SPEECH & LANGUAGE DISORDERS
Often times speech and language disorders accompany one another. Read more below to leanr the difference.
SPEECH DISORDERS
DYSARTHRIA & APRAXIA
WHAT ARE SPEECH DISORDERS?
Motor speech disorders refer to difficulty with the physical production of speech sounds as well as any additional aspects of speech, such as our intonation, volume, rhythm, stress, etc. These things help communicate our message and/or impact how our message is delivered. For instance, notice how your pitch changes when you ask yes/no questions, or how your volume changes when you’re excited or angry.
Apraxia is a disorder where a person has difficulty producing sounds correctly. The brain knows what it wants to say, but it cannot plan, sequence, and execute the speech sounds correctly or consistently. For example, they might say “lefitone” for “telephone.”
Dysarthria is also a speech disorder caused by muscle weakness that can occur for various reasons. We speak using many muscles including our lips, cheeks, jaw, etc. When those muscles become weak, it makes it more difficult for people to understand us.
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SIGNS & SYMPTOMS:
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Difficulty being understood—people are frequently asking you to repeat yourself
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Difficulty repeating words
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Difficulty moving your lips, tongue, jaw, or cheeks to produce speech-sounds
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A lack of speech-sound clarity; mumbling; slurring
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Voice changes (i.e., breathy, hoarse, strained, nasal, sounding like you have a stuffy nose, etc.)
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A quiet voice that is hard to hear
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Monotone or unstable pitch
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Speaking rate is too fast/slow
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Frequent speech-sound errors: you may leave out, add on, distort, or switch sounds (e.g., “lefitone” for “telephone”).
If you or a loved one are experiencing any of these symptoms or for more information, please contact Davina.
LANGUAGE DISORDERS
APHASIA
WHAT IS APHASIA?
Aphasia is a language impairment that occurs from injury to the language centers of the brain (seen pictured). It affects people’s abilities to communicate and connect with people. People with aphasia have difficulty with one or all of the following: reading, writing, speaking, and understanding verbal information. This typically results from a stroke or head injury, but can also occur with other neurological disorders (e.g., Parkinson’s Disease, dementia, etc.).
Left view of brain depicting Broca’s and Wernicke’s areas, two language centers in the brain
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SIGNS & SYMPTOMS:
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Difficulty finding the right words; you know the word, but have difficulty remembering the name for it; words are often on “the tip of your tongue”
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Word errors (e.g., “apple” for “orange”; “lone” for “phone”)
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Make-up words (e.g., “schnibble” for “hammer”)
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Short or one-word sentences
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Impaired grammar
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Confused language
If you or a loved one are experiencing any of these symptoms or for more information, please contact Davina.