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_Skyhopper_ t1_j5u0n7f wrote

My mother lost the ability to speak from a stroke five years ago, and it's been hard to see her slowly detaching herself from everything around her since she can't communicate that way anymore. If this could get her to 'speak' again, it would be amazing.

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AitchyB t1_j5v6wh7 wrote

Could she use something like proloquo or similar AAC or does she not have motor skills to select the words?

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_Skyhopper_ t1_j5vdeox wrote

>proloquo

She has limited motor skills in her right hand. I have her a device that has 12 preset words she can use, but she has difficulties pressing hard enough to get the device to speak the word for her. But prologuo is tablet based, which she might be able to do. I'll look into a prologuo. Thank you for the idea.

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screaminmeemie t1_j5vt83s wrote

Take her to a speech pathologist who can assess her communication needs and help you get an insurance-funded communication device.

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opossumwranglerr t1_j5w2o40 wrote

Yes! I am an SLP and this is the thing to do. It is literally our job to pair each client with the best device for their needs and skills and train them and the family how to use it. Fair warning though, here in America getting the device through insurance can be a long and annoying road.

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Beowuwlf t1_j5w2egt wrote

This^^^ there are specialists out there who will get you squared away as best as possible

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oddballAstronomer t1_j5xklos wrote

There’s also CoughDrop which was developed by autistic adults and is only 8$ a month. You can design custom boards or use presets and they have ones geared towards adult communication. It’s also one of the few that will let you say “fuck” which like… man all adults should be allowed to do!

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ArcherBTW t1_j5xojde wrote

Not being able to say „fuck“ for too long is awful

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rpgguy_1o1 t1_j5wnnx9 wrote

Just curious, what are the 12 words?

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_Skyhopper_ t1_j5yrjc4 wrote

The words are: Hello, Goodbye, Yes, No, I'm Hungry, I'm Thirsty, I'm Bored, How are you?, Shut Up, I Love You.
At least, those are the words I can remember off the top of my head.

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munnexdio t1_j5vdkv7 wrote

Eye movement tracking tablets have existed for ~15 years. My aunt had ALS and used one in 2007 when she couldn’t speak anymore. It’s basically a tablet that tracks your eye movement. There’s a digital keyboard and it recognizes what letters you’re looking at in what order, so you can form sentences and have it speak for you. They’re very expensive but insurance will often cover it. You should look into it

Edit: here’s a link for the one my aunt used https://eyegaze.com/products/eyegaze-edge/

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SophiesChoice_55 t1_j5w8ktn wrote

I had a student who used a tablet like this and it was a game changer for him and his teachers.

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SophiesChoice_55 t1_j5wd11z wrote

My student had a shortcut screen with pictures. Common words that he used frequently had one key. It also had his teacher's yearbook picture on the key and he could call us with one stroke. He was a sharp, funny kid who loved to talk. The difference was amazing. I wish all special needs children with this form of disability had the opportunity to have this.

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ThrillSurgeon t1_j5x9k9g wrote

How small can the letters on the screen be? Giving us an idea of its precision.

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munnexdio t1_j5xa3yw wrote

Extremely precise. https://eyegaze.com/users/als/

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ThrillSurgeon t1_j5xb21c wrote

Incredible, look how small the letters on the screen are. If this is the real technology and not just a medical advertisement, its extremely precise.

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munnexdio t1_j5xbbra wrote

It is real. I watched my aunt use it over a decade ago. I can only imagine how much it has improved since then.

It also costs like $20,000, which is why insurance covers it (sometimes)

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Undrende_fremdeles t1_j5ybki0 wrote

I tried a freeware open source program like this many years ago!

I have no disability like that, just wanted to test it since it was free. I used my mouse to "track" the marker on the screen.

I remember them writing about how the bottleneck was an affordable setup for actually tracking the eyes, not the software and the screen. But there were up and coming freeware and open source programs for that too.

I imagine that with today's camera quality you can definitively make a basic setup like this at home for free/for the cost of a screen w/camera and something for computing. Be it tablets or other setups.

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e_hota t1_j5vetfz wrote

I remember reading this several years ago after my grandmother died from a stroke, but it’s possible that people who can’t speak because of a stroke may be able to still sing because speaking is a left-brain activity and singing is a right-brain activity. Might be worth a try to see if she can sing her thoughts instead of speaking them.

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DaGurggles t1_j5w235v wrote

With my father we got an IR camera that could track his heads movement to use a computer mouse.

I attached a laser pointer to a pair of safety glasses and printed out a QWERTY keyboard for him to spell out his thoughts.

Both worked for a time. Fuck ALS

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picklesin t1_j5wbyma wrote

Genius ideas. Fuck ALS, sorry about your father.

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DaGurggles t1_j5wcsev wrote

Thanks.

I did make a mouse that he could use his feet with but….ALS made my project moot

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Undrende_fremdeles t1_j5ybz4g wrote

So... You could likely pass that knowledge on to others that are not as far progressed, or even have pyuer disabilities that affect their motor skills?

The internet is an amazing bridge between the random people that would otherwise never come across each other in real life.

I really, truly believe that your efforts could benefit others even if it didn't manage to help him in time.

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DaGurggles t1_j5yv65a wrote

You’re not wrong, I abandoned the he project to keep up with the change in his symptoms.

On a basic level I took apart a USB laser mouse, $20 Logitech, and extended the connections of the left and right clicks with a bit of 22 gauge wire. The sensor was flipped up and with a smooth slipper would act as a mouse pad mimicking the motion of movement.

Back in 2010 there wasn’t much on the market that was affordable. The best I saw was a roller ball that could be manipulated with the tongue. Now you can get a foot mouse for $80, but back then the cheapest I could find was $250

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MoneyIsTerrifying t1_j5vdlys wrote

I’m so sorry to hear that. You may want to look into the Steve Gleason Act - it makes eye tracking devices more accessible via Medicare for those who can’t vocalize anymore. It might offer a new way for communication if possible for her.

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f10101 t1_j5w2z4l wrote

Did she lose the ability to speak entirely, or is it more that it's become unintelligible? If the latter, and you haven't seen this already, I came recently came across a google project aimed at speech recognition for non-standard speech https://sites.research.google/relate/

And best wishes to both of you. Hope you eventually find a way for her to more easily communicate.

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InversionPerversion t1_j5w61bz wrote

Please reach out to an AAC savvy SLP. She probably qualifies for an eye tracking communication device covered by insurance.

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MilwaukeeMax t1_j5xryfi wrote

I feel for you. My mom developed primary progressive aphasia from a rapid onset of vascular dementia (likely a stroke), and she can’t put sentences or words together anymore. In her case, however, it doesn’t seem to be reversible and she can’t write very well anymore either. I know she has ideas and words she wants to say but can’t. Not verbally, not even in written form. It’s tough to witness.

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