Help Line: Choking, Breathing, Speaking, Eating and more!

Imagine not being able to eat, swallow or enjoy your favorite foods.  Or feeling so tired you could fall headfirst into your soup bowl! Or, even worse, getting your tongue cut, and rebuilt due to cancer, and having to learn how to talk again! Would thinking about these things happening freak you out? Well, there’s lots to learn from my special guest in this episode, and some good things, too.

Often when someone’s parent has a stroke, heart attack, early dementia, or other health issues requiring hospitalization, they’re typically referred to a rehab facility, or special nursing care facility. This can include different types of physical and occupational therapy.  Some of these therapists wind up saving lives, this even includes speech and language pathologists.

In this episode, Phyllis Ayman and I dive into situations where hospitals, rehab facilities, skilled nursing homes, and even in-home care professionals don’t know how the simple act of swallowing works, and thus frequently ignore the condition.  When things like this are missed, they could result in early or sudden death. We dive into ways to:

• Prevent choking hazards
• Reduce the chance of aspiration pneumonia
• Understand the impact of a stroke or dementia on eating and swallowing
• Do “weightlifting” for your throat
• Know when a cough isn’t from a cold or allergy

You’ll even learn how to make sure that the medical facility discharge nurse/doctor hasn’t missed critical information relevant to your parent’s quality of life. As an extra bonus, we discuss six top tips to determine when to call in a speech and language pathologist.

GUEST: Phyllis Ayman is an expert Speech/Language Pathologist, Certified Dementia Practitioner, Trainer, and Manager and holds a Certification in Montessori for Dementia. She has worked in approximately 45 skilled nursing/short-term rehabilitation facilities and is the principal owner of Phyllis Ayman Associates and the author of Nursing Homes to Rehabilitation Centers, What every person needs to know, and Dignity & Respect.

Phyllis is the host of the podcast Seniors Straight Talk, on the Voice America Empowerment Channel. She is also a board member of the Massachusetts Advocates for Nursing Home Reform.

Host:  Nancy May, Author of How to Survive 911 Medical Emergencies, Step-by-Step Before, During, After!  is an expert in managing the path of step-by-step caring for aging parents, even from over 1200 miles away. For a free, fillable File-of-Life go to www.howtosurvive911.com. Nancy is also the Co-Founder of CareManity LLC, and the private FaceBook group, Eldercare Success.

Disclaimer: The views, perspectives, and opinions expressed in this show are those of the show guests and not directly those of the companies they serve or that of the host or the producer CareManity, LLC. The information discussed should not be considered or used as medical, legal, or financial advice. Please seek the advice of your own personal medical, legal or financial advisors as each person’s situation is different. (c) Copyright 2022 CareManity, LLC all rights reserved.

CareManity is a trademark of CareManity, LLC.