There are all kinds of physical therapy techniques that are used to deal with a number of physical and mental traumas. Did you know that there is physical therapy for a brain trauma that causes the person to not be able to speak, write, or understand language? Well, there is! Damage to specific areas of the brain cause aphasia. Speech-language pathologists treat this with different types of aphasia physical therapy. Below, we will talk about what aphasia physical therapy consists of, specific therapy techniques, and how these can help patients. So, let’s jump right in! An Overview of Aphasia Before we can get into the different therapies, let’s look at what Aphasia is. Simply put, aphasia is the loss of the ability to understand or express speech, verbally or written, that is caused by damage to the brain. Aphasia manifests in two ways. The first form of aphasia is known as Broca’s aphasia. Damage to Broca’s area of the brain impacts expressive aspects of spoken and written language. Partial loss of the ability to produce language, both verbally and written, characterizes this type of aphasia. The comprehension of language is still present, but the patient will have broken speech and seem to put a lot of effort into their words. The second form of aphasia is called Wernicke’s aphasia. Just like Broca’s, this aphasia is named after the area of the brain that is damaged. So, this form is caused by damage to…you guessed it! Wernicke’s area of the brain. Damage to this area results in deficits in the comprehension of language, meaning that the patient will have trouble understanding things when spoken to or reading. Now that we know the different types of aphasia, let’s look at how physical therapy can help a patient with this condition. What is Aphasia Physical Therapy? Aphasia physical therapy techniques help improve a patient’s ability to speak and understand language. There are two general categories that therapists use when treating a patient; impairment-based therapy and communication-based therapy. Impairment-based therapy is aimed at improving language functions for the patient. These therapy techniques consist of procedures in which the therapist stimulates specific listening, speaking, and writing skills. On the other hand, communication-based therapy, also known as consequence-based therapy, is used to enhance communication by any means. It is also used to encourage support from caregivers. With this type of therapy, the therapist uses techniques that consist of natural interactions involving real-life communication challenges for the patient. Within both of these categories, there are also specific therapies that the therapist can use and switch between. Let’s take a look at some of these! Specific Impairment-Based Therapies Here we will focus on two main impairment-based aphasia physical therapies; Constraint-Induced Therapy (CIT) and Melodic Intonation Therapy (MIT). Constraint-Induced Therapy (CIT) This type of aphasia physical therapy has three treatment principles: constraint, forced use, and massed practice. In general, constraint means to avoid compensation by tying down the good limb. In regard to aphasia, constraint then refers to avoiding the use of strategies such as gesturing, writing, drawing, or any way of communicating other than talking. Next, forced use refers to the use of the impaired limb. So, with CIT and aphasia, forced use means communicating only by talking. Last, massed practice means to require the constraint and forced use every day, all day. When it comes to aphasia, massed practice refers to therapy that occurs for two to four hours every day. Overall, with this practice, the therapist constrains a patient’s gestures in order to direct them to use their impaired spoken language. By forcing them to use the broken speech, therapists believe that the patient’s impaired...