this post was submitted on 20 Nov 2024
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I don't know if anyone else has this problem but I have a really pacific issue. In general just I suck at talking. I find it hard to put my thoughts to words, I never know what words to use and I never know what to say.

I talk like xQc irl and the act of using words to hard I'm always slurring them out even tho I try not to and I have a stutter and a slip so saying thing is very hard.

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[–] leonine@sh.itjust.works 3 points 15 hours ago

You can start by using chat gpt's voice chat. it’s a small step, but it can help you practice carrying conversations. speaking in public is very different from talking alone, but this could give you some direction.

if your speech feels like xqc's, one reason might be overthinking how others see your face or gestures. building self-confidence can help—working out, for example, can make you feel better about how you look, which often translates to confidence in speaking.

another issue could be speaking too fast. try slowing down. you might worry about awkward pauses, but people enjoy listening. if you speak with authority and maintain your pace, others will adjust and give you time to express yourself.

lastly, if eye contact makes you nervous, don’t overthink it. a quick glance now and then is fine. it keeps you calm and focused without overwhelming you. over time, this can make speaking much less stressful.

[–] yogthos@lemmy.ml 3 points 16 hours ago

Like anything, it's practising doing it. Incidentally, this is one place using a chat bot might help you. These things are pretty good at carrying a conversation, and if you're not comfortable talking to a person, it could be a good way to practice.

[–] Zaphod@discuss.tchncs.de 1 points 14 hours ago

I've struggled with putting my thoughts into words almost my whole life. Only in the last 2-3 years I started to actually get better (I'm 28 soon).

What could help is

  • If you managed to find words for a thought write them down somewhere (I used phone notes for this)
  • Not sure about this one, but maybe reading books out loud might help (doesn't have to be with anyone present)

I did both of these occasionally, but I think what actually helped me here was LSD, which I don't recommend unless you've properly researched the (side-) effects, are aware of all the risks and have trusted source to get it from.

[–] NastyNative@mander.xyz 3 points 18 hours ago

One really neat trick is to slow down and even pause words. This really helps me get my point across.

[–] otp@sh.itjust.works 2 points 17 hours ago

As others have suggested, professional help would probably be the best way to go about it.

Otherwise, here are my suggestions as a non-professional:

  • Record yourself and listen to yourself speak, maybe even naturally (maybe on the phone?). Listen for the mistakes you're making so that you can focus on correcting them.
  • Slow down between words and sentences.
  • Plan out your sentences before you start them.
  • Be okay with using filled pauses. You don't need ums and uhs, but things like "Well...". Even something like "Let me think about that for a moment" is okay in certain settings.
  • Look up advice for professional speaking. Advice for live streamers can be great to apply to your situation.
[–] chloroken@lemmy.ml 7 points 23 hours ago* (last edited 23 hours ago)

You're dealing with both impediments and social issues here. This would be difficult for anyone. I highly suggest professional help, but if it's not available or you are unwilling, the next best thing would be to understand you're going to need to fail a lot with intentions of getting better, and it may never happen. I'm rooting for you.

Edit: To clarify, speech therapy and general therapy are what you will benefit from.

[–] arthur@lemmy.zip 1 points 16 hours ago* (last edited 16 hours ago)

Learn new languages. Learn to code.

May not solve your problem, but will help.

Also, read books.

[–] jbrains@sh.itjust.works 16 points 1 day ago (2 children)

I don’t know if anyone else has this problem but I have a really pacific issue.

The word you want here is "specific". 👍

[–] SpaceFox@lemmy.ml 4 points 22 hours ago
[–] FurtiveFugitive@lemm.ee 4 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Only West Coast people understand.

[–] jbrains@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 day ago

I lived for three months in Mazatlán. I get it.

[–] ininewcrow@lemmy.ca 17 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I'm Indigenous Canadian and I grew up in a semi remote community where my family only spoke our Ojibway/Cree language. That was my first language for about the first ten years of my life.

I went to school and learned English and could understand it from a young age but I never needed to speak it.

At 14 I had to go high school in a city where everyone spoke English and I didn't. I could understand everyone but I had a hell of a hard time speaking or even to be heard. My brain knew what to say but my mouth parts were so out of practice that I couldn't speak properly or be understood. The software was working 100% but the hardware didn't cooperate.

I had a hard time speaking English all through my teen years. I didn't get comfortable with it until about 20. Even after that I spent about another five / ten years before I got fully comfortable with the language. I'm almost 50 now and I can comfortably speak English now and I have no problem making myself heard. Sad part is that in all that time, I've lost some of my ability to speak my Indigenous language.

Basically it's just practice and sticking with it. You won't sound right or you won't sound good for a few years but keep at it. Make mistakes, make yourself sound goofy or silly ... who cares ... keep practicing and eventually you'll get better with it. It took me a long time because I just don't like interacting with people. I saw others like me who were more extroverted pick up the language a lot faster and within a year or two just become as normal of a speaker as anyone else.

