My brother Dan turns 58 today, and my brother Steve turned 56 yesterday. How did that happen? I still think of the four of us as the young "Dunham Brothers" who could conquer the world. In some respects, the years have been kind. We are all relatively healthy, happy, and successful. There have been disappointments through the years, and the loss of our father too early continues to be painful 15 years after he died. But, it's been a good life for all of us. When I look at us now, I still see us when we were young. The graying hair (and in my case, the thinning graying hair), the wrinkles, etc. aren't really visible to me. But, calling my brothers to say "happy birthday" and realizing they are in their late 50's seems unbelievable to me.
This morning, from 10:30 to Noon, at St. Lukes in Meridian Idaho, I participated in the “Aphasia, Apraxia, and Dysarthria Support Group” started a year ago through Idaho State University. We meet weekly. So, what is wrong with us? Aphasia is the name given to a collection of language disorders caused by damage to the brain. A requirement for a diagnosis of aphasia is that, prior to the illness or injury, the person's language skills were normal. The difficulties of people with aphasia can range from occasional trouble finding words to losing the ability to speak, read, or write, but does not affect intelligence. This also affects visual language such as sign language . The term "aphasia" implies a problem with one or more functions that are essential and specific to language function. It is not usually used when the language problem is a result of a more peripheral motor or sensory difficulty, such as paralysis affecting the speech muscles or a general hear...
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