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Damage to the right side of your brain can cause problems with attention, memory, problem solving, and more. Speech-language pathologists, or SLPs, can help.
On this page:
- About Right Hemisphere Brain Damage
- Signs of Right Hemisphere Brain Damage
- Causes of Right Hemisphere Brain Damage
- Testing for Right Hemisphere Brain Damage
- Treatment for Right Hemisphere Brain Damage
- Tips for Helping Someone With RHD
- Other Resources
About Right Hemisphere Brain Damage
Right hemisphere brain damage, or RHD, is damage to the right side of the brain. Our brains have two sides, or hemispheres. In most people, language skills are in the left side of the brain. The right side controls attention, memory, reasoning, and problem solving. RHD may lead to problems with these important thinking skills. A person with RHD may have trouble communicating with others because of this damage. In many cases, the person with RHD is not aware of their problems.
Signs of Right Hemisphere Brain Damage
A person with RHD may have trouble with:
- Attention.They may not be able to focus on a task or what they see or hear.
- Perception.They may have left-side neglect. This means that they will not see objects or people on their left side. For example, they may have trouble reading words on the left side of a page. They may ignore food on the left side of their plate.
- Reasoning and problem solving.They may not know that there is a problem, like running out of medicine. Or, they may not know how to solve the problem, like calling for a refill.
- Memory.They may not remember information they learned before. They may have trouble learning new information.
- Social communication.They may not be able to understand jokes or nonverbal cues. For example, they may not understand what someone means when they shrug their shoulders. They may say the wrong thing at the wrong time or interrupt others.
- Organization.They may have trouble putting information together logically. This can cause problems when telling stories or giving directions. They may also have trouble planning. So, they might forget to respond to your calls or e-mails or lose information.
- Insight.They may not recognize that they have any problems. Or, they may not realize that their problems cause trouble at home, school, or work.
- Orientation.They may have problems knowing the date, time, or where they are. They may not remember information like their birthday, age, or family names.
The person may also have problems using their arms or legs. The right side of the brain controls the left side of the body. This means that their movement will be worse on the left side.
Causes of Right Hemisphere Brain Damage
Stroke, tumors, infections, and traumatic brain injury, or TBI, can cause RHD.
Testing for Right Hemisphere Brain Damage
A speech-language pathologist, or SLP, will test your loved one's speech, language, and thinking skills. The SLP will look at how well they talk and understand what others say. The SLP will test their attention, memory, reasoning, and problem solving.
Treatment for Right Hemisphere Brain Damage
The SLP will work with your loved one to improve their skills. Treatment will depend on the problems they have. The SLP may need to help them become aware of these problems. The SLP may suggest tools that will help them in daily life. For example, they may need a calendar to help remember what they have to do each day. They may need word or picture cues to help prepare a meal. The goal is to help them care for themself as much as possible.
Tips for Helping Someone With RHD
- Ask questions to keep them on topic.
- Try not to use sarcasm or abstract language. For example, do not use sayings like, "It's raining cats and dogs." A person with RHD may not understand these sayings.
- Try to have a routine every day so your loved one knows what to expect.
- Break down directions into small steps. Repeat directions as needed.
- Talk to them in quiet places. Turn off the TV or other loud noises. This will help them pay attention.
- Make sure that someone is there to watch them, if you worry about their safety.
- Stand to their right side, and put objects to their right if they has left-side neglect.
- Use calendars, clocks, and notepads to remind them about important information.
To find a speech-language pathologist near you, visit ProFind.
Other Resources
This list does not include every website on this topic. ASHA does not endorse the information on these sites.
FAQs
RHD may result from a variety of changes in the structure or function of the right hemisphere of the brain. These can range in severity and may result in chronic or acute deficits. Changes in the brain include tumors, surgery, infection, stroke, seizure, neurodegenerative conditions, and traumatic brain injury.
What does damage to the right hemisphere of the brain cause? ›
With right hemisphere brain damage (known as RHBD or RHD), a person may have trouble with things like attention, perception, and memory, as well as loss of mobility and control on the left side of the body, since each hemisphere controls functions on the opposite side of the body.
