Communication Sciences & Disorders

Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic Patient

Mike Janis suffers from aphasia after having a stroke, and this interview was edited for clarity.

"My son, Michael, is a spinning instructor at UD. I was at the Little Bob gym with Mike on January 1st and when we were done, I’m sitting there and talking to my friend, Bob. He says, ‘Hey, Mike, you're not talking right!’ And I couldn't say what I wanted to say. I was saying something different. Someone calls 911 and says, ‘I think I have a guy here who had a stroke.’ So the ambulance came, two of them.

A lot of other people that have had strokes are a lot worse than I am. I could drive right away after my stroke. I could do everything but speech. Like when you put gas in your car and have to punch in the numbers - I know what they are, but my brain doesn’t.

I can’t use my telephone. I have an old guy phone. I only use it because of the ICE (in case of emergency contact). It tells you I have had a stroke, have aphasia, who I am, what medicine I have, how old I am, where I work. Because I might not be able to tell someone if I have another stroke, thank God I haven’t.

Cynthia! She was a student, but she was my teacher. This year, she helped me so much with my speech. She would always tell me, ‘All right, Mike. Stop fooling around.’ As usual.

My problem is I’m always fooling around. Even with a stroke, if I did my homework, I would talk better. My homework would be to read and say a sentence. I read it, I know what it is, but I can’t say it. So I have to learn that. I’ll say it 10 times and then I will remember it.

I go to UD’s speech clinic and last year, I did a camp there - the Aphasia Summer Intensive. I do a lot of things! Brew Crew, I do once a month. On Wednesday, I went to the hospital to talk to people that have aphasia and it was nice.

I was in the Navy for 20 years. I was a printer - I made the blueprints for the University of Delaware for 20 years. I refereed soccer for 30 years. I was competition director at DC United. I was an extra for the show ‘House of Cards,’ which is kind of cool. I am a gardener at the University of Delaware and for Longwood. Life is really good for me."