STROKE TALK RADIO (Interview with Tom Broussard, Stroke Educator and Aphasia Awareness Advocate on Aphasia Awareness Month with Jerry Wald and Aaron Avila on Stroke Talk Radio and Second Chance Stroke Survivors, 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM, Friday, June 14, 2019).
I was just interviewed by the Stroke Talk Radio (and Second Chance Stroke Survivors) with Jerry Wald and Aaron Avila. It was a great day for National Aphasia Awareness Month!
They reached over 200 people watching the show with many questions. Many of the questions were related to neuroplasticity such that we will do another interview focused on neuroplasticity and learning. Aaron described neuroplasticity as the cornerstone of rebuilding and recovery, and he is absolutely right! Neuroplasticity is the foundation for ALL learning.
One question was about plateauing. The short answer is NO, there is no plateauing. I described the process of never-ending improvement with graphs and images but using with my hands so unfortunately, I will have to write it down for others to see…and that will take longer!
Another question was whether I still have other deficits today. I still have a couple deficits and I described one of them; rise time or slow rise time.
People with aphasia (PWA) are often plagued by missed the first 2-3 words of a sentence in the start of a conversation. Timing is always a large part of the problem. PWA take time to shift from passive to active listening. Healthy people can shift from one to the other in milliseconds (ms) as short as 10-50ms. PWA take much longer to grasp the incoming messages, often 400-500ms. The PWA takes ten times more time to shift from passive to active listening. As a result, they will have lost the first 2-3 words. That is called rise time and is an auditory function deficit. It has nothing to do with one’s hearing!
Thanks Jerry and Aaron! See you soon!
Signed: Johnny Appleseed of Aphasia Awareness
