Early Symptoms of Aphasia, the Disease Affecting 2 Million Americans, Including Hollywood Actor Bruce Willis

Have you been to a place where you're unfamiliar with the language and tried to communicate with the locals without any success? That's what people with aphasia deal with every day. The loss of ability to communicate is one of the early symptoms of aphasia, a brain disorder that affects two million Americans, including Hollywood star Bruce Willis.

According to the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), an average of 180,000 Americans experience aphasia every year. About 40 percent of these patients have suffered a stroke, but the language disorder may happen to anyone, especially in middle-aged or older individuals.

Dr. Hugo Botha, a neurologist with the Mayo Clinic, said that the condition is more linked to a collection of symptoms that show a language problem. It's not a disease, but doctors often try to figure out what's causing the communication struggles with the patient.

Bruce Willis' Early Symptoms of Aphasia

People with aphasia lose their ability to communicate by speaking, writing, or understanding others. Their speech could be fragmented, garbled, or filled with nonsense words. Their letters could be full of errors in cohesion and grammar.

Willis was said to have struggled with his lines while working on the " Glass " set in 2017. Two production sources relayed that something was quite off with the actor during the filming of the M. Night Shylaman.

The sources told Page Six that Willis often appeared confused with his dialogues with the other actors. Those who were unaware might have even concluded that the actor was a little drunk at work, or he seemed like he didn't want to be on the set.

Five years after "Glass," the sources said that his behavior on the set "makes more sense" today as early symptoms of aphasia after he recently announced his retirement from acting. The condition impacts a person differently; thus, they are either categorized as fluent or nonfluent, depending on the extent of the speech damage.

Aphasia is Treatable

In some cases, the language struggles improve and resolve on their own even without any treatment. However, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine, early intervention is crucial to recover from this condition though many patients might never completely regain their full speech and language functions back.

Treating aphasia will be based on the person's specific symptoms, but most go through speech therapy to relearn how to speak and write. On the other hand, those with degenerative conditions might need more nonverbal communication therapies or group therapies that involve their families.

Doctors also advise patients to keep an active lifestyle and pursue activities like painting or singing to boost the left side of their brain. They also need to have constant social interaction to ignite their brain cells.

Dealing with aphasia can be frustrating for the patient and those they interact with, such as family members. Thus, it's crucial for everyone to take part in the patient's treatment plan.