Who else here needs to think and work slowly?

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Hi,

Does anyone else here find that they tend to think slowly, as in they take some time to compose mentally what they want to say, for instance? I've been given extra time in exams for years because an educational psychologist picked up on my slow information processing. Is there a name for this?

Who else here would like to be allowed to consider what they're talking about when having a conversation? Ever feel that people are jumping to their own decisions about things that concern you, before you've even had a chance to fully appreciate what the issue is? Do you sometimes have to be constantly on the lookout for someone who might expect your instant attention at any moment, thus preventing you from concentrating on your own work? Is Wrong Planet a good place for people like this to talk to each other?

Be aware that I tend to treat online discussion fora like this as if they were village noticeboards; I check back on them daily, and reply to things then, rather than staying online all day and replying as soon as I see something. I'll try to keep looking here, as well as watching out for any private messages.

I think I'm a little bit like this. It's more that I know what I want to say and then have trouble turning it into words. Typing on a computer at least allows me to see and edit what I'm saying before I say it.

Me. I am too perfectionist and deliberate for this multitasking do it yesterday world.

Yes, I need considerable time to think of what to say and do in most things I'm not focused on. An exception is usually when thinking and talking about a special interest. Thinking and conversing is usually easier with someone I know.

I have to incorporate a way of forewarning people I take time to think without getting misconceived or outing as Aspie...

I think I know what you mean there. I don't really think in words so much as in "concepts", and I then have to translate. If I'm under pressure it can come out wrong and I can say something different from what I meant, sometimes even the exact opposite. It doesn't help that I tend to remember what I was thinking and not what I was saying, which can confuse me when someone later acts according to what I actually said.



How do you do it? That would be really useful if you can make it work. And in my case I'm lucky in that I wouldn't mind people thinking of me as an aspie.

P.S. I'll learn how to do quotes properly when I have a bit of time later.

I think I know what you mean there. I don't really think in words so much as in "concepts", and I then have to translate. If I'm under pressure it can come out wrong and I can say something different from what I meant, sometimes even the exact opposite. It doesn't help that I tend to remember what I was thinking and not what I was saying, which can confuse me when someone later acts according to what I actually said.



How do you do it? That would be really useful if you can make it work. And in my case I'm lucky in that I wouldn't mind people thinking of me as an aspie.

P.S. I'll learn how to do quotes properly when I have a bit of time later.

I seem to operate similarly.

I usually am slow at learning anything. I usually have to take some time and think after a lesson, or after reading something I am studying.

Also I normally have to think a whole lot how to translate an answer to someones question. My brain does not think in English or any language, so I have to sit ans think a while to try to structure what to say something to reply. It was especially bad when I was younger, and people would get impatient with my delayed reply.

Welcome to Wrong Planet!

Yes. I am a slow thinker. Especially with new tasks or places. I have tested with a lower working memory than typical. So I pull cognitive resources from external sources or slowly work through the files in my brain. This takes time. Although, I am quite fast with familiar processes.
I am also quick witted with familiar people. New people can throw me for a loop. They are impatient with my slow pace. They don't know that once I learn something I get faster.

First time doing something new, yes.

I first noticed this doing the brakes on my car about 25 years ago. It took 4 hours to do the first set of pads and 45 minutes total to do the other 3.

It still persists with new stuff.

Then again, I generally work with no plans or instructions and just sort of figure stuff out by trial and error.

Working memory - that's something that's been pointed out to me before. I'm still not sure if it's that though, or if it's a case of slow processing.

If anyone comes across this thread after it's died and wishes they could say something, you could send me a private message.

It would be nice if people like us sometimes had a chance to get together and chat with each other on our own terms, without being interrupted.

Augh, the multitasking can be the worst...



Sounds a lot like me. I think it's surprising that it's so hard to translate concepts and images to words, considering that language shapes how we see and think about the world in the first place. Maybe I just don't understand it very well.

I definitely consider myself to think slowly. It is one of the main reasons that I hate competition, because in certain situations, I get anxious that I won't finish, because I will be to slow at thinking, and then just have a mental shutdown from being anxious about not having time to think slowly.

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Yes!


Seriously, that is my main 'thing'. If I could process information faster I think talking to people would be more possible & less exhausting. And, people would be less likely to think that I'm out of it or too stupid to know what they're talking about.