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12th May 2021

Australian woman stuck with Irish accent after tonsil surgery

Stephen Porzio

This is despite the woman never having been to Ireland.

An Australian woman has been left with what appears to be an Irish accent after having her tonsils removed.

Angie Yen underwent the surgery on 19 April but just over a week later awoke one morning with her voice changed to what sounds like an Irish accent.

Chronicling her experiences through TikTok, Yen said in her first video: “All of a sudden, I was talking in an Irish accent. I thought initially that it was just something I was hearing, that this can’t be real.

“Now, I can’t shake it. I just did a job interview in an Irish accent when I’ve never been to Ireland.”

@angie.mcyenDay 1: I woke up with an Irish accent ? ##sendhelp♬ original sound – angie.mcyen

Angie believes she is suffering from Foreign Accent Syndrome, an extremely rare condition that sees a person suddenly start to speak with a different accent.

While it’s most common after a head injury, stroke, or some other type of damage to the brain, it can occur after surgery to the face or mouth.

Those suffering from Foreign Accent Syndrome are not actually speaking in a foreign accent. Instead, it is a damaged form of their native accent that happens to resemble a foreign accent.

Image via angie.mcyen

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