What is apraxia? Chris Kamara's Lost for Words documentary to air on ITV – Yahoo Canada Sports

In March 2022, Sky Sports activities presenter Chris Kamara appeared to slur his phrases throughout Soccer Saturday, prompting involved viewers to message him on social media.

Taking to Twitter, he later posted that he’d been affected by speech apraxia alongside an present thyroid situation.

Showing on Good Morning Britain, the ex-footballer hailed the “unimaginable” response he’d had from family and friends. He stated he was receiving remedy from a speech therapist to resolve the problem.

Kamara, who made 643 appearances for golf equipment similar to Portsmouth, Stoke Metropolis, Leeds United, Brentford and Swindon City, added: “Immediately is an effective day so at this time I believe I’m tremendous. I don’t know the way I sound but it surely appears as if I’m okay.”

The previous central defender will reveal extra about his private journey with the dysfunction in his ITV documentary Chris Kamara: Misplaced for Phrases, which is able to air on Wednesday, December 14 at 9pm.

“This documentary is a really private one for me,” the Middlesbrough-born presenter, 64, stated. “I’m actually eager to lift consciousness about apraxia of speech/dyspraxia. Little is thought about it, which makes the analysis a lot tougher to navigate.

“Hopefully by sharing my story it’ll elevate consciousness and in addition assist individuals who might also be residing with this situation by exhibiting them that there are methods to handle it and to nonetheless reside a satisfying life.”

Right here’s all the pieces it’s worthwhile to learn about Kamara’s situation.

What’s apraxia of speech?

Apraxia of speech, which is also referred to as acquired apraxia of speech, verbal apraxia, or childhood apraxia, is a speech-sound dysfunction. This leads to the sufferer having bother saying what she or he needs to say appropriately and persistently.

Apraxia of speech is a neurological situation that impacts the mind pathways used to plan the sequence of actions concerned in producing speech.

The mind is aware of what it needs to say, but it surely can not correctly plan and sequence the required speech and sound actions.

It’s not attributable to weak point or paralysis of the speech muscle tissues, and its severity ranges from individual to individual. It may be delicate, inflicting bother with just one or two speech sounds, or extreme, the place the sufferer can’t talk successfully by talking and should need assistance with an alternate communication technique.

What are the categories and causes of apraxia of speech?

• Acquired AOS – This type of AOS can have an effect on somebody at any age, however most sometimes happens in adults. It’s attributable to harm to components of the mind involving speech and entails the loss or impairment of present speech skills. It may be attributable to stroke, head damage, tumour, or different sicknesses affecting the mind.

• Childhood AOS – That is current from beginning, and is also referred to as developmental apraxia of speech, developmental verbal apraxia, or articulatory apraxia. The causes of childhood AOS will not be well-known, and imaging and different research haven’t been capable of finding proof of mind harm or variations in mind construction in youngsters with AOS. They usually have relations with a historical past of a communication dysfunction, or a studying incapacity. It additionally seems to have an effect on boys greater than ladies.

What are the signs of apraxia of speech?

• Distorting sounds – AOS could trigger individuals to have problem announcing phrases appropriately with sounds, particularly vowels, turning into distorted. Longer or extra complicated phrases are sometimes tougher to say, and sound substitutions may also happen when AOS is accompanied by aphasia.

• Inconsistent errors in speech – Somebody with AOS may need issues saying a phrase appropriately, however then have bother repeating it, or might be able to say a selected sound sooner or later, and have points saying it once more the following day.

• Groping for sounds – Folks with AOS usually look like groping for sounds, or for the suitable phrase. They might attempt saying a phrase a number of instances earlier than they are saying it appropriately.

• Errors in tone, stress, or rhythm of speech – One other widespread issue is the inaccurate use of prosody, which implies the rhythm and inflection of speech that we use to assist specific that means. Somebody who has bother with prosody may use equal stress, phase syllables in a phrase, or omit syllables in phrases or phrases, alternatively pausing inappropriately whereas talking.

What has Chris Kamara stated about his apraxia of speech?

After revealing his analysis, Kamara took a brief break from Soccer Saturday, earlier than deciding in April 2022 that the 2021-22 season can be his final.

Regardless of leaving Sky Sports activities, Kamara, who is commonly often known as “Kammy” and is famend for his catchphrase “Unbelievable, Jeff” referring to Soccer Saturday host Jeff Stelling, continues to work in broadcasting. Alongside together with his former Sky Sports activities colleague, Ben Shephard, and Rochelle Humes, he co-hosts the ITV present Ninja Warrior UK. That is the British model of the Japanese impediment course present Sasuka.

Nonetheless, apraxia continues to have an effect on him badly.

“It seems like somebody has taken over my voice field,” Kamara advised The Diary of a CEO podcast.

“The voice that used to come back out would come out at 300 miles an hour, you’ve seen me on the outcomes and Soccer Saturday, motormouth, speaking and never even ready for a breath, simply maintain going and going.

“Now, after I hear myself or see myself on TV, it’s another person. It’s actually unusual.

“Some days, the message from the mind to the mouth are actually gradual and makes it tough, or some days the phrases come out completely different than what you’re making an attempt to say and that’s even weirder. In order that’s been onerous to just accept, and [is] nonetheless onerous to just accept.”

Kamara stated he believed that the time was proper to go away Sky Sports activities after a “nice innings”, however that his apraxia had left him with anxiousness about delivering his broadcasts.

Chatting with the podcast’s host, Steven Bartlett in September 2022, he stated: “I’ve to say, I used to be going to give up all the pieces — actually each single little bit of TV — on the finish of final season,” he stated. “It was an acceptance, actually, as a result of what I stated to my spouse is, if I wasn’t a broadcaster, it wouldn’t matter, would it not? She stated ‘yeah’, so I stated, now’s the time. I’ve had a good time.

“I spoke to my agent, Simon, abd stated I’m getting out of all this and he stated, ‘Yeah, you may, I’ll depart it as much as you’. So I assumed, ‘That’s it, I’ve executed my time’. I’d wish to thank all of the individuals who have been persistent and stated a 25 per cent Kammy continues to be higher than some individuals.”

When he revealed his prognosis, he advised Shephard on Good Morning Britain: “It’s typical, Ben. As a result of it’s a neurological downside, we don’t know [what causes it]. The specialists don’t know.

“The mind is such a posh a part of you that it’s onerous to say whether or not it’s the thyroid that has introduced this on. Will it get higher in time?

“I’m making an attempt to make use of components of my mind now that permit me to talk fluently, so I’m with a speech therapist, I’m with one other therapist who’s making an attempt his finest. So it’s fairly unimaginable, actually.

“The singing isn’t an issue, you may sing alongside all day lengthy on the regular tempo of a music, however speaking when the apraxia kicks in makes it actually tough.

“Like I stated, I’m not after sympathy. There are such a lot of individuals on the market worse off than me.

“However I’ve come out and stated it now, so it’s there and, hopefully, individuals will perceive after I sound just a little bit not like myself.”

Kamara beforehand underwent a mind scan to examine if he was growing dementia after affected by what he described as “mind fog”.

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