I have problems talking. Why?

[ScrambledVoice]

I've always been shy and very quiet. But I also find it very difficult to articulate my thoughts verbally. I say very little although in my head I'm constantly chatting away to myself. I wonder if it's anxiety as my words get scrambled.

I love watching gardening/simple living vlogs on YouTube but would never be able to do such a thing myself. I wouldn't know what to say. I'm hopeless at small talk and social situations.

Even writing this post here is difficult. I'm not quite managing to write exactly what the problem is....

I've not got learning difficulties....I have a science PhD.....😕

Sounds like a lack of self confidence.

You just aren't doing it enough,

I was a teacher for twenty years.

I was painfully shy at the beginning and worried massively about what I said. Slowly I relaxed the more I did it,

You just need to practice in a low stakes environment.

I can barely string a sentence together because I'm autistic and adhd. Everything comes out garbled and back to front. People assume I'm a bit dim because of it, but I'm actually quite intelligent. I try not to say too much when I'm in company.

Are you a visual thinker rather than a verbal one. I mean, is your main method of thinking in pictures, images, colours shapes etc rather than words? If so it can be harder to "translate" into words in order to express the thought/ idea to another person.

Practice always helps though. Do you have, for example a morning bus/train commute or a lunch break where you could regularly practice writing a few sentences. It could be a bit of a journal if you like. Something about how you are feeling about the day, what you are thinking about work/colleagues, maybe what you think or feel about a current bit of news. It doesn't really matter what, although if you are accustomed to writing on a particular topic for work, I'd steer clear of that and go for other areas where you find yourself more tongue tied!

Presumably you got through your PhD viva ok though? I think it's generally easier to talk about something you're really interested and passionate about. I hope so anyway because I'm giving my first lecture next week! I think being able to rabbit on about any old subject sensibly is a very specific skill set that most people don't have but a few, like TV presenters, do possess.

I sometimes find it difficult to talk about myself unless it's to someone I feel really comfortable with because I am very conscious about boring people. The moment I perceive someone's attention wandering I clam up.

I don't think there's an imperative to talk.

I say something when it needs to be said. If it's difficult to find something to say, to me that means that there's nothing particular that needs to be said. I don't feel the need to fill space with words.

I have many friendships, superficial and meaningful, and a large and close and loving family.

yes I got through the viva ok. But my answers were short and to the point. I can't elaborate or expand on my answers very well. They couldn't fail me because of that.
I did need counselling to get through the lecture I had to give at the end of my PhD. I very nearly didn't do a PhD because I knew it would involve giving talks etc.
I have such a boring weird voice. I was teased at school for being quiet and having a low monotone voice. I hate hearing my own voice.

I'm not sure. I have a continual conversation with myself in my head. I go through all the scenarios of things that might happen. I have a lot of difficulty concentrating on a particular task and tend to go from one thing to another.

You sound exactly like me, right down to the science PhD. I really struggled in my viva too and it was very short, somehow I passed it!
I did a postdoc and the increasing pressure to give talks, chair meetings, host seminars etc was too much and I quit academia. I could barely string a sentence together in an informal discussion.

I suspect I may have ASD, have you looked into that?

I really struggle to talk to people too! I literally hate to have to speak on the phone with anyone except family/friends and speaking in person with people I'm not familiar with is just as hard.
I know what I want to say, but it comes out all muddled and confused. I can barely make sense of what's coming out of my mouth, so the other person must think I'm a complete loon!
I don't know what the answer is, but if you find it please let me know?

Good to hear I'm not alone, but sorry you had to give up academia. I also quit after my PhD. I became a science writer for a pharmaceutical company. It's very formulaic so it suited me. I had Alice in Wonderland syndrome as a child and wondered if that was linked to ASD or something. I've never spoken to anyone about it

As an Autistic woman, a lot of this resonates with me (monotone voices are also common in ASD)

Might be worth doing the AQ50 test (an official precursor to assesment, which will tell you if you have sugnigicaht Autistic traits or not) I can honestly say that I understand myself so much more now I know why I am the way I am. I am kinder and more forgiving with myself too. I also no longer care about the people who bullied me at school. I just think they are sad people who get a kick out of pointing out other people's differences and mocking them.

Being different can be brilliant, but if you're also struggling, then it's worth exploring why.

I scored 29/50. What should I do? See a Dr?

Usually the score is accompanied by a statement like 'you have some / significant Autistic traits' IIRC 29 is borderline, but definitely within range so yes, it would be worth printing off or making a note of the score and seeing a GP.

I can’t speak at all. I have ASD. It’s as if my brain cannot connect to my voice

I'm the same OP. I don't think I'm autistic (though score relatively highly on that test at 27) but do have some social anxiety and am very introverted. I often jumble my words, or just stop speaking as I go completely blank. It doesn't happen when I'm writing.

I do think practice has a lot to do with it, as another PP said. When you have periods alone you kind of get out of the flow of it. What has helped me a lot is listening to podcasts. Just hearing people be very articulate has helped me be more articulate, though I still need to get into the gear of it if I've not spoken to anyone for a while.

I'm not sure I'm autistic either because I'm very good at reading peoples moods and very good at picking up on lies etc.