Not Everyone Can Write to Stay Well

 Image and text by Rick McVicar 

  While this website has touted the benefits of reading and writing, not everyone can take advantage of these activities. 

  For instance, some people may have expressive language disorder. The condition is explained on the Psych Central website in an article titled, “All About Expressive Language Disorder,” April 12, 2022.  

 “Expressive language disorder interferes with a person’s ability to express thoughts,” the website states.   

  That includes both verbal and nonverbal communication, such as speech, writing and body language.   The disease can be developmental, affecting children as they first learn to speak, or it can be caused by brain injury or disease in adulthood.

   The adult version is known as aphasia.   Aphasia has recently been in the news with the retirement of actor Bruce Willis.

  The actor’s family, in March, 2022, announced on Instagram that Willis was suffering from aphasia, according to Psych Central. 

   This past week, on Aug. 16, 2022, msn.com posted a story by Raechal Shewfelt detailing a jam session between Willis and musician Derek Richard Thomas. The article, “Bruce Willis Jams on the Harmonica 5 Months After Aphasia Announcement,” describes how a video of the event was posted by Willis’ wife, Emma Heming Willis. 

   “Their talent is speaking for itself,” Emma Willis writes in the caption to the video. 

  While Bruce Willis may have trouble speaking, apparently he is still able to express himself through music.

   Besides having a long acting-career, Willis has been a recording artist as well. Perhaps his best known movie credit has been Pulp Fiction, Shewfelt writes. 

  Psych Central lists a number of warning signs for detecting expressive language disorder. For instance, a person might write or speak only in short sentences. Grammatical errors are common, such as saying “I going” instead of “I’m going.” 

   The person will have limited vocabulary and have difficulty with paraphrasing. Embarrassment from speech difficulties can result in behavioral issues, according to Psych Central. 

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