197. Aphasia 101: Causes, Treatment and Strategies for Caregivers

What is aphasia and how is it treated?

Discussions around aphasia have become more mainstream as celebrities like Bruce Willis, Dick Clark and Randy Travis have struggled with the condition. Aphasia is a neurological language disorder often resulting from injury to left side of the brain due to stroke, head injury, tumors, lesions, and more. It affects the ability to speak, read, write, and comprehend language. However, it can also affect skills like reading a clock, doing math, and remembering days of the week.

Since June is Aphasia Awareness Month, I’ve invited certified Speech Language Pathologist Francis Gutierrez Burpo to discuss this condition and how to treat it.

First, it’s important to know aphasia recovery is a marathon – not a sprint. Francis recommends an ongoing assessment every 10 sessions to monitor progress objectively, because progress can be slow and subtle. Patients also may not notice they’re improving, so this helps with managing expectations and keeping everyone motivated. This is important for caregivers too — if they over-help their loved ones, it can hinder the patient's progress.

Using technology is also helpful in therapy. iPads offer specific language apps to support sessions and track progress effectively. Plus, engaging and interactive tools can enhance rehabilitation outcomes. Therapy is also particularly helpful when it includes communication partners, not just caregivers, to simulate real-world communication scenarios. This helps patients adapt to a variety of conversations outside therapy settings.

Life with aphasia can be frustrating for the patient and stressful for the caregiver, so self-care is as important as ever. While a holistic, personalized treatment is the best way to support a patient’s recovery, a little grace goes a long way for the patients and caregivers.

Topics discussed:

What is aphasia
Speech language pathology
Stroke treatment
Aphasia treatment and recovery
Caregiver support

Takeaways from this episode:

Singing songs like "Happy Birthday" or the alphabet, taps into different parts of the brain and can help patients with aphasia express themselves – the difference between spontaneous and automatic speech.
Aphasia can affect other cognitive functions like understanding numbers or reading a clock. Treatment should therefore be well-rounded.
Practice and patience is key! Treatment can be complex and patients may not notice their progress. Keep in mind if a caregiver helps too much, it can hinder patient progress.
Aphasia often happens because of a stroke. Living a healthy lifestyle and managing blood pressure is key.
Recovery depends on many factors like the level of brain damage, the patient’s age, and more.