Talking about aphasia

I think it's critical to talk to people WITH aphasia ABOUT aphasia. Here's a story I'll tell on myself. One time I went to see a lady who had aphasia. She was very alert and knew everything that was going on, but couldn't express herself. After completing the evaluation, I briefly explained the therapy process and started giving therapy. But, she wasn't interested. She looked unhappy and "standoffish".

So I said to her, "You understand everything that is going on. You just can't talk. You are not dumb or crazy." She nodded an emphatic "Yes!" After that, we got along fine, and she did very well in therapy. She just needed to know that we were on the same page.

Most people don't know about aphasia before they have a stroke. When they wake up unable to speak, they have no idea what's going on. No one may tell them that they have aphasia. It's not an easy concept to explain! Especially when you are not sure if the person even understands "water" or "chair". Even family members have difficulty understanding what aphasia is when they first hear about it.

But it's important to make the effort, and keep on repeating it, until you are sure that the person understands. You can find a simple explanation of aphasia at http://www.aphasianyc.org/friendly.htm
This explanation is currently available in English, Spanish, Chinese, Korean and Russian. If you are able to translate the page into other languages, I will post it to be available for free at the same website.