午夜剧场

Are you familiar with the profession of a Speech-Language-Hearing Therapist (ST)?

It is a national qualification for those who walk alongside individuals facing difficulties with language and communication. I run the "Kotori Speech-Language Consultation Room," and currently, with a staff of six across three locations in Kuramae (Tokyo), Kumamoto, and Osaka, I respond to consultations regarding language delays, stuttering, articulation disorders, reading and writing disabilities, and hearing loss.

In university, I majored in Aesthetics and Art History and vaguely thought I wanted a job related to creative fields. However, my job search did not go well, and it was during that time that I encountered the profession of a speech-language-hearing therapist. Following my intuition that "this is it!", I entered a two-year training program after graduation. At first glance, Aesthetics/Art History and Speech-Language-Hearing Therapy may seem worlds apart, but they share many commonalities.

For example, valuing a person's individuality. Analytically observing and practicing the act of "conveying." Recognizing that there are countless "micro-differences" and diverse evaluation axes in how each individual perceives things. Understanding that something trivial to most people can be life-changingly valuable to someone else. My studies at university and my current work are deeply connected within me.

Currently, while the number of children requiring support from speech-language-hearing therapists is surging, there is a serious issue: an overwhelming shortage of therapists in the pediatric field. There are physical limits to one-on-one support, making it impossible to reach every child in need.

I am developing multifaceted businesses, such as product development and book writing, without being bound by the traditional framework of a speech-language-hearing therapist. This is because I believe that the form of support should be as diverse as the forms of the problems themselves. Here, too, the art management and other subjects I studied during my time at university have been useful. Through my studies, I learned how to question the relationship between academia and society.

Communication is a collaborative endeavor with others, and a disability does not reside within an individual but exists in the "space between" people. This is the "social model of disability"—the idea that disability is created by the state of the surroundings and society. Rather than demanding internal change only from the individual concerned, I want to be the kind of speech-language-hearing therapist who designs the very relationship with the surrounding society.