Do you ever have trouble getting words out?

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Do you ever have a very clear idea in your mind of what you want to say but are unable to say a word? (My daughter does this all of the time and I am trying to figure out if it is autism related or just her-related)

Example: "Mom, I need a....(long pause) ummm....one of those things that dries your hands after you wash them in the bathroom?"
Me: "A towel?"
Her: "Yes, that's it. A towel."

The background being that she's said the word towel about a million times before. But it happens to her all of the time, and always with very common words that are well-known to her.

Mentalpause.

Later in life, you'll call it "Having a senior moment."

Nothing to worry about.

I resemble that remark!

Really! My entire life seems to be made up of senior moments. I guess it's payback for laughing when my grandmother would go down the list of all the grandkids, and sometimes even the pets, before she could get to the name of the right person she wanted to chew out!

Don't know if its part of aspergers syndrome, but that happens to me a lot, though not nearly as much as it used to as a child.

It happens to me a lot, and it annoys the hell out of me!

That happens to me a lot, and I've heard other autistics describe it as well. I think its quite common.

Yep, I experience this, and it causes amusement when I use a long complicated description for a really simple term!

All the time. People around me complain about it but hey, the know I do it and it is their choice to converse with me.

Everybody has the problem at some time or another, be they Aspie, Autie or NT.

ruveyn

I ued to NEVER have that problem. NOW, I have it all too often. BTW it gets WORSE if it happens mid sentence in front of others, etc...

That never... um.... happens to me

Ok yes, it happens to me pretty much every other sentence. That's why I prefer written communication. If you want to read up on it, it is referred to as aphasic speech:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aphasic

Keep in mind that it varies in severity, but it is very common in people with Asperger's syndrome or High Functioning autism. It is fairly annoying that I cant get out more then 20 words before I get stuck, but you get used to it.

It sounds like some people here have issues with word-retrieval, but I wouldn't go so far as to call it aphasia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nominal_aphasia

Nominal aphasia (anomia) is a type of aphasia characterized by problems recalling words or names. Subjects often use circumlocutions (speaking in a roundabout way) in order to express a certain word for which they cannot remember the name. Sometimes the subject can recall the name when given clues. Sufferers are often frustrated when they know that they know the name, but cannot produce it.

As I have said, it varies in severity. If I had to diagnose people, I would say that the girl in the OP has nominal aphasia. I myself probably have Conduction aphasia, and maybe a mild case of nominal aphasia. I would venture a guess that many non-verbal people here like Age1600 have Broca's aphasia. At least based on what she has written. People who use a lot of echolalia probably have Transcortical motor aphasia. I of course cant diagnose anybody over the internet, but the OP definitely sounds like nominal aphasia to me.

I have always obsessed about having the right word to describe something. These inabilities to think of the word I want have plagued me all my life. So much so, that I have over-compensated & developed a huge vocabulary - so if I can't immediately think of the word I want, I grab a nearby word that means almost exactly the same thing (that's in an ideal situation.) It still gives me pause, from time to time - I often have a few seconds delay before deciding on a word that's close. And once in a while, I'm forced to give a definition of the word I want.

I don't know if my occasional inability to get the right word out is related to AS - but I suspect my obsession with "getting the right word" might be.

being married, it's more like 'trying to get a word in edgewise..."