Feel more confident in every conversation.

I help people communicate with greater confidence — whether you are navigating stuttering, dating, or the everyday moments where being understood matters most.

Private pay · No referral needed · Sessions online or in person

How comfortable you feel speaking shapes your friendships and relationships, your work, your dating life, the rooms you walk into, and the opportunities you decide are worth trying for. When speaking feels difficult, it rarely stays contained to the words.

You do not need to become a different person. My work is helping you communicate more comfortably and more freely — as yourself.

Twenty years of listening closely to how people speak.

I am a licensed speech-language pathologist. For nearly two decades I worked in California public schools alongside families, teachers and psychologists, and in that time I learned something that shaped everything since: communication is not really about speaking correctly. It is about feeling seen, understood, and confident enough to share who you are.

My style is warm and practical. We work on the situations in your real life, at a pace that feels manageable, and I will never ask you to become someone else in order to be easier to listen to.

I may be a good fit if some of this sounds familiar.

Questions people ask first

I have spent twenty years learning how much a voice can carry.

I am a licensed speech-language pathologist, and for nearly two decades I worked in California public schools with families, teachers and psychologists. Somewhere in those years the real lesson landed: people do not come to me because they want to speak correctly. They come because they want to be understood.

So that is what we work on. Warmly, practically, and at a pace you set — with none of the pressure to become someone easier to listen to.

Some of this may sound familiar.

If you stutter

• You swap words rather than risk the one you meant
• Introducing yourself is the worst part of any room
• You stay quiet even when you have the answer
• You have turned down things you actually wanted

If dating feels hard

• You overthink every reply before you send it
• Your questions start to sound like an interview
• You talk too much when nervous, or go quiet entirely
• You feel interesting inside and flat out loud

Questions people ask first

I'm Susanne, a speech-language pathologist. I work with adults on stuttering, and on the conversations that come with dating — so that speaking takes less effort and less rehearsal.

Twenty years of listening closely to how people speak.

For nearly two decades I worked in California public schools alongside families, teachers and psychologists. What I learned there shaped everything since: communication is less about speaking correctly than about feeling understood enough to say the thing.

Let's make talking feel easier.

I'm Susanne. I help adults who stutter — and people who find dating conversations hard — speak with less effort and more of themselves.

I've spent twenty years listening to how people speak.

Nearly two decades of that was inside California public schools, working with families, teachers and psychologists. It taught me that communication is rarely about speaking correctly — it's about feeling understood enough to say the thing at all.

Communication changes lives.

Not simply because we learn new words — but because we learn to express who we are.

At Gather & Grow I help infants, children, teens and adults build communication skills that foster confidence, connection, independence and joy. Whether we're celebrating a toddler's first words, helping a student thrive at school, refining professional communication, or navigating an IEP together, every session begins with the same belief: your voice matters.

Private pay · Superbills may be available · In person, in-home, outdoors or virtual

It is belonging. It is confidence. It is curiosity. It is advocating for yourself, sharing your ideas, building relationships, discovering who you are.

Therapy here is never about fixing someone. It is about discovering strengths, developing skills, and creating opportunities for every individual to communicate with authenticity and confidence. Learning happens through movement, conversation, creativity, meaningful play and real-life experiences.

Every person deserves to feel heard. Every person deserves to know their voice has value.

A different kind of speech therapy.

Imagine therapy that feels more like exploring than working. One session might happen on the backyard playground. Another around a table building stories together. Another while climbing, making art, reading, solving problems or playing games.

Children learn best when they're engaged.

Adults learn best when therapy feels relevant.

Families learn best when they're part of the process.

I'm Susanne Creighton, M.A., CCC-SLP.

I've spent more than twenty years helping people communicate with confidence. My experience spans every stage of development — from infants developing their earliest communication skills to young adults preparing for careers and independent living.

Throughout my career I've worked in public schools, collaborated with multidisciplinary teams, supervised and mentored professionals, partnered with families, and advocated for students through hundreds of IEP meetings.

Before becoming a speech-language pathologist I earned a degree in Economics from Georgetown University, then followed my interest into Communication Sciences and Disorders and a Master's in Speech-Language Pathology from San Diego State University. I'm also a certified yoga teacher, and I believe movement, mindfulness, curiosity and play create powerful openings for learning.

Communication isn't something we practise in therapy. It's something we live every day.

From first words to first interviews.

Nearly two decades inside California public schools.

I understand how educational systems work because I've been part of them. If you're preparing for a meeting, trying to make sense of an assessment, or unsure what your child is entitled to, I can sit on your side of the table.

Communication happens everywhere.

Because learning shouldn't be limited to a desk, sessions can take place wherever they'll work best.

We don't begin with deficits. We begin with strengths.

Stuttering does not have to decide when you speak.

I offer personalized support to help you communicate with more confidence, more freedom, and more trust in yourself — in the situations you care about.

You are not the only person doing this much work to speak.

Whatever you have been managing quietly, you will not have to explain or defend it here.

What we might work on

You choose the priorities. These are the areas people most often bring to me.

What sessions look like

There is no script and no cure on offer. There is a steady, collaborative process that adjusts to you.

What we might aim for

These are possible goals, not promises. Progress looks different for everyone, and you define what counts.

Feel more confident being yourself on a date.

