James Stephens

James Stephens James is a New Zealander. He was a teacher, musician and music director, a journalist and event manager - as well as a husband, father and grandfather. He was a voracious reader, a fluent writer and confident speaker. In 2015, he suffered a hemiparesis, a middle cerebral artery territory infarct. In a word, a stroke. He collapsed, paralysed on his right side, and couldn't speak or write. The hospital intervention was rapid and his limbs were free but his speech was absent. He...See more

James Stephens James is a New Zealander. He was a teacher, musician and music director, a journalist and event manager - as well as a husband, father and grandfather. He was a voracious reader, a fluent writer and confident speaker. In 2015, he suffered a hemiparesis, a middle cerebral artery territory infarct. In a word, a stroke. He collapsed, paralysed on his right side, and couldn't speak or write. The hospital intervention was rapid and his limbs were free but his speech was absent. He had/has aphasia. Aphasia is the loss of a previously held ability to articulate ideas or comprehend spoken or written language, resulting from damage to the brain caused by injury or disease - in this case, a stroke. He has semi-recovered with expert therapists in speech, music and eurhythmy. He has a positive and optimistic outlook, electing to view his stroke as a 'stroke of luck'. "My aphasia forced me to look at my life differently and to re-invent myself. Now, I am an author - apparently!" See less