asperger and self talk outloud

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Hello. I have a 15 year old girl with Aspergers and she does self talk out loud. This is creating lots of social problems lately. Anyone has any suggestion and help wit this?

I know i do this, but typically when im alone. Not sure what to recommend . . . does she know she does it in public?

Hey fufu, we welcome you to wrongplanet

This is common and I happen to do that sometimes and some people would be like, huh??
Do you think she could be stressed out by any chance?

In and of itself it is a quite harmless behavior. Unfortunately it is not always possible to control the appropriateness of other peoples' responses to such harmless (and potentionally beneficial behaviors).

If your daughter is distressed by the reactions of others, ensure that she understands that one particular trigger is talking to herself outloud in the presence of others, and that she needs to choose her priorities. She may prefer to try to self-monitor the behavior to avoid the inappropriate reactions of others, or she may decide the responses do not matter enough to her to alter her behavior. So long as she understands her options fully she can make choices that reflect her preferences and values accordingly.

Tourettes is often comorbid with aspergers. My son also does that, and the SEN are looking to give him support for mild tourettes... it's often triggered by stress. It's worth talking to your GP about stress triggering this behaviour, she can get help.

What kind of things are said when she self-talks?
I do it to but it's not that bad.

I am taking driving lessons and I talk out loud to myself to help me concentrate. It helps me focus if I can hear the words.

Yes, it's really too bad her friends are getting so ugly about it. Most likely it helps her think. Perhaps she can try to change it to subvocalizing instead; but it's totally harmless and quite possibly useful to her. I wish her friends could be persuaded to be nicer about it. She certainly shouldn't be forced to stop if it is really helping her think. There are more important things than seeming normal.

If you watch toddlers learning, they will often talk out loud to themselves to think things through, because they haven't yet gotten to the point that they can hold multiple things in memory at the same time. My guess is that she may be using the same method.

I do that a lot too. What exactly is the problem?

My son pointed out to me today that I do it too, though not generally in front of strangers, and only when I'm stressed. He also pointed out that it sounds even weirder when I do it, as I'm not normally speaking English, so I sound "a bit mad."

We were trying to figure out why he does it, and we've come to the conclusion that we both do it when we're stressed and need to vent, and/or concentrate.

I would suggest something similar to what we did with my son when he would talk on and on in class every time he tried to answer even the simpliest teacher question: a hand signal. We used this at home, as well, when he was talking well past our ability to listen. Everyone in her circle (teachers, family, friends) would have the same signal and it should be discussed as a friendly way to let her know when she is talking to herself in a manner that is bothering someone near her. By using a quiet hand signal, you don't interrupt her train of thought and you give her time to adjust in her own way.

Make sure people don't over-use it, however. At home and in most situations she should be free to just be who she is. When it is important for her to reign it in, that is when those who care about her try the signal.