Aphasia and dysphasia
Language rehabilitation in adults after neurological injury: comprehension, expression, communication.
Aphasia is the loss or impairment of language ability following brain injury - most often after a stroke, but also after trauma or other neurological conditions. The person retains their intelligence and personality; what is damaged is access to language.
Aphasia can affect speech, understanding of heard speech, reading and writing - in varying combinations. Two people with aphasia rarely present the same picture.
This is a service for adults. ORATIO works with both children and adults.
What the family notices
- The person has the word 'on the tip of the tongue' but cannot produce it.
- They substitute one word for another, sometimes similar in meaning.
- Sentences are short and clipped, without linking words.
- They speak fluently, but the content does not make sense.
- They do not understand instructions they used to understand.
- Reading or writing has broken down.
- The person withdraws from conversation and falls silent.
When rehabilitation should start
Speech and language rehabilitation begins as soon as the medical situation allows, in coordination with the doctor following the patient. The early period after injury carries particular importance.
That does not mean later work is pointless - improvements are achieved even when time has passed. But the timing of the start matters.
How the assessment works
The assessment carefully separates what is preserved from what is impaired: naming, understanding of heard speech, repetition, sentence construction, reading, writing. That separation fully determines the direction of therapy.
Functional communication is assessed too: how the person manages to make their needs known right now, and by what means, because everyday independence is built on that.
How therapy works
Therapy works in two directions at once: recovering language abilities, and strategies that let the person communicate effectively from now, even without full language.
Involving the family in conversation is part of the treatment. How you address a person with aphasia - the pace, the simple sentence, the time allowed for a reply - changes how much they manage to understand and to say.
The outcome depends on the nature and extent of the injury and cannot be promised. That is a professional fact, not pessimism.
The family's role
The family is the everyday conversation partner and therefore part of the therapy. The guidance is practical: do not complete the sentence for them, allow time, simplify the question, use writing or pictures where it helps.
Just as important: do not exclude the person from conversations. Enforced silence weighs heavier than the difficulty of speaking.
Frequently asked questions
- Does ORATIO work with adults?
- Yes. The practice works with both children and adults. Aphasia, dysphasia and stuttering in adults are among the most common reasons adults get in touch.
- How much improvement can be expected?
- It depends on the nature and extent of the injury, on when rehabilitation starts, and on consistency in the work. A responsible answer can only be given after assessment, and even then as a direction rather than a guarantee.
- Is a doctor's referral needed?
- Rehabilitation is carried out in coordination with medical treatment. Bring the medical reports you have - they are part of the assessment.
The first step is a conversation.
Book a first consultation, or write with a question. We answer on WhatsApp and by phone.