I decided to be an SLP my junior year in high school. During my senior year of high school my 5ft 0inch wonderful grandmother had a stroke which left her with severe aphasia. During my freshman year of college I was told that my grandmother “punched” a CNA in the nose and broke it because the CNA did not understand what she was trying to say (I had gone to grade school with this CNA).
My father was vacationing at their ocean property when he had a significant stroke. Nobody would assist he and my mother with a 911 call because he was unable to talk, walking with moderate or more assist and they assumed he was drunk.
When my family moved to over 5000 foot elevation in Nevada, I experienced stroke symptoms of moderate RUE hemiparesis which resolved after 3 hours. I had just completed grad school classes and was fully aware of stroke s/s. I did find an occassional anomic error in reading page length material. A single word made absolutely no sense in the paragraph context, so I re-read it about 5-10 times. All of a sudden, a “different word” appeared in the paragraph that fit the context and was correct. This did resolve quickly as well and I continued on to pass my ASHA national certification exam for my “MA, CCC-SLP” title. I now have approximately 20 years of experience as a professional working with pediatrics and adults.
Aphasia is a loss of words, not intelligence.
Passing Score and Career After Quickly Resolved Stroke
