Aphasia is a loss of language, but not intellect. This communication disorder impairs the ability to speak, read, and write caused by brain injury, brain illness or stroke.
“People with Aphasia know what they want to say – they just have difficulty saying it,” said speech language pathologist Ellen Cotton, who is with the Newmarket Health Centre’s Aphasia and Communication Disabilities program.
“Before I had my stroke, I’m not, I’m not going to say that I was like, eloquent,” said client Julia.
“But I was able, able to get my messages out.”
To Julia, the Aphasia and Communication Disabilities program (ACDP) is a safe place to get her messages out. With the help of speech language pathologists and trained volunteers, she’s doing just that.
“She (Julia) remembered a word she hadn’t used for like 10 years,” said program volunteer Shagun Kukreja.
“She was so excited.”
The program operates out of six locations throughout York and Durham regions, and operates under the umbrella of March of Dimes Canada – an organization that provides a wide range of services to people with physical disabilities.
“The best way to get better at having a conversation is to have conversations. Social interaction is a huge part of stroke recovery,” said Ellen.
“This program gives people a chance to do that.”
“It’s all in your head,” said Julia.
“You just have to retrieve it.”