dysarthria

“It was easy, fun, and I’d do it all over again.” I know those are not the typical words used by someone who just finished participating in a research study, especially one focused on ALS. But that’s exactly how I felt last week when I pressed the submit button…

An initiative at a University of Illinois campus that aims to improve voice recognition software for people with speech difficulties is recruiting adults in the U.S. and Puerto Rico living with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Known as the Speech Accessibility Project, it is led by the Urbana-Champaign…

To help those who have lost their ability to speak easily, Georgia Southern University’s RiteCare Center for Communications Disorders again is recruiting students, faculty, and staff members to make recordings for submission to a voice bank. The center’s third annual Voice Drive, which runs through May 2, is…

I’m always open to learning new things, especially when they involve simple ways to improve my life with ALS. When I come across something super helpful, I just have to share it with my readers. My most recent discovery involves a simple plastic straw. In fact, it’s become a…

For my late husband, Jeff, and me, the most difficult and saddening aspect of his ALS progression was the loss of his voice. It was heartbreaking for both of us when he lost the ability to speak, also known as dysarthria, early in his condition. Much of Jeff’s…

Is it just me, or are people speaking at a faster clip nowadays? Yeah, maybe it’s just me. It seems I’ve become hypersensitive to the various speeds and rhythms we use to communicate with each other, especially now that I live with dysarthria, a symptom of ALS that affects…

What’s my big wish as we all move forward with pandemic life in 2022? To live in a world with better communication skills. Specifically, to improve how we listen to each other. Because from where I sit, there’s a whole lot of telling going on and not enough waiting to…

Like most folks who live with ALS, I tend to get stuck in the shortsighted day-to-day management of my symptoms. Over the years, I’ve developed several strategies that help me change my mental focus from a short view to a longer one in which I’m open to the possibilities of…

This past week was filled with voices. No, I wasn’t hearing voices in my head. But everything seemed to involve a voice. Let me explain. An action hero uses his voice I watched the newly released documentary “Val,” currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video. By the time the final…

Last week, I stepped onto my soapbox (mine has special safety handrails) and voiced my opinion about an issue that’s been bugging me for several years. It’s a problem I share with about 7.5 million other people who have trouble using their voices and cannot get voice-activated devices to…