Can communication be improved by non-verbal means?
Some patients are adept at communicating their needs by gesturing and pantomiming actions. It is worthwhile to encourage gestural use in such individuals, because it can both aid communication and help to relieve the frustration that accompanies communication failure. Equally, use of gestures by the carer may assist comprehension. However, it is important to recognise that progressive aphasia is a disorder of communication, and some patients find it as difficult to communicate by non-verbal means as by speech. It is important to experiment to find out for each individual in what way optimal levels of communication can be achieved. Are there other ways of helping? Some carers wonder whether they should ‘fill in’ words that patients cannot find. There is no right or wrong. It is important to give patients time, so they do not feel under pressure, since pressure can aggravate the difficulty in speaking. At the same time, if they are struggling to find a word, offering suggestions can be a
