Ashley Tallyn
Living well after stroke

My Stroke Guide connects you to others affected by stroke, and provides free access to reliable information and support 24/7. Now, a new section brings together videos, resources and apps for stroke survivors with aphasia.

Jan McDonald, 63 from Portsmouth, has lived with aphasia since her stroke in 2005. Her daughter Carly explains: “Having aphasia means that Mum’s speech, reading, writing and sometimes comprehension are all affected. She speaks in key words or phrases and is unable to communicate her thoughts in fluent sentences. Most websites are not easy for her to navigate or understand.”

Jan and Carly have found the new ‘Aphasia and communication’ area of My Stroke Guide a useful way to find out more about the condition.

“We really like the clear layout of the sections, that all sentences are simple, well-spaced and with the key words highlighted,” says Carly. “The videos convey complex subject matters into accessible clips that only give key information, aided by pictures at a really good pace. There is plenty of time between the spoken messages to be able to process the information.

“Mum has watched a number of videos around driving, blue badges, and feeling tired after a stroke and felt this would have been so helpful to watch in the early days after her stroke.”

On My Stroke Guide you can view or download the aphasia-friendly guide ‘Getting online for people with aphasia’, which covers the basics of using technology, from accessing the internet to sending emails and using apps.

“It was great that the ‘Getting online’ section could be viewed as a whole document or you could look at chapters in smaller chunks,” says Carly. “Mum wants to increase her confidence to use social media more to connect with friends and family, so she really liked the information here.”

My Stroke Guide also signposts to aphasia therapy apps which allow people with aphasia to practise their communication at home. “This section was really interesting to go through together. I helped Mum to download two apps onto her phone which she hasn’t used before,” says Carly. It’s important to find the app that best supports your needs - ask your speech and language therapist to recommend an app based on your communication goals.

Click to explore the Aphasia and communication’ section.

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