After a stroke you may have problems communicating with others because you do not understand the words that they are saying, or because you cannot find the right words to express yourself fully.  

Some people may completely lose the ability to speak, but can still understand what is being said to them. The ability to read, spell and write may also be affected. When a person has problems understanding, using words and sentences which affect their ability to communicate, this problem is called aphasia.

Some common difficulties or features of aphasia are:

• Mixing up yes and no
• Saying one word but meaning another – for example, saying brother instead of sister
• Getting stuck on a word or phrase over and over again
• Following only parts of a conversation
• Being easily distracted by noise
• Automatic swearing
• Slow responses, taking a bit more time to understand what is being said
• Words on the tip of your tongue
• Speaking but not making much sense
• Slurred or difficult to understand speech

For others speech may become slurred and difficult to understand because the nerves and muscles of speech have been damaged. Sometimes one side of the face and tongue is paralysed or weak and can affect speech. This problem is called dysarthria.

Speech and language therapy can help you to recognise words or find other ways to communicate, like using gestures, word-and-picture charts, symbols and computers. A Speech and Language Therapist (SLT) can show your family and friends ways of communicating with you which make it easier to get your message across.

How can I treat my communication problem?

Communication problems can be managed using speech and language therapy.

A speech and language therapist (SLT) can help you to improve your speech, reading and writing as much as possible. They can also help you to learn other ways to communicate, from the use of gestures to electronic devices.

If you have issues with communication, you will have an SLT on your healthcare team. If you don’t have one, speak to your doctor.