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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 10 of 10. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by robot on March 16, 2004, at 0:04:38
I am being treated for depression, and among my symptoms is what i call "mouth freeze". It becomes a strain to speak—it feels as if the autonomic centers of my brain are shut off and I have to use my conscious capacities just to manage to mumble and pronounce words correctly, and get by when i have to speak to people. THe fact that I interact with people all day at my job does not help.
This is not a normal anxiety-reaction. I was not generally a socially anxious person until this symptom turned me into one. It often happens when I otherwise feel okay, and the anxiety FOLLOWS it b/c it is so stressful and frustrating. I hide it quite well. It does cut me off from interaction with others, even my friends.
I have mentioned this to a few doctors, and none of them has offered me any info.
Is this a recognized symptom, and if it is, how common?
What causes it?
Is there anybody out there who has experienced the same thing? I tried to find it on the internet, but no luck.
I feel that it has prolonged and deepened a depression I otherwise would have managed. I think it must be a depressive symptom--when ive felt really good again it goes away--and I hope it will go away with the Lexapro treatment I just started.
Posted by Magdalena on March 16, 2004, at 0:43:07
In reply to Mouth frozen, cant speak -- Depressive symptom?, posted by robot on March 16, 2004, at 0:04:38
robot,
i think i might know what you mean although it has happened to me only a couple of times. I think mine is in relation to my anxiety. Its more my lips though, its like i cant feel them sometimes so its hard to form words correctly when this happens, and it usually leads to panic because i get the sensation that i cant control my mouth! (which sounds silly) does this sound anything like yours?Magdalena
Posted by crazychickuk on March 16, 2004, at 2:34:15
In reply to Re: Mouth frozen, cant speak -- Depressive symptom?, posted by Magdalena on March 16, 2004, at 0:43:07
This happened to my fiend who went on a weed bend she ended up in hospital where she still is now.. her words are stil a little jumpled but she getting there with the right meds.. go see your physc/doc for opinion second opinion if needed :)Take CAre
Donna
Posted by francesco on March 16, 2004, at 13:57:40
In reply to Mouth frozen, cant speak -- Depressive symptom?, posted by robot on March 16, 2004, at 0:04:38
I'm experiencing something like that in this period and in my case I think it's a depressing syntom. I'm not anxious but I have no energy at all, and even speaking sometimes is a burden. I decided not to focus too much on this issue, I know for sure it will improve when I have something to say, i.e. when I'll be undepressed.
Francesco
Posted by Tony P on March 17, 2004, at 3:50:59
In reply to Mouth frozen, cant speak -- Depressive symptom?, posted by robot on March 16, 2004, at 0:04:38
Are you on any med that is also an antipsychotic - could be a side-effect. Heavy doses of many A/Ds also lead to problems with concentration, which might be what you're experiencing. Some older antihistamines (esp. Benadryl/diphenhydramine) seriously affect speech in excessive doses.
OTOH, I have indeed found sometimes my depression (when untreated or insufficiently medicated) slows all my thinking and body movements down, including inhibiting speech (I believe that's known medically by the rather ambiguous term "retardation").
Tony P
Posted by Racer on March 17, 2004, at 11:34:29
In reply to Mouth frozen, cant speak -- Depressive symptom?, posted by robot on March 16, 2004, at 0:04:38
Yep. That happens to me. I know it's a direct response ot inadequte treatment of my depression, and I know that it's part of a larger constellation of symptoms. I know it's hard to see it here, since i can type long posts with relative ease, but I can hardly speak. Not only that, when I do speak, it only takes a second of non-response to shut me down entirely.
One of hte other symptoms I get to go with this is an inability to eat. It's as if I'm saying, "Hey, I need sustanance, and you're not allowing me to get it." Who I'm saying this to, I don't know, but it goes away pretty easily for me. The problem is, while it goes away easily with any treatment, getting treatment when I can't ask for it is problematic.
I'm sorry that you're sharing this distress with me, but I think you're right that it's a symptom of the depression, and my experience with it is that it does go away when the depression is adequtely addressed.
Good luck
Posted by sobeit on March 17, 2004, at 18:23:41
In reply to Re: Mouth frozen, cant speak -- Depressive symptom » robot, posted by Racer on March 17, 2004, at 11:34:29
My experience with something similar as this occurs when I experience a breakthrough depressive episode or when medication dosage is inadequate. When someone speaks to me, I hear them and will respond in my mind, but I don't have the energy to speak the words. Occasionally, I'll just mumble in an effort to respond. I feel as if I have enough energy to continue breathing, but anything beyond that takes extreme effort. This tends to quickly resolve with treatment.
Posted by robot on March 17, 2004, at 23:20:21
In reply to Re: Mouth frozen, cant speak -- Depressive symptom?, posted by Magdalena on March 16, 2004, at 0:43:07
Thanks for the response.
