Executive Functions: What are they?

Executive function is a term used to describe cognitive processes including memory, attention, organizing and planning to name a few. Do you find yourself losing things often? Do you start several tasks without finishing any of them (laundry, dishes, work project, etc.)? Do you have difficulty planning what needs to be done day-to-day? This can happen due to cognitive overload, but also neurological conditions.

Concussion, brain injury, and stroke can impact executive functions resulting in difficulties with the processes mentioned above. ADHD is another disorder that involves these processes. If it becomes difficult to manage and affects the ability to function during your daily life, there are tools to strengthen our executive functions. 

A few strategies to aid the individual’s cognitive processes include: 

Repetition (aloud or internally)

Self-talk (fades to internal)

Self-evaluate 

Predict or mentally plan what needs to be done prior to a task

Reduce distractions 

Write information down

It’s important to practice these or other strategies to be able to independently implement them in the tasks important to you. Speech therapy can be a resource to provide compensatory strategies and offer cognitive training to support executive function deficits in concussion, brain injury, ADHD, stroke, etc. 

Executive Function Deficits. American Speech Language Hearing Association. https://www.asha.org/practice-portal/clinical-topics/executive-function-deficits/#collapse_6