Speech Problems After Severe Brain Injury

Speech Problems After Severe Brain Injury: Kevin Part Six

The most noticeable deficit that Kevin has is his fluency with language.  As can be seen on any of his videos, his answers while always responsive and generally logical, were often delivered in a halting voice.   I asked him about his speech problems after severe brain injury:

Like sometimes I would stutter, like sometimes like I can’t get a word out or something like that.  Even now, even right now, not right here but you know like yesterday like at a restaurant I couldn’t say a word on the menu you know and I kept stuttering like you know –

With your speech problems after severe brain injury, were you reading the word and not being able to say it, or were you thinking about something and not being able to find the word?

I was trying, looking at the word and trying to say it.

So it was a problem with written words?

Right.

But you understood the word when you looked at it?

Oh yeah, it was just, it just didn’t want to pronounce.

What was the word?

Now I can’t remember now.  See –

Type of food?

Yeah, it was at Subway and I couldn’t, and it sure it was funny but –

Frustrating?

Yeah, it was frustrating, but I don’t want to get mad like that.  So I was with my dad you know and –

Are your problems with speech and communication, are they worse when you get nervous or stressed?

Probably.

Are you nervous now?

No, I’m pretty, I think I’m pretty calm.

After that first half of hour, you got used to this?

Yeah.

How’s your sense of humor?

I think it’s pretty good.  You always got to think positive no matter what.

Next in Part Seven – Sport Memory – A Different Cognitive Profile

By Attorney Gordon Johnson