Its hard to say, but it sounds close to me. For me it just feels like a 'badness' or 'inertness' in my lips and perhaps tongue--but it seems seperate from anxiety. Its just, like you said, hard for me to form words or use my natural speaking voice. I can sense it even if Im not talking, but only if I think about it. If Im in a situation around people, it becomes apparent that its going to be difficult. That causes the anxiety to start. When I feel really good, though, it goes away, and sometimes if Im distracted by some project that is taking my attention away from it, it will go away temporarily.> robot,
> i think i might know what you mean although it has happened to me only a couple of times. I think mine is in relation to my anxiety. Its more my lips though, its like i cant feel them sometimes so its hard to form words correctly when this happens, and it usually leads to panic because i get the sensation that i cant control my mouth! (which sounds silly) does this sound anything like yours?
>
> Magdalena
Posted by robot on March 17, 2004, at 23:34:57
In reply to Re: Mouth frozen, cant speak -- Depressive symptom » robot, posted by Racer on March 17, 2004, at 11:34:29
Interesting. Its like its a purely mechanical problem for us--is it related to lack of energy for you? Its not for me. It sounds like it debilitates you worse than me. Very focused, comfortable situations, like talking my doctor, are usually okay.
My ability to do things that use implicit or 'body' memory--like typing--has been hampered by the depression. Its getting better though. I noticed tonight that Im able to type faster than I used to.
Im curious what you mean by 'it only takes a second of nonresponse to shut me down entirely.'
thanks for the response.> Yep. That happens to me. I know it's a direct response ot inadequte treatment of my depression, and I know that it's part of a larger constellation of symptoms. I know it's hard to see it here, since i can type long posts with relative ease, but I can hardly speak. Not only that, when I do speak, it only takes a second of non-response to shut me down entirely.
>
> One of hte other symptoms I get to go with this is an inability to eat. It's as if I'm saying, "Hey, I need sustanance, and you're not allowing me to get it." Who I'm saying this to, I don't know, but it goes away pretty easily for me. The problem is, while it goes away easily with any treatment, getting treatment when I can't ask for it is problematic.
>
> I'm sorry that you're sharing this distress with me, but I think you're right that it's a symptom of the depression, and my experience with it is that it does go away when the depression is adequtely addressed.
>
> Good luck
Posted by Racer on March 18, 2004, at 0:51:51
In reply to Re: Mouth frozen, cant speak -- Depressive symptom, posted by robot on March 17, 2004, at 23:34:57
> Interesting. Its like its a purely mechanical problem for us--is it related to lack of energy for you? Its not for me. It sounds like it debilitates you worse than me. Very focused, comfortable situations, like talking my doctor, are usually okay.
Nope, not really lack of energy. I feel as if I have the energy to speak, and even the energy to speak pretty well, just don't see much point to it. After all, if no one is going to hear me, why use that energy for no reason? And if no one is going to take the trouble to listen, then I'm just hurting myself by trying.
> Im curious what you mean by 'it only takes a second of nonresponse to shut me down entirely.'
I'm in a tough situation right now. All the 'treatment' I get is through an agency contracted by the county to provide mental health care to the medically indigent, and I'm just not sick enough to be on their radar. The 'treatment' I've been getting is pretty terrible, and is now actively adversarial. I've gone off all the meds, because I was getting too sick on them, and I'm now at the edge of cancelling the therapy services, because they're also wearing me out. (Sure, this might be the famous Lack Of Insight in those of us suffering Serious Mental Illness, but it might also be that I suffer from plain vanilla depression, have never heard a single voice suggest that I save France, and am an otherwise unremarkable, intelligent, relatively well-educated, middle aged woman. The pdoc I'm assigned to has to weigh most of his patients because they're "too out of it" to keep track of med related weight gain. I walk in, clean from a shower in my own home, and can tell him not only the day of the week, but also that our president was not elected by the popular vote. That pretty much tells them that I don't 'really' need any help. Then the therapist comes along to tell me that I'm not suffering from Major Depression, but have an Axis I diagnosis of Major Depression, and should consider how well I fit the Axis II diagnoses of Borderline Personality Disorder and Narcissistic Personality Disorder, and we'd better start looking at those aggressive traits... Maybe the perceived agression you are noticing, Lady, has something to do with the fact that you're trying to stuff me into a textbook, instead of listening to me or trying to understand anything I say?) Anyway, as soon as they start telling me that all my needs are being met, and that it's up to me to make myself happy with the wonderful quality of care they're providing, I shut down. It's not worth making the effort, so I'll keep my mouth shut. And it seems as though, in order to keep my mouth shut and not say what I'm feeling, I have to keep it shut around food, too. As for non-caregivers, I can talk a bit, but any frustrations at all stop me. As soon as someone makes any noise like disagreeing with me, or criticising me, I just shut up and shut down. Does that make sense?
> thanks for the response.
>
> >My pleasure. I hope it helps some, I know it helped me to hear someone else experienced my own unique uncooperative sullenness. (<<facicious -- they've told me so often now that I'm asking too much and totally unreasonable, that I have to try to poke bitter fun at myself. Please don't be offended.) You're absolutely right, it's not something I've ever had a doctor or therapist understand, but I figure -- just as a statistic -- if I do it, someone else must do it too. Whatever else I am, I can't be the first to come up with this symptom. If I were, they'd name it Racer's Recalcitrance. ;-) So, I hope my response helped you as much as your question helped me.
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