Can you recover from right hemisphere brain damage? ›
Right hemisphere damage can cause a variety of problems. But if you persevere with your therapy, it is possible to regain the skills and abilities you've lost — even years after injury. This is possible because your brain possesses a natural ability to rewire itself known as neuroplasticity.
What are three deficits associated with damage to the right hemisphere? ›
Patients with right hemisphere brain damage most commonly have difficulties with attention, perception, learning, memory, recognition and expression of emotion, and neglect. Other frequently occurring, though slightly less common, deficits include reasoning and problem solving, awareness, and orientation.
What is the right hemisphere of the brain concerned with? ›
The right hemisphere controls creativity, spatial ability, artistic, and musical skills. The left hemisphere is dominant in hand use and language in about 92% of people.
What is right hemisphere brain disease? ›
Right hemisphere damage (RHD; also known as “right hemisphere disorder” and “right hemisphere brain damage”) is an acquired brain injury—usually secondary to stroke or TBI—that causes impairments in language and other cognitive domains that affect communication.
Which side of the brain is worse to have a stroke? ›
The terms Left Brain Stroke and Right Brain Stroke refer to the side of the brain where the obstruction causing the stroke occurs. There is not a worse or better side to have a stroke on as both sides control many important functions, but a more severe stroke will result in amplified effects.
What is the difference between a brain injury and brain damage? ›
You may wonder what the difference between brain damage and traumatic brain injury is. Brain damage usually is non-traumatic, while traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the result of a blow to the head, often in an accident with negligence.
What is the right brain hemisphere likely responsible for? ›
The right cerebral hemisphere: emotion, music, visual-spatial skills, body-image, dreams, and awareness.
How do you strengthen the right hemisphere of the brain? ›
Exercises to Help the Right Brain
- Socially Active. Visiting with family and joining in on social events, getting together with friends, or volunteering your time at a church or hospital are great ways to be social and have physical interactions and conversations. ...
- Visual Arts. ...
- Performing Arts.
Most studies suggest that once brain cells are destroyed or damaged, for the most part, they do not regenerate. However, recovery after brain injury can take place, especially in younger people, as, in some cases, other areas of the brain make up for the injured tissue.
What emotions does the right side of the brain control? ›
The neural system for emotions linked to approaching and engaging with the world – like happiness, pride and anger – lives in the left side of the brain, while emotions associated with avoidance – like disgust and fear – are housed in the right.
How do you test for right hemisphere brain damage? ›
Testing for Right Hemisphere Brain Damage
The SLP will look at how well they talk and understand what others say. The SLP will test their attention, memory, reasoning, and problem solving.
What do patients with right hemisphere damage tend to demonstrate? ›
The right hemisphere is also responsible for knowledge of social concepts and interpretation and use of prosody. Patients with right hemisphere disorders may lose the ability to comprehend and show emotion (e.g., empathy and embarrassment), interpret sarcasm, and manipulate prosody.
Which aspect of language is most impaired in right hemisphere brain damage? ›
Communication deficits associated with right hemisphere injury involve nonliteral language (eg, metaphor, irony, and indirect requests), speech prosody, discourse (eg, humor and story comprehension), and related cognitive abilities, such as inference, working memory, and Theory of Mind (ToM; ie, making inferences about ...
What happens to language when the right hemisphere is damaged? ›
Communication deficits associated with right hemisphere injury involve nonliteral language (eg, metaphor, irony, and indirect requests), speech prosody, discourse (eg, humor and story comprehension), and related cognitive abilities, such as inference, working memory, and Theory of Mind (ToM; ie, making inferences about ...
What can happen when someone damages their right hemisphere temporal lobe? ›
Damage to the temporal lobes can result in:
Disturbance with selective attention to what we see and hear. Difficulty with identification and categorisation of objects. Difficulty learning and retaining new information. Impaired factual and long-term memory.
