Aphasia is a language disorder that typically impairs all 4 areas of language. Aphasia affects a person’s ability to speak, to understand spoken language, to read and to write.
This frustrating condition affects a person’s ability to communicate, but typically does not affect his or her intellect. It’s important to remember that a person with aphasia knows what they want to say, it’s just hard to find the words. Someone’s internal thinking remains; the ability to access and express those ideas is impacted.
Aphasia occurs most often from a stroke. About 25-40% of stroke survivors acquire aphasia.
Other causes may be brain injury, brain tumors, or other neurological conditions.
How Many People Have Aphasia?
Aphasia affects more than 2,500,000 million Americans. That’s more people than are affected with cerebral palsy or Parkinson’s Disease.
More than 70,000 people in NJ have aphasia.
Is Everyone with Aphasia Impacted in the Same Way?
No. Aphasia can range from mild (sometimes difficulty thinking of a word) to severe (little to no ability to speak).
Impact of Aphasia:
Imagine that one day your communication skills are taken away in an instant. Now you are unable to talk to your family, unable to understand what people are saying, you can’t finish reading the book you had begun, or even sign your name. Loss of these skills has a devasting impact on someone’s life.
Aphasia robs a person of the ability to communicate, cutting them off from their family, friends, health care providers, and everyday life.
Along with the person who has aphasia, there are impacts upon the family members as well.
Characteristics of Aphasia:
The hallmark symptom of aphasia is difficulty recalling words. This is like having that “tip of the tongue” feeling all day long.
A person with aphasia may say one word but mean something else.
Some words may be easy to say, while others may be difficult. In general, the more a person has to think about what he/she is saying, the harder it will be.
Sometimes a person with aphasia may mix up words that are similar in nature. Some examples include saying yes for no, saying man for woman, and mixing up the names of family members.
Can People with Aphasia Improve? YES!
There is no “cure” for aphasia but people with aphasia can improve over time. Improvement is a slow process but people may see language gains even after years or decades.