Language is the words we use to share ideas and get what we want. A person with a language disorder may have problems:

• understanding
• talking
• reading
• writing

Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) is diagnosed when children fail to acquire their own language for no obvious reason. This results in children who have difficulty understanding what people say to them, and struggle to articulate their ideas and feelings. 

‘Developmental Language Disorder’ was the agreed term for when the language disorder is not associated with a known condition such as autism spectrum disorder, brain injury, genetic conditions such as Down’s syndrome and sensorineural hearing loss. Children with language disorders may experience social/emotional problems and/or exhibit behaviors secondary to language impairment. These difficulties may impact self-perception and awareness, academic performance, peer relationships, and social interactions. Furthermore, the impact of language disorders can result in misperceptions and misattributions of the child’s behavior.

Aphasia
Aphasia is an acquired neurogenic language disorder resulting from an injury to the brain—most typically, the left hemisphere. Aphasia is most often caused by stroke. However, any type of brain damage can cause aphasia. This includes brain tumors, traumatic brain injury, and brain disorders that get worse over time.

Signs of Aphasia
People living with aphasia may have difficulty:

• Talking (e.g: can’t think of the words they want to say, using made-up words, having difficulty saying sentences)
• Understanding (e.g: may not understand what others say especially when they speak fast)
• Reading and writing (e.g: spelling and putting words together to write sentences; telling time)

Cognitive communication disorder is defined as a difficulty with any aspect of communication that is affected by disruption of cognition. This can be the result of a right hemisphere brain damage, traumatic brain injury, genetic disorders, lack of oxygen to the brain or brain turmor. 

Some examples of cognitive processes include: attention, memory, organization, problem solving/reasoning, and executive functions. Problems in these areas can affect verbal and nonverbal communication. For instance, speaking, listening, reading, writing, and pragmatic (social interaction) skills may be affected negatively. Problems with cognitive-communication can affect activities of daily living, and academic and work performance.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     (ASHA, 2020)