One of the most common characteristics of aphasia is difficulty with word-finding. Our topic today is not only a communication strategy, but can also be used as an activity to help build expressive language skills.
Enter the description strategy!
When struggling to come up with a target word, for example, you’re trying to tell your husband that you need cheese from the grocery store but your brain just can’t think of what that word is!
Try giving a description.
Start by mapping out the following characteristics:
What CATEGORY is it in? – it’s a dairy product, it’s made from milk
WHERE can I find it? – in the dairy section, where the other cold stuff is, near the butter
What does it LOOK LIKE? – it can come in a block, it can be shredded, it is orange or white
What PURPOSE does it serve? What can I DO with it? – you eat it, it melts on top of things, it is the best food in the world
Our brains are like a filing system. It doesn’t just put words or concepts in a folder by themselves, they are connected with all the things that define it, so, when we can’t think of the exact item, we are trying to light up all the areas around it so that we can either get to it ourselves or give enough information to our communication partner for them to fill in the blanks.
I tell my patients and families dealing with aphasia that it is not one person’s job to get out 100% of the message. All communication relies on a give and take between the people involved, meaning, help each other out! Not every conversation needs to be a speech therapy session - it’s just about sharing thoughts and ideas with someone you love and trying to find a flowing method of expression that helps bring back some of the connection that you might feel has been lost after a brain injury.
This is about using contextual cues – what other information can we provide, not only for communicating our message, but also for our brains to use as much information as possible to get our message out? Once you leave the therapy room, the main goal is FUNCTIONAL and EFFECTIVE communication! Who cares if you can name a picture if you can’t tell your loved one what you need, what you’re feeling or what you’re thinking?
When we look at a single picture, it is very isolated, meaning it lacks contextual information to help your brain get to the target word and that’s where our communication strategy suddenly becomes a way to build expressive language skills in a relaxed environment. When we talk about using communication strategies within conversation, it often comes with a time crunch. You are trying to get your message out so that the natural “turn-taking flow” isn’t lost. Often this pressure can lead to even MORE difficulty getting those words out.
Some ideas for working on your words:
Create an environment that allows you to feel safe and relaxed. If you need help from a loved one, make sure they understand that you don’t need pressure or “intense correction” (meaning over prompting) if (or when) you make a mistake. You want them to know that their help is appreciated, but this is YOUR time to practice not their time to be your speech therapist. It might also be helpful to give them examples of what they can do that you find helpful as well as what they might say that could make it worse.
For example, “Please don’t help or give me hints unless I ask” or “It really makes it difficult for me when you don’t give me enough time to respond”. Most people just want to help they just could use a little guidance of what “help” actually means to you. Remember, this is all new for them too.
When working on your expressive language skills after a brain injury try using as many modalities as possible. Not only say your words and thoughts out loud, but also try writing them down.
Practice the description strategy using Verbs. Why do you do this action? When is it appropriate to do it? Who would usually do it? Where would someone be found doing it? Working on building verbs is a key component to generalizing the skills that you target during structured tasks to making an improvement in real-life.
What if you feel like you can’t do it on your own? That’s why Life Beyond Rehab is here. If you need help finding a way to get back to what you love or if you need help implementing everything you learned in rehab into real life, give us a call! It can be hard to know where to start and even harder to ask for help.
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