Living with Aphasia: Practical Support and Awareness

Have you ever had the experience of knowing exactly what you want to say, but struggling to find the right words?

Even if someone suggests a word, you know it’s not the one you’re trying to find. It’s like having the thought right at the tip of your tongue but unable to find the right words to express it. It can be incredibly frustrating. Now imagine how that will play out if it is your experience every minute of the day.

Unfortunately, this is typically what most people with aphasia have to deal with.

Aphasia is a common consequence of stroke or brain injury in adults. However, as a speech therapist practicing in Ghana, I’ve noticed that it is rarely discussed and often overlooked in post-stroke rehabilitation.

This is especially true if the person with aphasia also has physical difficulties as a result of the stroke or brain injury, as this tends to dominate the situation.

What is Aphasia?

Aphasia is a language difficulty that affects an individual’s ability to communicate. People with aphasia often have difficulties with speaking, understanding speech, following instructions, reading, and writing. As social beings, our ability to communicate is crucial for all interactions, daily activities, and life roles. Consequently, aphasia can cause significant frustration and negatively impact an individual’s social and emotional well-being. There are several types of aphasia:

• Broca’s Aphasia (Non-fluent/expressive Aphasia) – People with Broca’s Aphasia have difficulty finding and saying the right words although they are likely to know what they want to say. It can be likened to having all the word categories jumbled up such that it becomes difficult to know where to go in the brain to find the right word. They often use single words or short sentences.
• Wernicke’s Aphasia (Fluent/receptive Aphasia) – People with Wernicke’s aphasia speak well and use long sentences; however, it is difficult to understand what they say as they often don’t make sense. They are usually unaware of their difficulty and may be frustrated when they are not understood.
• Anomic Aphasia – People with anomic aphasia have difficulty accessing the words they want to use to talk about things. There is difficulty finding words in both writing and speech.
• Global Aphasia – People with global aphasia have difficulties with both understanding and word production/speaking. It is the most severe type of aphasia as all aspects of language are impaired i.e. understanding, speaking, reading, and writing.
• Progressive Aphasia – This type of aphasia involves the language abilities of a person gradually becoming slow and deteriorating. This often leads to a gradual loss of the ability to understand, speak, read, and write.

Causes and Diagnosis

Aphasia is most commonly caused by strokes, which disrupt blood flow to parts of the brain responsible for language. Other causes include traumatic brain injuries (for example, resulting from a fall or vehicular accident), brain tumors, infections, and progressive neurological disorders like Alzheimer’s disease.

Diagnosis involves a thorough evaluation by a speech and language therapist, who assesses the patient’s ability to understand and use language.

The Role of Speech Therapy

Currently, there is no known medical or surgical treatment for aphasia, however, research has demonstrated that speech and language therapy interventions can be effective in improving the communication abilities of people with aphasia. Speech therapy helps people with aphasia to communicate in the best way possible, given their circumstances. This may involve helping them regain their language skills, using alternative ways to communicate alongside the few words they can say, or using writing, gestures, and other methods if unable to use words.

How to Support People with Aphasia

Supporting someone with aphasia requires patience, understanding, and some techniques to promote communication. Here are some effective ways to assist:

Be Patient and Attentive: Give the person with aphasia time to express themselves. Avoid interrupting or completing their sentences, as this can be frustrating and disempowering.

Use Simple Language: Communicate using short, simple sentences and clear language. Avoid complex words that might be difficult to understand.

Encourage Other Forms of Communication: If verbal communication is challenging, encourage the use of gestures, drawings, or written words.

Ask Yes or No Questions: These types of questions can be easier to answer for someone with aphasia. For instance, instead of asking, “What would you like to eat?” you might ask, “Would you like banku or fufu?” or perhaps to make things even simpler present the one option at a time: ‘would you like banku?’ then move on to the next item until they say yes for what they want.

Be Supportive and Positive: Offer encouragement and celebrate successes, no matter how small, as that can boost confidence and motivation.

Educate Yourself and Others: Understanding aphasia and its challenges can build a more inclusive and supportive environment. Share your knowledge with others to raise awareness and reduce stigma.

 

The writer is a Speech and Language Therapist