What It ’s Like Living With Aphasia—and How to Support a Loved One With the Condition

Bruce Willis, the 67-year-old actor and star of classic action movies like Die Hard, is halting his acting career after being diagnosed with the language disorder aphasia. On March 30, his daughter Rumer, ex-wife Demi Moore, and other family members announced the diagnosis on Instagram. “Our beloved Bruce has been experiencing some health issues and has recently been diagnosed with aphasia, which is impacting his cognitive abilities,” the family wrote. “As a result of this and with much consideration Bruce is stepping away from the career that has meant so much to him.” [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Here’s what experts say about living with the condition and caring for someone who has it. Living with aphasia Symptoms vary, but generally, aphasia affects people’s ability to speak or comprehend language. Speech, reading, writing, and the ability to listen can be affected. It often occurs suddenly after a stroke or other brain injury damages parts of the brain involved in language expression and comprehension. In other cases, known as primary progressive aphasia, the condition gets worse slowly over time, and patients may develop dementia-like symptoms. Estimates vary, but between 1 and 2 million Americans have aphasia, and almost 180,000 develop the disorder annually. Although it’s most common in older people, who are at greater risk of health events like strokes, it can affect people at any age. “It can be catastr...
Source: TIME: Health - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Uncategorized healthscienceclimate medicine Source Type: news