Problem with speaking - anyone else experience this? Any advice?

I have recently noticed that I am having a problem with speaking clearly. It is as if my tongue is swollen, and not behaving itself! I find myself thinking that it sounds as if I have a lisp. Pretty weird after 50+ years of not having a speech problem!

The worst thing is that I need to talk for work. I have to communicate clearly, and in fact help other people to do just that. I work as an English teacher for non-native speakers, so when trying to help them with their pronunciation problems it's very important to ,odel correct speech! Also, for students whose English level is quite low, I have to be sure I am speaking clearly so that they can understand me.

So, does anyone else have this problem? Is it fibro-related? Is there anything I can do to help myself?

Thanks in advance

Karen

[ithurts]

hi i have fibro for last year and some days i sound as if been to pub all day i slur wods ans they come out back to front i have learned to laugh at myself as i sound jibberish on bad days just looked at what ive written ha ha not just speach by look of it written work not very good sorry x

[Cwalker182 in reply to ithurts]

Yup this is me!! Exactly the same, I speak like I'm just learning English or something haha! Soooo irritating... Not easy to explain to people that Its just my illness x

[Hidden]

Thanks. Yes, I have also had problems in the past with words coming out wrong, and not being able to think of even quite common words. Sometimes whole sentences mix themselves up somewhere between my brain and my mouth. Not impressive when I'm working, but I mainly cope OK. I tend to be more careful about thinking before speaking, and focusing better. It's when I'm 'just chatting' to people it tends to be worse! This is weird though - it's as though my tongue is just not working properly. I assume it's a muscle, so like any other muscle could have a fibro-attack! I just haven't had quite this issue before. And I can hardly massage it, can I? Or can I? Anyone know how to do a tongue massage? Maybe I should ask OH for help - lol! I'm sure he'd be only too happy!

[foggyness]

Hi Kaz - I have a similar problem. My tongue feels sort of numb and tingly but only on the left side. Used to getting words mixed up or forgetting words but now cant even say the ones I do remember properly

[scrumie]

Hi oh i'm so glad its not only me. I know what word i want but it wont come out and wrong words come out and i get funny looks. Hubby used to this now and we have a laugh about it. Mr Fibro has a lot to answer for. soft hugs Marg xx

[Hidden]

I have a permanent dry mouth, and when I first get up in the morning my throat feels tight and it usually takes about two cups of tea before it feels like I am talking properly. It's difficult to explain. Some mornings I can't manage my normal cereal and milk, so I just drink a Complan drink as it's easier to swallow. I mentioned it to my Rheumatologist and was told that my throat muscles were being affected by my Fibro.

A tight feeling in the throat is a very common symptom of Fibro. The pain experienced is actually referred pain our your cervical bones which is a hotseat for Fibro sufferers. The sensation may feel like a sore throat, or like you have a tight band around your throat. I was going crazy trying to figure out what this sensation was before I was told what it was.

However, if you have any swelling at all in your throat or around your throat, please see your Doctor to rule anything else out.

[janetbrown]

My word's are constantly mixed up and i stutter. just tend to try and laugh about it, most of my friend's and family manage to finish my sentance for me think it;s common in fibro.

[Rama48 in reply to janetbrown]

Lol! Same thing happens to me...my kids finish my sentence and correct mixed up words....they know now when I pause it means struggling.

[charlii]

LibbyDe<, i too have an incredibly dry mouth most of the time which results in me drinking a massive amount of water, i thought this might be due to my cocktail of meds i take but had never occured to me that it could actually be down to fibro! I also have trouble talking and i know the words in my mind but when i say them they come out the wrong way round for example "car park" would be "par cark!" just realised that this could be due to fibro too! This blooming fibro has a lot to answer for! gentle hugs xx

[Hidden in reply to charlii]

Yes it sounds like it's all due to Fibro, I have the same problems you have Charlii, sometimes my throat is so tight I can't get a single word out and have to wait for it to ease. Swallowing is very difficult at this time too. It eases with time, usually two cups of tea, but is so frustrating. I am still amazed four years after being diagnosed with Fibro the extent of the symptoms, I certainly have more now than I had before, but I am managing much better thank goodness. I also say things back to front too, but it makes perfect sense in my brain lol!

[Hidden]

hi yes i sometimes get like that otr cant get my words out at all it is awful you stand there it is like i m drunk or something as i slur sometimes and i forget what i am saying or even worse cant think of the word i want it really is awful thing this fibro there are somant things that go hand in hand with it arent there oh well at least if nothing else you know you are not going mad or anything else but yes it must make things difficult if this is your job love diddle xx

[Spirit in reply to Hidden]

Diddle - you need to take more water with it love

x x x

Spirit

[Spirit]

I mentioned this - along with the good old Fibro Fog - to my consultant at the pain clinic last week when we were discussing meds. He said it's the long term effects of taking high doses of drugs. You could ask for the balance of your meds to be changed, or maybe even change to something different if your consultant is open to trying things.

Good luck (imagine me saying that with a mouthful of plums and you get the gist)

Gentle hugs

Spirit x x x

[rottweiller69]

lol.. sorry don't mean to laugh..i finally feel normal..me and my hubby do a guessing game the funny thing is he generally guesses the right words that I'm trying to express or say.. I can relax now..even though I tend to try and speak slowly when not with hubby...