We were lucky to catch up with Caitlin Bellinger, M.S., CCC-SLP recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Caitlin, thanks for joining us today. Was there a moment in your career that meaningfully altered your trajectory? If so, we’d love to hear the backstory.

My biggest inspiration in life has always been my Grandfather. He was a literal rocket scientist and Director of Engineering for Lockheed Martin and was by far the smartest man I’ve ever known. Any time I ever had a question about any topic, I would immediately go to him for the answer. He was patient, loving, and cared deeply for his family. Towards the end of his life, he suffered a series of strokes that eventually lead to his diagnosis of Aphasia. Aphasia is a language disorder that greatly impacts one’s ability to communicate, that is caused by damage to the area of the brain that is responsible for language. I remember realizing something was wrong when one evening, during dinner, he started speaking in jargon and just looked around at everyone sitting at the table, staring at him with faces of confusion, and he lost it. This was the first time I had ever seen my Grandfather cry. He knew something was wrong.

Soon enough, my Grandmother had no choice but to place my Grandfather in a nursing home where he could be properly cared for. My Grandfather’s ability to communicate verbally or through writing continued to decline as time went on. I remember it felt like my Mom and I were playing the guessing game when trying to figure out what his jargon meant. My Grandfather would become very frustrated that no one could understand him, and would sometimes yell, repeat his nonsense words louder, and would sometimes even give up. What an awful thing for someone to experience – literally being trapped in your own mind.

While my Grandfather was living at this nursing home, he received speech therapy. I remember going with him to one of his speech therapy sessions, and witnessed the speech pathologist using a communication board with him and I was fascinated. How amazing that she was giving my Grandfather a way to communicate! Although this interaction seemed promising, my family and I were given little to no information about my Grandfather’s condition by any medical professionals involved in his care. We had no idea whether or not he understood us, so we assumed he did not. Looking back now, I realize what a huge mistake we made by making that assumption.

On November 4th, 2013, my Grandfather passed away peacefully in his sleep.

On December 16, 2016, I graduated with my Bachelor’s degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders from the University of Central Florida (UCF), and in December of 2021, I officially became a Speech Language Pathologist after earning my Master’s degree from Nova Southeastern University (NSU).

Because of the mental suffering my Grandfather endured, it became my duty to become an advocate for people with language disorders and keep his legacy alive. To provide patients and their families with education and trust. To be a voice for those who may have lost theirs. To ensure none of my patients ever experience the confusion my Grandfather did. To make my Grandfather proud.

This is where my story begins.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’m Caity, a pediatric speech language pathologist and mother to the sweetest little (almost 2 year old) boy, Beckett. I was born and raised in the Orlando area, and I still live here today. It became my mission in life to become a speech language pathologist when my Grandfather, Rene, passed after suffering from Aphasia (a language disorder caused by damage to the brain). Aphasia robbed my Grandfather of the ability to verbally communicate, which was horrifying to watch. My Grandfather and my family were given little to no information on his condition or how to help him. I vowed to never allow this to happen to any of my patients during my career.

In 2023, I decided to start my TikTok platform (@CAITYBSLP) dedicated to sharing tips, tricks, tools, and strategies to help parents of language delayed children communicate. I went into it thinking, “If just ONE parent sees a video I post, I will consider that a HUGE win”. I would go into work a little early, set up my tripod, and speak about a communication topic I felt passionate about. Eight months after I created my TikTok account, it finally happened. A video of mine went viral. I woke up and checked my TikTok account as I normally do, and saw I had almost 400 new followers, over 300 new likes, and more comments than I could keep up with. The followers, likes, and comments rapidly grew to thousands (37,000 now!). I was overwhelmed with excitement to know that over 600,000 people had just learned crucial strategies that will help their children communicate. My life’s mission was coming to fruition before my eyes.

From the moment I became a speech language pathologist, and from the moment I started my social media platforms, I wanted to ensure my patients, families, and followers knew they could trust me. I wanted them to undoubtedly understand I was their child’s advocate and biggest cheerleader. That giving their child a voice genuinely makes my heart feel full. That I wasn’t just some woman looking to make some extra money by going viral or sharing toys that I find beneficial. That this is more than just a career to me, because of the person I dedicated this career to.

Other than training/knowledge, what do you think is most helpful for succeeding in your field?

Building genuine relationships and trust with patients and their families. It wasn’t until I became a Mom that made me fully understand the importance of this. To any parent, your child is your world. They are the most precious and sacred little soul on this earth. When you are relying on someone to help your child, you want to feel comfort in knowing your child will be safe, your child will be happy, and your child will learn from them. You want to make sure you feel comfortable in expressing your concerns and asking questions, and you want to ensure this therapist has your child’s best interest at heart. I truly believe this has played a huge role in building my reputation and earning respect in my career.

Do you think you’d choose a different profession or specialty if you were starting now?

I would choose to be an SLP over and over again. I genuinely love being in the “helping” profession and serving as the catalyst who helps children find their voice.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://stan.store/caitybslp
• Instagram: @caitybslp – http://www.instagram.com/caitybslp
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/caitybSLP/
• Other: TikTok: @caitybslp – https://www.tiktok.com/@caitybslp?_t=8f5sucagHa2&_r=1