M.S., CCC-SLP
Chicago, Illinois
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Schedule a free consultationHi! I'm Christianna. I received my graduate degree in speech-language pathology in 2014 from Illinois State University. My dad, uncle, and late grandparents play a huge role in my drive to become a Speech-Language Pathologist. My grandfather came to this country when he was 14 years old, fleeing Greece during a time of war. He worked hard, learned English, and became a successful businessman before meeting and falling in love with my grandmother. They had two healthy baby boys about 18 months apart from one another, the oldest being my dad and the youngest being my uncle. When it was time for my uncle to be born, my dad went to stay with his aunt and uncle, and it was there that they realized in their own very loud and busy home with three young boys that my father was not responding to his name readily. Upon further investigation, requiring extreme patience in a time when medicine did not have infant testing and safeguards built in, it was discovered that both my father and uncle had congenital hearing loss. My grandparents became amazing advocates, not only for their own children but for the special education community as a whole. They sought help from educators and speech pathologists far and near, traveling up to 50 miles (one way!) to access therapy sessions. My dad and uncle worked hard from a very young age to learn to be aural-oral communicators with the help of hearing augmentation. As I grew older, I learned more about the things my grandparents did and how strenuously my dad and uncle worked just to access educational and social experiences. I thought back on a lot of my childhood experiences that helped me to understand my dad's disability: the TTY machine in our home, closed caption forever running along the bottom of our TV screens, the distinct whistle of my dad's hearing aid when too much wind hit his earmold tubing, learning how to lipread from a young age, and my dad asking me how to pronounce words that had sequential high-frequency sounds. In choosing a career, I knew that speech pathology was not only already engrained into my daily life, but I wanted to be a part of all the lifelong effects of the professional's, parent's, and patient's hard work. I have experience working in school and pediatric outpatient settings. My work thus far has been focused on the pediatric population, but I am curious and motivated to learn more about adult specialties! I am proud to have achieved my Certified Lactation Counselor training and am specialized in pediatric feeding disorders. I have an SOS Feeding Certification, as well as training in Oral Placement Therapy and Sensory Motor Feeding. I was fortunate to take part in the Mary Massery training "If You Can't Breathe, You Can't Function" to learn how to more holistically treat patients who have airway dysfunction. I have participated in several trainings related to parent coaching and play-based therapy. I take pride in being an Illinois Early Intervention provider and helping patients and their families in the 0-3 population. I would describe my clinical style as holistic, client-centered, functional, individualized/personalized, family-centric, routines-based, strengths-based, sensory-integrative, and rooted in client empowerment by creating self-advocates.
Illinois
English
M.S., Illinois State University
B.S., Illinois State University
Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC)
Autism Spectrum Disorder
Childhood Apraxia of Speech
Cleft Palate/Cleft Lip
Down syndrome
Early Language Development
Pediatric Articulation/Phonological Disorder
Pediatric Dysphagia/Sensory Feeding
Pediatric Fluency/Stuttering
Pediatric Receptive-Expressive Language Disorder
Pediatric/Adolescent Social-Pragmatics
Literacy
Sensory Feeding
Pediatric Mixed Language
Adult Articulation
Adult Fluency/Stuttering
Adult Social-Pragmatics
I love cooking and baking and am always looking for new recipes to try! I am a new mom to my sweet little Penelope and have enjoyed my role of motherhood so much! My husband and I enjoy traveling and spending time outside, mostly near water under the sun!
At Expressable, all individuals and families are matched with a licensed speech therapist that's experienced to their specific area of need. You'll receive expert help from a talented, caring, and compassionate speech therapist invested in you or your child's communication success.
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Private payHSA/FSA Major insurance plansCommunication is one of our most vital, life-long skills. Speech therapy can help children reach communication milestones appropriate for their age; clearly articulate their thoughts, feelings, and ideas; comprehend the language of others; and develop socially. It also contributes to their academic success and emotional well-being. Plus so much more!
The first step is to schedule an evaluation with a speech therapist. They’ll assess your child’s communication development and make a professional recommendation as to whether your child could benefit from speech therapy.
There is no minimum age. Communication skills begin developing in infancy. Building strong language skills in very young children can set the foundation for strong communication and literacy skills later on. Speech therapy is particularly important for children who aren’t reaching age-appropriate communication milestones, or who are experiencing difficulties such as stuttering or a lisp. Because speech and language patterns become more ingrained over time, the earlier speech errors can be corrected, the better the outcomes are likely to be.
The duration of speech therapy is different for everyone, and it depends on several factors. This includes the type of speech disorder or communication challenge, the frequency of speech therapy sessions, how often you and your child practice the skills taught in speech therapy at home, your child’s age, any underlying medical conditions, and more.
Most children love online speech therapy! Many become more attentive with online learning, and they prefer the interactivity of online exercises and communication. Plus, there are many effective strategies that speech therapists use to engage children online. Expressable’s model of care also focuses on the most important component of improving children’s speech and language skills: the involvement of their parent or caregiver. When parents are actively involved in their child’s care, that leads to faster progress. Our therapists work directly with caregivers to teach them techniques and strategies they can use in their child’s everyday life.
Speech therapy sessions are focused on each client’s care plan, and the activities done during sessions always relate to those goals. So, if a person is in speech therapy to better pronounce the /s/ sound, they’ll begin by learning how to make the sound by itself and work up to practicing it in conversation. Or if someone wants to improve the quality of their voice, their speech therapist will teach them appropriate breathing and vocal exercises. The therapist will aim to do as many trials of each exercise as possible, in order to make the most of each session.
Your speech therapist will constantly be measuring and assessing your response to these exercises. When needed, they’ll make changes to your treatment plan to help you make progress as quickly as possible. Regardless of your goals, your speech therapist will always provide practice activities to complete at home between sessions.
Expressable currently accepts many of the largest insurance companies, and we’re actively working on contracting with new plans across the country. We also offer affordable private pay options and accept HSAs/FSAs for those who do not have insurance coverage or prefer to pay out-of-pocket.
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