Speech disorder dysarthria may not always be a laughing matter – but comedian Rosie Jones has offered her support to a Sheffield-based campaign to publicise the problems caused by it.
Dysarthria Awareness Day on 9th May was set up last year by the Human Communication Sciences department at the University of Sheffield and backed by organisations such as the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, Giving Voice and Living With Dysarthria.
The debut event – believed to be the first of its type in the world – was highly commended in the RCSLT’s annual awards and this year’s was praised by television regular Rosie, who said: “Big shout out for the day and the amazing work you’re all doing. Keep it up you total legends.”
Dysarthria occurs when the muscles used to talk are weak or a person has difficulty controlling them. It most often results in slurred slow speech that can be difficult to understand, although there are several different types and causes.
However the disorder is not widely known – even among medical professionals – so the HCS department and its students in speech and language therapy set up stalls at The Wave building with the chance to meet some people who have dysarthria, among them Disability Sheffield volunteer John Quinn, who has attended speech therapy sessions at HCS for over a decade.
Information about the event can be found here and there is also a link to information about the disorder.
Meanwhile John, who had to retire from his former career as a journalist because of increasing difficulty talking due to a progressive neurological disorder, did a monologue called It’s Always The Quiet ones for last year’s event. John has now written a longer version which he has performed at several venues across the region. One, at Leeds Playhouse, was filmed and you can watch it here. John’s bit starts 18 minutes and 30 seconds in.
