What Is Aphasia?

Welcome to the place where I share dementia tips, strategies, and information for family members caring for a loved one with any type of dementia (such as Alzheimer's disease, Lewy Body dementia, vascular dementia, frontotemporal dementia, etc.)

In today’s video I talk about aphasia and clear up some confusion in light of the recent news of Bruce willis retiring from acting because of aphasia.

______________
🧠 FREE DEMENTIA BEHAVIOR TRAINING
How To Care For A Loved One With Dementia Without The Overwhelm, Dread, and Confusion

🎁 [GET THE FREE GUIDE]
Dementia Careblazer Survival Guide: How to survive the caregiving journey without losing yourself in the process.

💌 [LET’S CONNECT]

______________

CHECK OUT MY POPULAR PLAYLISTS

Dealing with Challenging Behaviors:

__

In case you haven’t met me, my name is Natali Edmonds and I am a board certified geropsychologist. That means that I am a clinical psychologist who specializes in working with older adults. One day, while hiking a trail, I came up with the idea for Careblazers and I decided to see if posting videos online could provide help to the many other Careblazers in the world who don’t get to have help come directly to them in their homes. I hope that this work helps you in some way on your caregiving journey.
#careblazer #dementia #dementiacare

[carolbenson]

I helped take care of a woman who had Alzheimers who was never able to communicate but she was the sweetest most loving human being. The only time she talked was when she got upset with something...maybe some food or people trying to get her to do something that she didnt want to do. I sure miss her and her husband. They both passed in the same week...still heartbreaking! Thank you for your explanation!!

[romainerancier]

This fits my mom. There are times that you can tell she knows the wrong word has come out, but cannot find the one she wants. She gets so frustrated. I will look into an SLP seeing her .

[NYthingBUTordinary]

Absolutely my mom has this. She hasn’t spoke since going into a nursing facility. It breaks my heart that she can’t express her self. We’ve had a speech therapist when she got discharged from the hospital through home health but that was only temporary.

[elainemedley]

This was an eye opener. My husband has this for sure. I can tell what he means to say but it comes out mixed up. Mostly he chooses different words from what he should say. And he often has a hard time comprehending what we are saying. We get thru it though 🙏

[gcc]

Yes and I am the caretaker. He has never been assessed for aphasia, it's been under the large heading of autism. I hate this happened to Bruce Willis, but am looking forward to the next conversations.

[richardsullivan]

My wife has aphasia with dementia. MRI showed microscopic brain bleeds when she was diagnosed 4 years ago but started 7 years ago

[MsDawn]

Thank you for your video. I care for my ex-husband, who has had speech issues for years. In the last few months it has been harder to follow verbal directions. I appreciate having the right language when we go to the next Dr. appointment.

[aurorarose]

Both of my parents had dementia, my Mother with Lewy Body and my Father with Alzheimer's. They both suffered with different types of aphasia throughout their dementia journies. My Mother would start to cry when trying to talk to me. I would always take and hold her hands, kiss her on the forehead and say "I love you too Mom." It would calm her and the tears. I took care of both of my parents at the same time at home. I was a 24/7 caregiver for almost 8 years. Since their passing and my reflection, I would devote those 8 years again to them without hesitation.

[tonicastle]

Thanks so much for thia clarifying information! I'm very grateful my MWD is still able to communicate well.

[_JanetLouise]

yes, my husband has difficulties with expressing himself / finding the words and with understanding me

[susandraws]

This was very informative! I thank you.

[gzrguy]

This was so good, Dr. Natali. Made me think of a veteran in our dementia unit who understands everything we say but struggles oh so much to express himself. He becomes very frustrated midsentence, eyes get big and angry, balls his fists, lets out a growl, then says forget it and walks away. We feel so sad for him.

[kookykreek]

Thanks! Off to a speech language pathologist. Communication is so important and my LO can’t always get the words out or seemed to understand what is said.

[C-tp]

Thank you for this video- this is so interesting. Question: When someone has the expressive aphasia- do they know that what they are saying doesn’t make sense & they can’t choose/ say the correct word/sentence? Or is it more like when someone is having a stroke and they don’t know what they are saying doesn’t make sense? Like is the frustration because they can’t find the right words or frustration cause they think they are speaking clearly and your response doesn’t address whatever they think they were asking?

[angelatrusdall]

My mom has Alzheimer's and I have been her 24/7 caretaker for over 5 -1/2 years. I think she has aphasia. If you ask her a question, a lot of times she responds with something that isn't even related, and most of the time doesn't make sense by itself. Also, it seems like she can't hear the S sound

[spiffykates]

Thank you! So much debate going on in the caregiver communities over this. My mom definitely can't express herself anymore, though I'm not sure if that's due to aphasia or just not being able to remember what she's trying to say midsentence.

[satyarisingsanctuary]

“Aphasia” is a symptom of a neurological malfunction. It has many forms, and many causes.
It is not, unfortunately, a diagnosis. For example, “deaf” is a word describing a lack of hearing. That’s a symptom, but not a diagnosis.

[jenniferwatson]

Just wondering if expressive aphasia is only apparent when the person is trying to speak, or if it is also there if they write down what they want to say?

[HeathersJourney]

My stepmom has more trouble with words these days. Post delirium though r after major hyperactive stage of ot she has a lot of issues getting words out that make sense or that I can understand

[jodierb]

This is what mom experiences. Not not sevier but it it definitely frustrating.