I find one of the most
frustrating aspects of brain injury is the challenge of expressing the changes
my brain has undergone. I see a cognitive therapist and it bothers me that I have
to clarify my issues.
One issue with which I struggle
is language processing. I told my therapist that sometimes I do not understand
what someone says despite asking them to repeat it. She suggested I ask them to
spell it for me. I could not explain why this does not help the words or their
meaning get into my brain.
I once asked a lady where she got
a lovely robe she was folding in the laundry room. Master Whore on the street, is what I thought I heard. I
knew that could not be right so I asked her to repeat it. I listened carefully,
convinced that it was the word “whore” that was wrong. Master Borgas Street? I
gave up and nodded. It was obviously not a place I could go. Hours later up in
my apartment I replayed the conversation in my mind and then I said the words
out loud. Duh! Where would you get a bathrobe? Victoria’s Secret!
A few days ago I was on a
conference call with some members of the Brain Injury Association of New York
City chapter. (Such a bad idea! People with BI on the phone with multiple other
people with BI. Yikes!) The discussion concerned our choice of movies for an upcoming
event, selected shorts or a full-length feature film. L mentioned a seven-minute
film.
“Seventy minutes?” asked E.
“No. Seven minutes,” repeated L."70?""No. 7!"
This went back and forth until E.
explained that it was easier for her to understand numbers if the other person
said every digit, like seven – zero. Can you please say it that way.
Okay, said L, it is a seven-minute
movie. E just kept hearing seventy.
“Seven – zero?” E kept asking.“No, seven!” L kept repeating.
It was frustrating to listen to
the interaction but it made my own issue a little clearer. The misunderstood
meaning had made its way into E’s brain and it was not going to change. She
heard seventy and it was like she thought L was refusing to comply with her
request to state each digit. As a result, she kept emphasizing SEVEN – ZERO,
like she was telling L – please say it this way so I can understand you better.
Eventually, she gave up and began to refer to the length of the movie as “a
little over an hour.”
I am sure you can imagine what
happened after that. Everyone tried to help her understand, all talking at once.
It seems comical when I reflect on it. It is hilarious, even, in a who’s-on-first?-kind
of way.
It makes me laugh because I'm relieved knowing I'm not the only one with this particular symptom
of brain injury. I do not have the answer nor how my cognitive therapist
can help me, but spelling does not make things clearer once my brain receives a scrambled message.
Posts
