That’s why the families affected are trying to build more awareness of the tragedy of aphasia. The National Aphasia Association started an ambitious campaign called Operation Oprah. They are hoping that with enough messages, Oprah Winfrey will do a show about the issue. Say what you will about Oprah and daytime television, but she has the ability to make a silent issue into the cause of the day. And besides, a show about aphasia is one less show about Tom Cruise.
The NAA held a message-a-thon the past Wednesday in the hopes of sending “100…200…300” messages to Oprah. It’s Friday and I’m hoping that Townhall.com readers can make that 10,000….20,000…30,000.
The NAA folks have also written a sample letter to make it even easier:
Dear Oprah:
Imagine that you wake up one morning unable to speak, read, write, or understand others. Welcome to the world of aphasia. Aphasia is a communication disorder caused by damage to the language areas of the brain. It is most often caused by stroke, but can be caused by other diseases or brain injuries. Did you know that aphasia is more prevalent than Parkinson's disease? Over 1 million Americans (1:250 people) suffer from aphasia. Aphasia can happen to anyone, at any time, or any age. People with aphasia often lose jobs, friends, and family roles. But aphasia does not affect a person's personality or intelligence, so they still have the desire to do the same things they did before.
A significant problem for people with aphasia is poor public awareness of the condition. Most people are not even familiar with aphasia because people who live with it have difficulty advocating for themselves. Their family members may be too embarrassed or frustrated to talk about it with people who do not understand.
We would love to see you do a show about aphasia. You can find out more information about aphasia from the National Aphasia Association ( http://www.aphasia.org )
This is great opportunity for us to help bring awareness about a terrible condition. Aphasia could impact any of us at any time, and it deserves the attention just as much as the conditions that get all the headlines.
I hope you’ll join me in being one of thousands who will join the fight against a condition that robs spouses, families, and friends of their ability to communicate with a loved one.
This also serves as a wake-up call for anyone who hasn’t told their loved ones how much they mean to them. Do it today. You might not be able to get the words out when you finally get around to it.
How tragic that a husband is unable to put his love for his wife into words. I hope she can see it in his eyes.