Difficulty Speaking with Negative Emotions - Autism Related?

I've had this weird thing go on with me for a few months now. When I'm feeling any negative emotions (such as sadness, stress, sometimes even anger) I loose my ability to speak. It physically hurts to try, which has only happened recently. I've had this happen multiple times, but in the past I was able to force myself to speak without it actually hurting me. That changed a little while ago, and it's gotten really disruptive as it happens at random and can last for either a short amount of time or almost the whole day. I've noticed that it tends to go away if something cheers me up, but it takes a few minutes to be able to speak full sentences. It the mean time, I can only speak a single word or make a noise. I've been told this is apart of autism, but I've never known for sure because everyone seems to act like this isn't anything they've seen before. Could I get some advice on this? I wanna know if this is normal for people with autism, or if this is maybe something else I need to look into.

Your answer

margaretscarry

2y ago

Going nonverbal is super super suoer common in autism. Theyre expensive but you can get text to speech mavhines and have stuff preprogrammed so you dont have to type it in the moment if u can help it.

Valtyr66

2y ago

definitely an autism thing, happens to me exactly the same way. i just open my phone and write in the notes app.

offthebeatenpath

2y ago

This happens with me a lot. I don't have any suggestions. Personally, I can only wait it out. It's like my system is on overload and has temporarily shutdown until it can process again. Sometimes I feel better if I go into a room by my self and close the door for a few minutes. I feel more free to process in the ways I need to and can calm more quickly, then can come back and let the person know I need to continue the conversation later. Anyone who knows me understands. If it's someone who doesn't, I might say I'm not feeling well (because I honestly am not at that point.)

joyboy

2y ago

Happens for me too! I got a text to voice app so I can just type what I want to say, it's super helpful!

anemone

2y ago

have also experienced this. i believe the "traditional" experience of selective mutism in autism is more like "the person who only talks to certain trusted friends/family" but what you described is exactly how i've experienced my selective mutism. and it was definitely annoying for me in high school! i even had therapists and psychs refuse to see me again after episodes of mutism. the best solution i've found is to get engaged in a special interest - even better if you can get someone to ask you yes or no questions about it so you can nod in response. helps me build up to talking again, at least. other options include writing/typing until the episode passes, or in my case i've used asl fingerspelling since i learned it young (and it's pretty easy to learn too). you can often get willing friends or family to learn it as well so it saves as a sort of failsafe when the words won't happen. hope this helps!

Feferi

2y ago

I've had this happen to me, it's a perfectly normal part of autism for some people! I believe it's called selective mutism

The content in this post is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.

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