Member-only story
My Perspective on What Happens When I Lose Speech
Going temporarily non-speaking during a shutdown is different for every autistic person but here’s my story
Author’s Note: out of respect for the non-speaking autistic community, I use the term “lose speech” instead of saying “going non-verbal”. They have asked that we not use that term as it is disrespectful and misleading about communication that does not occur from the mouth.
Shutdowns, as much as meltdowns are a fact of life for autistic people and inevitable. Sometimes our shutdowns are a simple need to retreat and other times they are immobilizing and accompanied by a temporary inability to speak.
Oftentimes the autistic person’s loss of speech can be confusing for those around us.
If you have ever wondered what an autistic person is feeling when they can’t speak, I will try to explain. At least I will explain what a loss of speech episode is like for me.
I have different types of shutdowns. Sometimes I just have to get to a quiet place to ride it out and sometimes that means also struggling with speech. I might be semi-verbal, but decide to go quiet and not force talking, so as to not prolong the temporary speech impairment any further.