I help you build the communication skills to start conversations, show genuine interest, listen with curiosity, and create the kind of connection that actually goes somewhere.

This is communication coaching — not matchmaking, not therapy, and not a set of lines to use on people.

Most people are not bad at this. They are just doing it under pressure.

Communication is a skill, and skills can be built. None of this requires a personality transplant.

Where coaching helps

We work on whatever stage you are stuck at — often it is not the one you expected.

What coaching looks like

Practical, specific, and built around the dates and conversations actually in front of you. I do not guarantee dates, relationships or romantic outcomes — no one honestly can.

Hi, I'm Susanne.

I became interested in communication because of how much it decides. Not just whether someone understands your sentence — whether you get to be known at all.

I am a licensed speech-language pathologist with more than twenty years of experience. For nearly two decades I worked in California public schools, alongside families, teachers, psychologists and therapists of every kind. I sat in a lot of meetings about a lot of people, and the pattern that stayed with me was this: the person in the room who could not easily say what they meant was almost always the person being decided about rather than listened to.

That is why I do this work. Communication is not a cosmetic skill. It is how you make friends, get taken seriously, ask for help, and let someone get close to you. When it feels risky, life quietly narrows — and most people never mention it to anyone.

What I enjoy most is the moment something loosens. Someone makes the phone call. Someone says their own name and does not brace first. Someone comes back from a date and tells me they forgot to be nervous halfway through. That is the whole job, really.

I want you to feel like you can be honest with me — including about the parts you find embarrassing. Nothing you say here will surprise me, and none of it will be treated as a flaw to correct.

All credentials shown here must be verified by Susanne before publication.

What I am like to work with

Warm, and fairly direct. I will tell you honestly what I notice, because vague encouragement does not help anyone. I am patient about the pace and impatient about wasting your time.

We work collaboratively — you know your life far better than I do, and you always have the final say on what we practise and how far we push. Sessions tend to be practical, occasionally funny, and focused on things that will actually come up this week.

Away from work

A short paragraph in Susanne's own words: where she likes to walk, what she is reading or growing or cooking, how she prefers to spend a Saturday. Two or three sentences is plenty — enough to feel like a person, not a profile.

Optionally, one small story about a conversation that changed something for her. This is the paragraph most visitors will remember.

Services & fit

Sessions & logistics

Money, referrals & privacy

If I cannot pick up, leave a message with a good time to reach you and I will call back.

Often the easier option if speaking on the phone feels like a lot right now. That is completely fine.

Within one to two business days

San Diego, California

Yes — for clients located in California

San Diego area, by appointment

Monday to Friday, 9am – 6pm PT

Private pay, discussed in our first conversation

A note about your first email

Please avoid including confidential medical information in your first email — ordinary email is not a secure channel. A sentence or two about what you are looking for is plenty, and we can discuss the details directly.

Not for emergencies

This phone number and email address are not monitored for urgent or crisis situations. If you need immediate help, please contact your local emergency services, or call or text 988 in the United States to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.

How your information is handled

Last updated August 2026. This page must be reviewed and approved by Susanne, and checked against current California privacy requirements, before publication.

What is collected

This website has no accounts, no forms and no logins. Nothing is collected from you unless you choose to make contact. If you call or email, I hold whatever you send me — your name, your contact details and what you tell me about what you are looking for.

How it is used

Only to reply to you and, if we go on to work together, to provide services. Your information is never sold, rented or shared for marketing, and you will not be added to any mailing list without asking to be.

Analytics and cookies

This site uses privacy-conscious analytics to count visits and see which pages are read. That data is aggregated, is not used to identify you, and is not combined with anything you tell me. No advertising cookies are used. Confirm the exact tool and wording before publishing.

Email is not secure

Ordinary email and text messages are not encrypted. Please do not send confidential medical information in a first message. Once we are working together I will explain how records are kept and protected.

Deleting your information

You can ask me to delete the enquiry details I hold about you at any time, and I will do it — except where a clinical record must legally be retained. Just call or email and say so.

Questions about privacy

Contact me on (619) 955-2728 or at hello@susannespeech.com and I will answer directly.

Website terms and disclaimer

Last updated August 2026. This page must be reviewed and approved by Susanne, ideally with professional advice, before publication.

General information only

Everything on this website is general information. It is not clinical advice, a diagnosis, a treatment plan, or a recommendation for your particular situation.

No professional relationship is created by this site

Reading this website, calling, or sending an email does not make you a client. Services begin only once Susanne and the client have agreed to work together and any required paperwork is complete.

Results vary, and nothing is guaranteed

Communication support is individual. No particular outcome is promised — not fluency, not the elimination of stuttering, not a specific level of confidence, and not any timeline.

About dating communication coaching

Dating communication coaching is communication skills coaching. It is not matchmaking, introductions, relationship therapy or couples therapy, and it is not a promise of dates, romantic interest or a relationship.

Not emergency or crisis care

These services are not a substitute for emergency, crisis, psychiatric or mental health care. The phone number and email on this site are not monitored for emergencies. If you need urgent help, contact your local emergency services or call or text 988 in the United States.

Scope of practice and licensure

Susanne provides services only within her professional scope of practice and only where she holds the required licence. Speech-language pathology services are available to clients located in California.

Testimonials

Any testimonials published here are shared with written permission and describe one person's individual experience. They are not a prediction or guarantee of your own.