Aphasia Treatment in India

Sai Saxena, a 58-year-old retired university...

Sai Saxena, a 58-year-old retired university linguistics professor, began noticing subtle changes in her speech six months ago. Words she had taught for decades would suddenly evade her during lectures, and she struggled to follow rapid conversations with colleagues. Initially attributing it to stress, the problem worsened until she couldn't name common objects like a 'pen' or 'book.' An MRI ordered by her neurologist revealed a small, benign tumor in the left temporal lobe, impinging on Wernicke's area. Her ENT specialist, Dr. Sharma, recommended a tailored speech and language therapy program as the primary treatment for her fluent aphasia, alongside monitoring the tumor. Sai attended intensive therapy three times a week, working on word retrieval, comprehension exercises, and communication strategies. The treatment was frustrating; she often felt like a stranger in her own mind, grieving the loss of her linguistic identity. However, after four months, she regained about 70% of her functional communication. She started a blog about her experience, finding a new purpose in advocacy. The emotional journey was profound, from the terror of losing her life's tool to a hard-won acceptance and a redefined, resilient sense of self.