Aphasia
What is Aphasia?
Aphasia is an acquired neurogenic language disorder resulting from an injury to the brain, typically the left hemisphere, that affects the functioning of core elements of the language network (spoken language expression, comprehension, writing, and reading). Aphasia can impact individuals at any age. Typically, aphasia occurs from a TBI, stroke, or other damage to the left hemisphere of the brain.
Types of Aphasia
Many individuals with aphasia experience speech difficulties that don't fit neatly into these specific types. It can be more helpful to focus on the unique symptoms, strengths, and challenges of each person with aphasia, rather than trying to categorize them under a particular type.
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Description: People with Broca's aphasia have difficulty speaking and forming complete sentences. They may understand what others say but struggle to express themselves verbally. Speech is often slow, with short phrases and missing words.
Patient-friendly: "It’s hard for you to speak in full sentences, but you can understand what others are saying. You might find yourself speaking slowly or leaving out words."
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Description: Wernicke's aphasia affects the ability to understand spoken language. People may speak in long sentences that don’t make sense, often using incorrect or made-up words. They may not realize their speech is hard to understand.
Patient-friendly: "You might be talking a lot, but the words might not make sense to others. It’s also hard to understand what others are saying to you."
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Description: This is a severe form of aphasia where both speech production and comprehension are significantly impaired. Individuals with global aphasia may have very limited ability to speak or understand language.
Patient-friendly: "Speaking and understanding others is very difficult for you. Communication might feel challenging most of the time."
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Description: Anomic aphasia primarily affects the ability to find the right words, especially names of objects. Speech is fluent, but the person often struggles with word retrieval, leading to frustration.
Patient-friendly: "You know what you want to say, but finding the right words, especially names of things, can be hard. It might feel like the word is on the tip of your tongue."