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Word finding difficulties

I have had this so badly that I would just stop stumbling and be silent. My son actually teases me about it good naturedly. I will go completely blank on anything from what did you eat for lunch to "where do you work?" and i would stumble and intnerally flail frantically for the information. Sometimes I just stutter or mix two words together into one. It has diminished a bit in the last couple of weeks since my ex deployed (voluntarily) so I am hopeful it will improve as it is so freaking frustrating as I used to be pretty articulate. Glad you posted about this and to know I am not alone. I hope we both get to a place of security within ourselves where this doesn't need to happen. I think it is part dissociation at times because the info is just gone
 
Yep....happens to me as well. Often I can manage it with pauses when it's words, and my brain might be able to replace a single word with a description of what I'm trying to explain when it's not completely fried or zapped by a trigger.

It was extremely frustrating last week when I was working on things in therapy. I'd be listening to what my T was explaining to me, trying to apply it to my history so I could understand it, then I would want to provide a comment and would open my mouth - T would pause for me to speak, and it would be gone. Like a breeze caught it and swept it away. It's entirely confusing in the moment, frustrating, and feels like your marbles just spilled. Then you have to pick them up and figure out which one was being worked on.
Thankfully, when it happens in a place where the other person understands it, there's no judgement.
As @tree mentioned - ptsd causes us not to be able to access our frontal lobes sometimes. That causes us to lose speech entirely, or words.
Knowing that doesn't change how frustrating it is when it happens and how much you'd like to either improve it or make sure it never happens.

I also agree with @Toren - when it happened to me in session it also felt as though my brain was blocking access to what I wanted to say. I used to completely zone out and be lost in dissociation but have improved a bit. The brain is so tricky though, could be that dissociation adapts as we progress.....not sure. Anyone care to comment on their own experience?

Thanks for posting this thread.
 
The brain is so tricky though, could be that dissociation adapts as we progress....
I think so. I might be a bit atypical in this, but there is a thing, I just press the button and that’s it, I flood the conversation in any nonsense direction, make jokes, tell a story for the hundred time, and I can watch myself doing it and I can’t manage to stop. Then at the end I’m reminded of what I wanted to do and I didn’t do it. If I have a gap, I manage to fill it with whatever. I can write without thinking at all. It’s very strange.

There have been moments people told me I did the very exact same series of responses and associations two times, the first one I didn’t remember. So I understand that this series of words were very automatic. Stress tends to make me rather talkative and hectic more than becoming silent, but it’s not really quality conversation. Depression, sheer fear or rage can make me shut down.
 
Yeah, figured stress may be a culprit. Just noticing that sometimes pronouncing basic words causes trouble which I find unnerving, but do notice it is worse when stressed (but also present when not stressed). But also found that PTSD affects brain areas connected with memory and the like so maybe that is just affected a bit as well.
I have complex PTSD and I have the same symptoms. Especially when stressed but also when not stressed. And I know what you mean by difficulties pronouncing basic words. Additionally I had problems with syntax. And I am a language teacher......
 
I sometimes slip in and out of a pre-verbal state. My language skills go to hell. I can't put two words together, I can't spell and sometimes I go mute. It is a cue for me that there is something wrong and perhaps I am being triggered.
 
Hi guys, does anyone here experience difficulties pronouncing/finding words post-PTSD? I've noticed in the last few months I have more troubles finding/pronouncing words and it's a thing that is really annoying me because it seems harder to even form sentences at times. I think it may be due to pretty high stress levels I've been experiencing post PTSD for a year now. Can anyone relate?
Yup. When I'm stressed or triggered, I fumble all over my words. It's the brains way of conserving energy and thinking power for escaping. If I am caught up in studying my surroundings, I don't say much at all and if I'm forced to speak, it comes out disjointed and rudimentary.
 
Hi guys, does anyone here experience difficulties pronouncing/finding words post-PTSD? I've noticed in the last few months I have more troubles finding/pronouncing words and it's a thing that is really annoying me because it seems harder to even form sentences at times. I think it may be due to pretty high stress levels I've been experiencing post PTSD for a year now. Can anyone relate?
I can kinda relate to that those troubles. There's time when I can't remember a word or what some things is called, some people are more visual. How come you are feeling alot of stress? It's just the PTSD or something else? And I would say sometimes PTSD is hard to put in to words all of it what going on in side. Pluse if it's about the PTSD it's self and riu don't know how the person will respond then that can make it more. Here and in other PTSD support groups. I know I can share my truama and get support. And hear other people truama so I can offer support.

It's like some stuff with PTSD is too difficult for words sometimes.
 
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One time I could see a plate of spaghetti in my mind and could even remember the taste and smell but I could not find the word for spaghetti no matter how hard I tried. It took me about 20 minutes to figure it out.
 
I don't know if this is really the same as what everyone else is describing because it's not like an every day type issue, but I definitely have speech/communication issues in certain situations. I've only for about a year or so really had conscious awareness (or self acknowledgement ??) of what i call "the thing" that happened to me many years ago. (not sure how to explain that part, totally blocked from memory for years which i still find difficult to wrap my head around)
Anyway, starting with the day it came unexpectedly spewing out of my mouth and into the open air ......every time I try talking about it or even mention it in therapy it's like I totally lose control of my ability to speak correctly. It's like an automatic shift in my verbal skills takes place. I can literally feel my anxiety level immediately going way up and then I start to stutter .....alot. I sound like a record player just skipping over and over and over. I get the word "I" or maybe "I just" out of my mouth and then it just goes on repeat, "I....I......I.......I...." I can hear myself doing it and have to force myself to close my mouth so that I can breath in , take a moment, and try again to push the whole sentence out of my mouth before get stuck again. It's incredibly frustrating and embarrassing. Then I get upset with myself because the lack of control over something as simple as speaking just makes me feel like a 3 year old.
 
I sound like a record player just skipping over and over and over. I get the word "I" or maybe "I just" out of my mouth and then it just goes on repeat, "I....I......I.......I...."
That's word finding difficulties...... Some just hide it by being quiet. For some it turns into more fears or agoraphobia where they avoid people because they feel so self conscious and embarrassed they cant deal with that....
 
That's word finding difficulties...... Some just hide it by being quiet. For some it turns into more fears or agoraphobia where they avoid people because they feel so self conscious and embarrassed they cant deal with that....
I've thought about this a little bit more. It's not that I can't find the words so much as i just can't get my mouth to speak them. My mouth/body simply stops cooperating with my mind. I'll start speaking and the first word or two comes out and then it's like my system goes into complete overload on its own and those first few words just keep repeating. When finally manage to stop, pause a moment, and try again it's like I have to physically force the sentence out. Almost aggressively, like I'm spitting it out. Sometimes in a very halted manner. Sometimes I try to say the sentence super fast before my body takes over and stops it. I think that it generally
only happens when I'm asked a question that directly relates to "the thing" so i guess its safe to say it's when I'm "triggered" if that's how that works? As soon as a question is asked or something is mentioned about it it's like my body immediately says, "Nope! Not going there. We aren't talking about that."
 
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