Business: Darling Speech Therapy
Address: 29 S. Webster St., Naperville
Phone/website: 331-207-4350, www.darlingspeechtherapy.com
Owner: Anya Darling, 48, of Montgomery
Years in business: Opened in July
What does your business do? “My business provides evaluation, diagnosis and treatment for children who have communication disorders,” Darling said.
What are communication disorders? “I may see somebody who has a disorder in expressive or receptive language skills. How are they expressing themselves? That could be with spoken words or sign language or AAC devices. AAC means alternative and augmentative communication. It’s like an iPad, but they can use symbols that generate the speech for them. It gives them their voice.”
“Some children may not get to the spoken word part. Then we turn to the pictures or sign language or the AAC device. That is how they build their language. … That’s the expressive part.”
And the receptive? “It could be maybe they understand at the word or phrase level. Maybe they have a hard time following direction. Maybe they’re not understanding the concepts. For example, toddlers. We expect them at a certain age to know their body parts and clothing. That would be a basic concept. You get older, maybe having a hard time with categories or understanding differences. Language encompasses a lot.”
How did you get into this field? “I taught third grade for six years. I went to Arizona State to be a teacher. … My very last night of my very last class, we had a speech language pathologist come in for a presentation. … After that hour, I said to myself, ‘Oh, no, I’m not supposed to be a teacher, I have to be a (speech-language pathologist).’ But I did not make the change until six years after. … It changed my entire life. Meant to be.”
When did you come to Illinois? “We moved at the height of the pandemic in 2020 across the country with four exotic pets, a pot-bellied pig, two rabbits and a cockatiel. We moved here with our son. He’s almost 21. My in-laws are here. We wanted to be closer to family.”
What ages do you work with? “I’m pediatric. The youngest I have seen is 14 months. The oldest are 18 to 19 (years of age). … You need executive function skills to be successful in school. … It’s task monitoring. Sometimes, these kids feel so overwhelmed. … They don’t know where to start. A lot of kids I see have a hard time asking for help. Or, we call it ‘think time.’ Take a break, think about what you want to say, formulate it in your mind first, then it’s organized in your mind before you say it.”
How is that related to speech therapy? “That’s where the misinformation or the confusion comes from. We call it speech therapy, but it is so much more. Really, in our field, speech therapy is not all we do. We have executive function, which is considered cognitive, higher level. We have social communication. I might see an autistic child who really needs some assistance. … I don’t personally work with voice disorders, but it’s in our field.”
Is Naperville a good town for business? “Yes. A lot of parents are excited that I’m downtown.”
What do you like best? “Obviously, I’m in it to help children, but it’s more than that. It’s empowering children and families. It’s so great to see progress, even if it’s the tiniest bit.”
What’s the pricing? “It depends on the insurance. I’m only contracted with BlueCross BlueShield. Every practitioner will have their own private rate. It can run from $100 to $150 an hour. For me, a private rate is $100.”
Any challenges? “Getting the word out. I am starting to get more word of mouth. … Yes, the marketing can be tricky.”
Any future plans? “I’d like to add another discipline, an occupational therapist because I’ve been fortunate to co-treat with an occupational therapist. It’s amazing because a lot of children need that sensory input — helping with emotional regulation — that an occupational therapist is trained to do. They can help get their body ready for the demand of language.”
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What’s your advice for someone starting a business? “Write your plan down. Write down every little nuance and prioritize. You need to prioritize any little thing. I was writing down (on a list) masks, water, cleaning supplies.”
If you know of a business you’d like to see to profiled in Down to Business, contact Steve Metsch at [email protected].
Steve Metsch is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.