PORT ANGELES — CindyLou Romberg said it gets a little old to be constantly asked where she is from.
She’s as American as apple pie but her accent is more “apfel kuchen” — with a side of “lefse.”
Romberg, 51, vaulted unintentionally to international fame two years ago when she was diagnosed with a rare malady known simply as Foreign Accent Syndrome.
She has no control over the accent that comes out of her mouth, and it can change many times in one day.
She talks rapidly, with an accent range that ricochets all over Europe – one sentence can sound French with a Scandinavian twist, the next German with an Italian ending.
“It’s just something that happened,” she said, although it came out: “Eet’s joost someting dat hoppent.”
“It’s not life-changing in the way I do things. I was just relieved that nothing was wrong,” she said, fearing perhaps a brain tumor was causing the condition.
Since the diagnosis, she has appeared on national television and radio and last November was invited by Paramount Studios to appear on an Oprah spinoff called “The Doctors.”
She and friend Nancy Woods were treated like celebrities as they were chauffeured around Los Angeles.
“Talk about being queen for day,” she said, marveling over the hair, makeup and wardrobe process. “It’s another world.”
While she has learned to live with her condition, it is a constant source of curiosity for others.
“I’m amazed how many people ask me where I’m from,” she said, particularly on the Peninsula, adding, “It gets a little old.”
Romberg is actually from Crescent City, Calif., and has lived outside Port Angeles with her husband, Glenn, and family for many years.
Her life changed literally overnight when she suddenly began speaking what she calls “gibberish.”
It was 9 p.m., Feb. 16, 2007, to be exact.
“I came down to dinner and I had no English at all,” she said.
Romberg had a chiropractic treatment a week earlier that had unexpectedly caused her neck to swell. The swelling subsided, but the accent began several days later.
She said doctors have not determined a connection, and some denied that it was possible.
She also suffered a head injury in a 1981 car crash, but again, doctors don’t link it directly to the condition.
After a gantlet of doctors, hospitals and tests, she was diagnosed with Foreign Accent Syndrome.
It’s an elite club, with just 51 known members in the world.
There is no known cause and no known cure.
The flurry of media attention was flattering, but Romberg is most interested in a new, more scientific endeavor.
She is part of a study on Foreign Language Syndrome and human DNA being conducted by the National Geographic Society.
Returning to roots
The premise is that all humans can trace their ancestry to specific genetic “pods,” and that FLS patients may actually be returning to those roots following a head injury.
For example, if Romberg’s ancestors were northern European, that would explain the accents, which seem largely based in that region.
Romberg is particularly interested because, like many Americans, she can trace her roots back only two generations.
She has been submitting saliva samples taken with cheek swabs, and later this year will travel to Utah to meet with researchers.
While some might have become depressed over losing his or her “voice,” Romberg is irrepressibly effervescent.
Her home on Old Olympic Highway is sunny and filled with flowers and children’s toys.
She and Glen are busy raising their active 19-month-old grandson Kahleb.
“I loved my voice,” she said. “It’s the voice I grew up with –the voice I said ‘I do’ with.
“But I’m really blessed,” she continued. “I have a husband who loves me, kids who love me. I’m a firm believer that all things happen for a reason.”
Glenn Romberg is an easy-going guy who would rather ride his Harley than stress about things beyond his control.
“I’ve totally adjusted,” he said. “It’s commonplace.”
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Features Editor Marcie Miller can be reached at 360-417-3550 or marcie.miller@peninsuladailynews.com.
