Aphasia needs not be a death sentence – Osceola News-Gazette

Sometimes it takes a famous person’s diagnosis to draw attention to a medical issue which is common place but not commonly discussed. Recently, actor Bruce Willis said he’d be stepping away from his acting career due to his Aphasia diagnosis.

If you do not know what Aphasia is, you are not alone. According to Nicole Fliehman of Brooks Rehabilitation Osceola in Kissimmee, you are among the 84 percent of people who don’t, according to a study by National Aphasia Association in 2016. Fliehman has been practicing Speech Pathology with Brooks Rehabilitation Osceola since 2020, and is certified in the use of Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation. Her primary passion is working with patients with Aphasia.

Aphasia is an impairment of language which may affect the comprehension and expression that controls language and the ability to read and/or write. But it does not affect intellect. She said up to half of her caseload is dealing with patients diagnosed with this condition.

Many people have Aphasia as a result of a stroke head injury, brain tumor, infection, progressive diseases or dementia. It affects nearly 2 million Americans.

Read the full article at Osceola News-Gazette.