Practise ... it's like saying you want to learn to sing ... you won't be good at it at first so you have to practice and not be afraid to fail and fail often ... keep at it and eventually you'll be just as good at speaking as anyone else.

[–] jbrains@sh.itjust.works 2 points 1 day ago

I would like to add this: I'm pretty articulate in English, and even though I speak French quite well, I sometimes feel like I small child when I try to speak it with my francophone friends, which is why I shy away from that. I feel like I barely know how to express myself and, since I find that so easy in English, it frightens me to struggle so much with it.

I say all this to let you know that you're not alone and that practice is, indeed, a path to success. It might not be what you need, but it's worth trying.

Where can you practise speaking that you feel safe? Where you can expect not to be judged nor ridiculed?

[–] folkrav@lemmy.ca 11 points 1 day ago

If you legitimately speak like xQc, the first thing I'd tell you is to slow the hell down. That guy would probably get as much information out in the same amount of time, but easier to understand, if he just didn't try speaking that fast. Last I heard it, even his québécois french was slurred.

As to finding the right words when speaking, it tends to come with knowing your subject well enough, and having decent vocabulary.

Past that, if you do struggle with the very act of translating ideas into the physical act of speaking, it could be a speech disorder which could likely benefit from speech therapy.

[–] Vanth@reddthat.com 6 points 1 day ago

Speech pathology for the stutter and the slip. You can find some free help online but be careful, trying to fix speech issues on your own can make things worse in some cases. If you can, seek professional input.

[–] iii@mander.xyz 6 points 1 day ago

I've done toastmasters a long time a go, and it really benefits me till today.

[–] TheOubliette@lemmy.ml 2 points 1 day ago

Practice by reading out loud slowly and enunciating like you want a child to understand you. Do the same with others' speeches, as they were written to be said out loud. If they are recorded in an accent that is in the neighborhood of your goal, even better - you can practice talking exactly like a recording.

Even though this isn't off-the-cuff speaking, you will likely adopt verbal patterns that let your words flow more freely.

You can also join clubs that are dedicated to speaking to other people. If all else fails, something like toastmasters, though that's specifically about public speaking.

If this doesn't go well, that's also okay. You might want to look into a speech therapist if practice doesn't help.

[–] lordapophis@lemmy.ml 2 points 1 day ago

I as a teen worked in a retail computer store Having to constantly interact with people really give you a sense of being able to communicate better. That or any job where you have to teach someone something.

[–] pelespirit@sh.itjust.works 4 points 1 day ago

Freeze

Another response to danger is your body hitting the pause button altogether. The freeze response involves becoming immobilized or “freezing” in response to a threat. This can involve a state of paralysis or being unable to move. It’s thought that this response might have evolved as a way to avoid being noticed by a predator or to remain still in the hopes that the threat will pass by.

https://health.clevelandclinic.org/what-happens-to-your-body-during-the-fight-or-flight-response

I would suggest emailing improv groups around you to see if you could join a class that's supportive. Make sure to ask the teacher ahead of time so you can get a feel for if they'd be good for you or not and if they're willing to work with you. If you could take a friend that's interested as well, that would help for you to work with someone you trust.

I talk like xQc irl

🤣 Sorry not laughing at you, I'm laughing with you. I kinda felt that.

Remember that in real life, conversations isn't like in movies. Dialogue isn't so perfect with flowery proses. Real conversations often have incomplete sentences, a lot of "um..." filler words. And there often like frequent pauses when my brain just has to process thoughts before I can say it. Life is like that, is normal.

What made me less anxious and just go "IDGAF" is just I realized that I am a mortal being and I will eventually die, I kinda had an existential crisis for a while, then I was just like: if everyone just dies, all embarassing moments just gets forgotten

Like you can piss yourself or shit your pants, look foolish in a live audience of millions of people, say stupid things... whatever. Doesn't matter, everything is temporary. Being a bit nihilistic just allow you to be yourself. Nothing matter anyways, do what you feel like (except harming others, don't harm other living being please).

I mean not to get political, but just look at politicians say stupid things all the time.

The president of the US fell down a bunch of staird, people laughed, the internet memed it a bit, everyone kinda just went on.

And most of us doesn't have the whole world watching is. If I fell down a bunch of stairs, most people that saw it would just forget very soon. Samething with speech, as long as you don't say anything thats bigoted, nobody care about speech mistakes.

TLDR: Life is short, do whatever you want as long as it doesn't harm other living beings. Make mistakes all you want, doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things.

[–] Twig@sopuli.xyz 1 points 1 day ago

Not sure if related, but this might help

[–] oxjox@lemmy.ml -1 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Given the context of your post, I would suggest starting with the basics. Taking the time to learn how to write properly may give you some ability to speak properly.

I have a really pacific issue

I don't know if this is typo or if you think your issue is as big as the ocean.

[–] Jimmycrackcrack@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Given the context of the post, that they're asking for help, picking on this seems needless and unsympathetic. Given their own acknowledged problems with speech I don't see why making a joke about their writing would seem helpful or appropriate.

[–] oxjox@lemmy.ml 1 points 15 hours ago

I was actually being dead serious.