Personality Echolalia

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Sometimes, it seems, when I see a person I know, or if I see or hear anything associated with anyone who has a secure presence in my life, I sometimes go through what I like to call "Personality Echolalia". I really don't know what to make of it. Its almost like I forget that Im in my own body and I jump into someone else's. I kind of also start to talk like them and express their temperament. The term is a bit of a misnomer: I don't really take on their personality, like their preferences and all, but I sort of "copy" them, or at least their external side. These spells don't usually last too long, their duration can be from a few minutes to half an hour, and when they are over, I just "come back into myself" and everything is fine. As to how they are triggered, Im not sure, most times it is when I hear or read a person's name, or enter a place in which I regularly see that person. And I don't just "swap bodies" with anyone; it is usually a person that I make contact with on a regular basis.

Im sorry if I still don't sound clear to you, but this is the best that I can really explain these occurrences.

I can relate to an extent. For me, it's more that I take on the mood and mode of expression of whoever I am with - and yes, this usually means people I am around a lot. If I am with an energetic friend, I become energetic. If I am with a calm friend, I become calm. Laughing = laughing, etc.

But I think what I do is quite common. Your case might not be so common...

Personality Echolalia is synonyme to repetitive behaviour? The motor mannerisms such as stereotypes are the sames? The unusual attachements are related to objects or to person?

I mirror personalities; I'm not sure what my own personality is. In good cases I can achieve great synergy through this ability; in bad cases, I cannot connect with the other person at all. It is not an act; it simply happens; and it can be enjoyable, if the other person's personality brings out things in me that I like and are good.

What is your Jungian personality type? I suspect something like this is associated with those with the rare borderline type INTJ/INTP.

Good fortune,

- Icarus is you...

I am similar. I pick up accents within seconds of speaking to someone. I pick up "phrases" they tend to use. I pick up body mannerisms. I don't even realize I'm doing it until someone points it out. I don't mean to but I just...do.

Ah, crap!! I still mime people from time to time without a want. I used to always make faces at this girl in grade school because she had very pronounced teeth. I recently just got fired from my job because i made a face at my boss, and i didn't mean to.

I also start speaking in the same accent as a foreigner when i am engaged in a conversation with them. It's so embarrassing. I wish i didn't act like a aspie all the time.

I find myself copying peoples speech patterns and accent when I talk to them. I'm lucky that people don't think I'm making fun of them. I also pick up phrases from other people and incorporate them as part of my speech.

I do it with mannerisms or nervous habits, mostly- my freshman year of high school I sat at a lunch table with a girl with Tourette's who twitched. Without even realizing it, I started to twitch on occasion, too (luckily, she never noticed and thought I was making fun of her... or at least, she never called me on it). I didn't even realize I was doing it until my mom noticed and asked me if anything was wrong. Heh.
I've never picked up accents or speech patterns, though. That's interesting.

I can totally relate to this. I don't mean to mimic other people's personalities, accents, and phrases, but it just happens naturally. It can be really embarrassing at times, because it makes me feel like less of an individual.

I guess I sort of do that too. I can easily adapt to whatever group I'm with, switch accents or mannerisms or modes of speech; I can speak intelligently with my fellow professors, chill w/ the gang, or get really goofy with my boys.
Also, when I work with someone I admire, I think "I want to be like that person", and I start to imitate their phrases, how they dress, mannerisms, etc. Often it helps me learn how to act in certain situations. But sometmes I forget the "real Me" I guess I'm still trying to discover Me, my likes & dislikes, etc. I've always had trouble deciding what I want or like, so I sort of "try on" other people to see if that's me.

I want to revive this thread because it is one of my major symptoms and this is the only post I have found which relates to it.

I 'feel' other's faces on mine. It is almost as if I am wearing a mask of another's face and experiencing what it feels like to 'be' them.

This is most often accompanied by mimicking speech and gestures too.

This is nothing like straight forward 'impressions' of people but rather it is 'me' trying to communicate and socialise as 'myself' and yet it coming out in another's voice. Often being cronically aware of it but being unable to avoid it. I also often get it when alone too.

This used to really freak me out and annoy friends too who didn't really understand what was happening. I had no control over it and when it occurred the best I could do would be to keep quiet until it passed as I would not be able to 'find' my 'true voice' by will.

I came to recognise when this was happening much quicker and so avoid embarassing 'discoveries'.

It would obviously make the others whom I was mimicking uncomfortable, it could be taken as a challenge to their personality or as outright piss-taking or as fanboy, 'crush' like behaviour when it was actually not any of this and was far beyond my control.

It would make me feel as if my personality was a fraud, just a made up patchwork of bits of other people, which it kind of is actually, but I have come to feel comfortable with this in the last year or so and now it is much more subtle and integrated.

I have lived in a very social shared house with up to 9 others for the last two years, and it has done me the world of good. Although I have found it a huge challenge, it has been great to have a secure arena in which to 'practice' being myself. Surrounded by people who cant escape you and have to, at least, feign interest for politenesses sake!

Due to this 'intensive training' I have discovered so much about my personality, where I was insecure before I am now quite sure, or almost! A lot of my symptoms, especially this face problem are greatly reduced. I have achieved this by refusing to myself the luxury of running away and of hiding my shame face. When the social situations get too much and I need to leave the room I try to stop myself in the corridor and creep back in.

I have also learnt much about not alienating myself by vocalising all the 'odd' things that occur to me and not needing to butt in to conversations, just watching more and appreciating how good others are at this wierd random chit-chat thing, I even find it quite beautiful sometimes!

Are there yet others who experience this? Please post. Thankyou Liam.

I also relate this strongly to another troubling symptom of mine where I used to 'hear' all sound as the sound of my parents arguing. The rustling of paper, shuffling of feet, my own breathing would all register in the tone of a bloody row. The only thing that would make this subside was the sound of a calm voice, even the radio would work, and it would immediately fade out.

I used to take on the persona and personality of Austin Powers, about a decade, ago. The people at my clubhouse thought it was cool, but the minions of society thought it was nerdy.

I do this quite often, such as copying gestures and accents. I remember watching a documentury called I think 'the human mind and how to make the most of it', one of the things it talked about was the way people act when they talk to people. When people didnt like each other they didnt do much simular, but when they like each other they mirror each other quite amasingly like touching face or hair. any way this was a 3 part documeturary, the first part was called 'get smart and looked at how we learn, the second was 'personality' and was onhow we form it. And the last bit was called 'Making friends', and included copying people you get along with. you can check this out if you want it was very interesting.

Oh don't even get me started on this.

I pick up close peoples bad habits to an almost supernatural degree if I'm around them for any length of time. Some of them linger with me for a LONG time before eventually fading.

The absolute WORST thing though was when I had to stay with my grandparents for a month. My grandfather has a dodgy knee.... and after a while I started getting pains in my knee in the same place and developed a limp. I had to do my utmost to hide it.... but it couldn't be helped.
I escaped from that place ASAP.

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