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Speech struggles

NAS91867

I’m 27f and awaiting assessment date. When asked about how you’re feeling how do you react? When I’m asked about my feelings or if I am trying to speak to somebody about something for example yesterday I was trying to ask my manager if we could come up with a plan for when I’m having a bad day, I really struggle to get the words out. It’s like I know what I want to say in my head but I can’t form the words and then I get really annoyed at myself for not being able to speak. Could this be due to autism or would this be something else? 

Parents

  • Hi!

    Can I just clarify do you lose speech when involved in conflict or experiencing intense emotions? If yes, you could be experiencing Processing Mutism - a loss of speech due to excessive processing demands. Many members of our autistic community experience mutism when overloaded or when facing excessive expectations, this is explained further in the article below: 

    https://autistic-village.com/2024/02/07/my-autistic-experience-of-processing-mutism/

    Also do you know how you feel when you can't speak, for example do you feel anxious? If so, you could be experiencing Situational Mutism (a phobia of speaking in specific situation or to certain people). Sometimes people with SM can become mute in situations where there is an expectation to speak, for example if your manager is not approachable they may make it impossible for you to speak. Situational Mutism is explained in more detail in the article below:

    https://autismunderstood.co.uk/co-occurring-conditions/selective-mutism/

    SM is often also talked about in our autistic community, however it is regularly confused with Processing Mutism so it is not clear how prevalent this is among our neurokin.

    I hope this helps!

Reply

  • Hi!

    Can I just clarify do you lose speech when involved in conflict or experiencing intense emotions? If yes, you could be experiencing Processing Mutism - a loss of speech due to excessive processing demands. Many members of our autistic community experience mutism when overloaded or when facing excessive expectations, this is explained further in the article below: 

    https://autistic-village.com/2024/02/07/my-autistic-experience-of-processing-mutism/

    Also do you know how you feel when you can't speak, for example do you feel anxious? If so, you could be experiencing Situational Mutism (a phobia of speaking in specific situation or to certain people). Sometimes people with SM can become mute in situations where there is an expectation to speak, for example if your manager is not approachable they may make it impossible for you to speak. Situational Mutism is explained in more detail in the article below:

    https://autismunderstood.co.uk/co-occurring-conditions/selective-mutism/

    SM is often also talked about in our autistic community, however it is regularly confused with Processing Mutism so it is not clear how prevalent this is among our neurokin.

    I hope this helps!

Children
  • in reply to Ausomely Autistic

    If I am in a group setting or around people I don’t know for example and feel uncomfortable I can’t speak so I just nod or shake my head when asked a question. Also sometimes I can be around someone I know very well and will have planned what I am going to say beforehand but when it comes to saying it I just can’t get the words out so end up stuttering a lot