Question for PWS
In classes we have discussed the frustration and anxiety present from someone saying, “slow down and take a breath and try again,” when a PWS is stuck in a block, repetition, etc. However, I read an article that discusses the benefits of slowing down speech rate, having proper breathing, and proper preparation to the point of rehearsing phrases and words. What are your personal experiences with interruptions and suggestions from others? Would you agree that these suggestions are sound?
I don’t agree with any interruptions or suggestions from others while I am speaking.
I think these things should be discussed between the listener and the speaker.
Whatever the speaker chooses, the listener should do their best to accommodate.
Ultimately it is what is going to make the conversation more comfortable for both parties.
It all depends. Who says it, when is it said, etc. When I’m talking about my day and my listener tells me to slow down and take a deep breath, s/he is not listening to what I’m saying, but how I’m saying it. When you have cold, I don’t tell you to blow your nose. When you feel you need to, you will do that.
In a therapy session I was asked to say the names of the days on one breath. I played the saxophone. I know how to control my breathing. But when I’m trying to say what I want to say, and my listener interrupts, it will make me talk faster and breath less, for as soon as I breath, I lose the conversation.
But if I ask you, in a therapy session, to let me know whan I’m breathing too low, please do. Don’t tell me to slow down to make me more fluent. Tell me, in a therapy session, to slow down to make my body more relaxed and my speech more understood.
So again, who, where, why. This makes all the difference.
Keep them talking
Anita