to provide the services, share my experiences, and love what I do!