In his book “Brain Injury” Living a Productive Life After a Stroke or Traumatic Brain Injury, Walt Kilcullen shares practical knowledge he has learned as a mentor.

In addition to his personal experience, experts on assorted issues were located. Walt was able to ask questions and receive enlightened answers. For example in the chapter on Aggressive Behavior two researchers are quoted. The researchers share practical knowledge of why aggressive behavior occurs. They also share ways to deal with it. In the chapter on Yoga he contacted a practitioner who is trained in adaptive yoga. Adaptive Yoga is explained and diagrams are included.

There is a lot of practical ideas in the book. Order from Amazon .

Video with 4 important tips when talking to someone with Aphasia, by Carly Gillis for Upworthy Community.

Five years ago, a drunk driver gave her aphasia, which is a kind of speech disorder that sometimes happens after a stroke. But the ordeal didn’t take away her sense of humor. She imitates exactly what it’s like on the receiving end of a typical conversation for her (complete with costume change!) in hopes of reminding the rest of us to just be cool when talking to someone like Laura. See Video on TIPS

TalkPath™ Suite of Therapy Apps
Working with a team of speech-language pathologists, Lingraphica developed the TalkPath Suite of Speech Therapy Apps to help adults rebuild speech lost due to stroke or other brain injury. With easy-to-use features unique to our TalkPath apps, users can practice on their own or with the help of a speech-language pathologist. All four TalkPath apps are available for download on the Apple App Store.

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Naming TherAppy is also targeted toward aphasia patients. There are four options: naming practice, naming test, describe and flashcards. Naming practice will show and describe a picture, then ask the user to name the object. Describe does the opposite, it shows a photo and asks the user to describe how it looks, tastes, smells, etc. It’s equipped with 500+ photos and a male voice that delivers cues and questions. This app is compatible with iPhones and iPads.

CakeHealth is designed to make tracking your healthcare costs and benefits easier. After registering online, the app connects to your health insurance and imports your health information. Users can check on their bills and see their remaining benefits anytime on any computer. Items are broken down using graphs and pie charts, making the app easy to sort through, unlike your medical bills. This app is available for iPhone.

Cozi is a calendar app aimed at keeping families in sync. But it can be used as a great tool for multiple caregivers involved in the care of a stroke survivor. The features include a shared calendar that is color-coded for each person. It keeps track of appointments and assigns which caregiver is involved and allows you to see the calendars of others in your circle. Other features include a to-do list, shopping list and journal. This app is available for Android and any iOS device.

5 Ways to Reduce Post-Stroke Pain, Article posted on 11/5/13 by Mara Calomino for Stroke Smart

More often than not, survivors will experience pain associated with their stroke. This pain can either be local or central, moderate or severe, constant or on and off. Local pain is due to muscle or soft tissue damage and is felt mostly in the joints. Central pain is less common, but can be very severe making even the slightest sensations painful, such as warmth, cold or touch. Other types of pain that can occur are shoulder pain, spasticity, and headaches. Fortunately there are some simple changes you can make to help ease the pain. Here are a few tips:

1. Remain Active. The stiffer and weaker your muscles, the higher the probability of pain. So keep your body in motion. Stretching and exercising daily are important to flexibility and will help reduce the possibility of joint pain, shoulder pain and spasticity. This can be anything from walking to arm, hand and leg exercises, or even light weight lifting. But don’t push yourself too hard, only do what you can and work your way up.

2.00 Keep your arms and legs supported. If you have a weak/paralyzed arm or leg, keeping it propped up will greatly diminish the soreness you may feel. If you are lying down, rest it on the arm rest, ottoman or a pillow. Use a shoulder sling while you walk or position a splint on the affected arm or leg to reduce discomfort.

3. Avoid sensations that cause you pain. Warm and cool sensations can often be misinterpreted by the brain as being extremely painful. Therefore try to avoid hot baths and cold drinks. Tight clothes or clothes that bunch easily can also cause extreme discomfort. Wearing loose clothing can help avoid that pain.

4. Stay hydrated. Experts say we should be drinking about two or three liters of water a day. This will increase the amount of blood flowing to your brain and reduce the likelihood of experiencing headaches. Moderate caffeine and alcohol because they will dehydrate you quickly.

Try Alternative Medication. Massage therapy, acupuncture, meditation or even yoga could all be great holistic ways to help manage the pain. No matter what route you choose, dealing with and treating pain should always involve the help of your doctor or physician.

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New workbook for aphasia targeting expressive and written language, Speech Therapy Aphasia Rehabilitation *STAR* Workbook contains 70 large full color photographs for functional naming and describing. Other exercises include: carrier phrases, “wh” questions, reading exercises, divergent naming, convergent naming, function of objects, melodic intonation therapy, functional writing forms and conversation topics.

This workbook would be especially helpful for aphasia support groups. It contains instructions for family members on how to use the workbook at home together. It is priced well below other aphasia workbooks with the intent that stroke survivors and caregivers could purchase it as well. I ended up writing this workbook as a result of making lots of material for several of my patients who I had to discharge because of the restrictive Medicare Part B caps.

Order this workbook on Amazon

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CommunicAide Free app – help for those with Aphasia and other language disorders, a review by Apppicker.com

CommunicAide Free: AAC/Speech Therapy is a free app that generates the spoken phrase or word selected by touching the corresponding button or picture. This app is meant to be used daily by persons suffering from Aphasia and other language disorders. Combinations of phrases and words can easily be combined and then the device plays the composition in a human voice.

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