Founding Director/ Principal Speech & Language Pathologist
Sonia is the Founder of Talking Heads Speech Pathology and Principal Speech and Language Pathologist. She is also an Award Nominated Children’s Author, Podcaster, and highly regarded Speaker, Writer, Mentor and Coach.
Sonia has a varied Speech and Language Pathology background including; working in an education support context; as a clinical educator/ supervising Speech Pathologist at the University of Sydney; in hospital and community health settings in New South Wales, the National Health Service in the UK and of course in private practice settings.
Sonia is extremely passionate about early intervention; having personally delivered speech and language screenings to childcare/ preschool and school settings over many years. Her proactive attitude ensures timely identification of any speech, language and learning difficulties.
She is an established clinician, whose clinical interests and experience encompasses:
- Speech Sound Development
- Language Delays & Disorders
- Child & Adult Stuttering
- Autism Spectrum Disorders
- Learning and Literacy Difficulties
- Voice Disorders
- Accent Modification
- Corporate Communication
- Auditory Processing Difficulties
- Developing and running group therapy programmes
Sonia has formal training in DIR Floortime, Hanen “It Takes Two to Talk”, Sensory Processing Difficulties and the Spalding Method for teaching spelling, reading and writing. She also is experienced in the use and application of Picture Exchange Communication Systems (PECS) , Connect Therapy and sign, whilst she continuously maintains her clinical skills to be current, evidence based and innovative.
She regularly presents community seminars to the public, medical and educational professionals; often receiving guest speaker/ writer invitations on various media platforms.
Sonia is also an Award Nominated Children’s Author. Her debut picture book Reece Give Me Some Peace! launched in September 2018, and was shortlisted for the 2019 Speech Pathology Australia Book of the Year Award.
Her second picture book, released in 2019; Kisses in your Heart was shortlisted for the 2020 Speech Pathology Australia Book of the Year Award. Check out her Author website here!
Her podcast CHATABOUT CHILDREN with SONIA BESTULIC is easy for you to access via all podcast players. It has experienced very positive, steady and organic growth! Check out www.chataboutchildren.com
Sonia also worked on the Editorial Team for a community magazine, Shire’s Children, providing the community with general paediatric focused content, and high quality information from a medical/ health background.
Sonia was a selected Council member on the South Eastern Sydney Medicare Local – Allied Health Council; and also represented a vast number of the allied health community in her role as Director on the Board of the Central and Eastern Sydney Allied Health Network. She is a successful Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (GAICD).
Sonia continues to be renowned and recognised for working with
integrity, imagination and innovation.
She can be directly contacted at Sonia@talkingheads.net.au
