Had a low functioning moment yesterday

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Well this happened yesterday. Mom gave me 2 dollars in dimes to get 2 dollars in quarters for the air machine for the tires on the truck.

Well I went in and all the sudden, I could not speak very well. I was nervous for some reason to ask this cashier and my language skills flew out the soda machine.

Cashier: How can I help you?
Me: I have dimes (drops dimes on counter). I need quarters. 2 dollars
She counted it and gave me the quarters. But I had no idea what happened.

Do other AS people do this?? Does moderate anxiety causes a sudden drop in language skills?

Tell me what you think,

Jojo

Speeching impedimented to myself? For never of course! Speak good I always do yep.

In all seriousness: When I get nervous, I usually talk too fast for
others to follow, and end-up needing to repeat myself.

I have a very high verbal IQ, and am frequently told I am rather verbally articulate...though it never seems sufficient by my standards. However, on occasion I find myself in a situation where my brain is taxed trying to process to many things at once, and out from my mouth will fall the babblings of a complete idiot.

Most recently...

At the doctor's office:
Doctor: Do you need a refill on that prescription?
Me: Yes. I ate them all.

I've been completely at a loss for words in front of my superiors before, yet they've seen my give presentations so they know I'm not a complete idiot.

I would be laughing at you if I didn't work in that doctors office.

Hopefully, you can see the humor in what you said.

I usually speak like a toddler or not at all in a high stress situation. That often includes speaking to strangers in shops. Sometimes it doesn't help if the shop is very full or has lots of dull flickering lights because this makes my senses all mixed up as well. I ended up crying in the post office because I didn't know what the hell was going on all around me.

For me: I sometimes drift and my daggoned foot leaves the brake of my car which I hope some day doesn't kill me.
My husband and son freeze up upon talking to people. So, My husband or son do most of the driving and I do most of the talking.

... and sometimes I cannot even speak at all.

In boot camp in the Navy in '69, I once had to pass through a security checkpoint on my way (walking) to an eye examination ... and my company commander had given me some precise instruction about doing that:

At the checkpoint, I was to approach the service window at the guardshack, snap to "attention", offer my name, rank and serial number and say, "Reporting as ordered!" At that point, I would be asked to state what I had been ordered to do, and I was to say, "To have my walking chit stamped, Sir!"

The guard at the window ended up having to ask three times before I finally said anything at all, and then I stammered, "To get my walking-stamp chit (which sounded like 'sh-t'), Sir ...", and that guard just shook his head, stamped my chit and motioned me on away from his window.

I know what you mean, I have about 1 "low-functioning day"/month, on those days I berly speak at all and if somebody speaks to me I mostly don't recognize the sound as a voice and ignore it (I know couse I rememer the incidents the day after and realize my mistakes then).
On those days I often do things very similar to what you did, but then it's not couse of any anixety, it's couse of previously builtup overstimulation.
When I'm in new situations where I don't know the social rules I get to much anxiety to talk or do anything so then I would ignore anybody talking to me or if they would keep talking to me anyways I would answer in the same manner you did.

Yes it does happen to me too, and when it does I feel like an idiot.

And sometimes if a person gives me somewhat long verbal instructions, and I didn't understand everything and have to ask the person to repeat, when the person repeats, and especially if he/she is obviously getting impatient, sometimes my mind goes "blank" and I understand even less the 2nd time, which is very embarassing and makes me feel and look very stupid.

Last edited by Shadi2 on 16 Dec 2010, 8:15 pm, edited 2 times in total.

I've been resorting to signing, but not a whole lot of people "speak" it.
Sometimes, at odd moments, I become nonverbal. Often with random clerk-person.
Emergencies are the worst.

I know a large number of autistic people who lose speech in various situations. Anxiety being only one of many possible triggers.

yes. if i am uncomfortable (to anyone that doesnt know me well) i might talk fast and with the least number of words as possible, sometimes cant find words at all and look stupid also my voice is very childish, i sound like a 6 year old but i am 18. someone thought i was 12, recently.

This could have been me. Sometimes Im surprised that Im in a situation like that, even if I have waited in a line, and sometimes it happenes when I make a phone call.
I suddenly cant figure out where to start, and I start in the middle and start over many times until the situation is funny anyway.

I start stammering whenever I get royally pissed off at something or someone. Unfortunately, it seems to happen with an audience, often a city council meeting when I used to be making a point on an issue affecting my department (I was an EMS chief).

I get a bit more animated when I'm nervous and full of anxiety. That means I start laughing and not talking. Its a nervous laugh, but you don't want to go walking to Rite Aid to pick up a prescription and instead of asking for your prescription you just start laughing. Then you look like you need more then what you got.

Rite aid person, "How may I help you sir?"

Me, "heheehahahaahahaheeheh" which I'm sure in my mind translates picking up a prescription.

I also talk either really fast or talk really slow and hard.

Depends on the situation. If its someone like my boss I start stammering and talking really really really fast.

If its a friend or an acquaintance or a clerk, I speak slow and stammer.

Clerk, "Will this be all on the card?"

Me, "I... be ...wouldn't... it ...not,"

She stares at me.

I meant to say, yes why wouldn't it be?

Yes, I have to admit, it was quite funny. The second I said it I thought "Oh my God, that's the stupidest thing I've ever said!"