A stroke left me with an Italian accent
On 4 May, Althia Bryden was found in her bed unresponsive and with her face visibly drooping on the right side.
The 58-year-old, from Highbury, north London, was rushed to hospital and found to have had a stroke that had left her unable to speak or feel the upper-right side of her body.
The following day while recovering in intensive care, she says a nurse woke her to take her blood pressure and "completely out of the blue, I just started speaking".
However, the medical staff also noticed something strange about her voice.
"They asked me if I had an Italian accent before my stroke and were telling me I had a strong accent," she says.
The grandmother, who is a medically retired customer service advisor, says she has never spoken Italian or even visited Italy, but has now gained a distinct accent.
She claims she even uses words and mannerisms such as "mamma mia", "bambino" and "si" in conversation without realising it.
"Doctors and nurses saw me as a bit of a medical marvel – none of the nurses, doctors, therapists or surgeons had dealt with foreign accent syndrome in their whole careers," Althia says.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdd6r7y33n4o
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