#nonspeaker

[nonspeakingkiku]

Being unreliably speaking is fun, because some days all that comes out of Kiku's mouth is unreliable speech, and others like today all Kiku has is sounds and echolalia and Kiku prefers those days so much. Sometimes Kiku's echolalia is involuntary, but its still better than unreliable speech. When all Kiku has is sounds and echolalia Kiku can actually use AAC. (when unreliable speech is happening a lot its way harder to use aac. Kiku doesn't know why.)

[anautistic]

Nonspeaking autistic self advocacy – with Noah Seback

Noah Seback cannot speak -- however, he has a lot to say. Noah is a nonspeaking autistic young man with apraxia, which has made it impossibl

An interview with Noah Seback, a Nonspeaking autistic self advocate with apraxia, for Beyond 6 Seconds, a podcast about neurodiversity that frequently has autistic and nonspeaking guests on!

Episode description: "Noah Seback cannot speak -- however, he has a lot to say.

Noah is a nonspeaking autistic young man with apraxia, which has made it impossible for him to communicate reliably for most of his life. Then, at the age of 16, he learned how to use a letterboard to spell out the words he wanted to say -- and his entire world opened up. As Noah described it to me, "it was nirvana!"

Since Noah is nonspeaking, he is joined on this episode by his communication regulation partners, David and Nadine Seback (who are also his parents). During this episode, you’ll hear David and Nadine read Noah’s responses – which means you’ll be hearing Noah’s words through David and Nadine’s speaking voices.

During this episode, Noah shares:

How his life completely changed after learning how to communicate using a letterboard at age 16

The importance of presuming competence of nonspeaking people

How he responds to people who don’t believe that letterboard spelling is a valid method of communication

How he began to overcome and heal from his trauma

Why he started qUirk, his mentoring business, to help nonspeakers – especially those who are labeled “the worst of the worst”

What he wants parents of nonspeaking kids to know, and his advice for nonspeakers who are struggling right now

Find out more about Noah, his writing and his mentoring business at www.quirkthrives.com."

[neuroclastic]

The Right to Privacy for Nonspeaking Autistics

Nick Barry, a young nonspeaking advocate, writes about how the privacy and autonomy of nonspeakers is often violated by those around them, how it feels, and how to do better.

Imagine being back in fifth grade. Your mom comes to pick you up from school. “How was your day?” she asks. You think about stuff that you read. And every word the teacher said. The kids you ate lunch with. Good things you tried. The words to tell about your day are all in your head, but you can’t get them out.  Instead, an aide answers for you. “He got mad when recess ended, so he ran away.”…

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[nonspeakingkiku]

Today with unreliable speech

Hanging out with partners, using aac, making noises to communicate like Kiku does.

Body: boddedeppa

Everyone(Kiku included) : What was that?? 😂😂😂

Think it was body trying to say Dr. Pepper but it didn't work at all. 😂😂😂

Today is a very babbling, sounds heavy time, word approximations. Those kinds of things. Not a whole lot of unreliable speech, especially not intelligible speech. (Generally, the more intelligible Kiku's speech is the more likely it is unreliable)

[nonspeakingkiku]

Kiku is working on a post about nonspeakers and how we are perceived by different groups of people, its very slow and brain refuses to type about it so Kiku writing it with Proloquo2go. Have so many thoughts/feelings/ect about this topic, but having an increadibly hard time getting them out. Not exactly sure why. Maybe related to peoples expectations, and Kiku feeling isn't a good writer, and a little bit of Kiku's self esteem issues/negative feelings toward self/imposter syndrome.

But also aphasia maybe. Getting words out, in a way that makes sense to other people and match what want to say is very hard.

But Kiku is working on it. People expect nonspeakers and spellers to be poetic, full of prose and fancy words, and everything they say/spell is eloquent and wel thought out. Kiku is not that, Kiku is crass, and often times vulgar, writing full of spelling errors and replacement words.

But people seem to really like to hear Kiku's words. So Kiku is trying. And Kiku wants to advocate for this community because it is so important to Kiku. Kiku went without reliable communication for too long not to advocate for other nonspeakers, so they don't have to go without a method of communication, no matter what it may be.

What prompted Kiku to make this post is Kiku got called a leader in he nonspeaking community, and Kiku is struggling with that a bit.

Because Kiku has never viewed self as a leader, but then Kiku realised, maybe Kiku is. Kiku advocates for this community, provides information about communication methods, and feels strongly about other nonspeakers and the people who love and care for them, and Kiku's social medias are getting bigger, more people follow Kiku every day, some of them bigger blogs/pages.

Kiku never expected people to listen to Kiku if honest, this was all for Kiku, and still is, but Kiku also shares things from other nonspeakers and shares information and its important. Kiku never expected this.

But Kiku is glad people like Kiku's content and listen because Kiku feels the thing Kiku says are important.

And Kiku will admit that Kiku is different from other nonspeakers, because Kiku can appear to have a lot of speech on a high unreliable speech day, and Kiku struggles with this a bit. But Kiku stands by calling self a nonspeaker, nonspeaking, nonverbal, minmally speaking, all the words Kiku uses.

Because speech is not Kiku's main method of communication and it most often what comes out of Kiku's mouth is not what Kiku wants to say. And Kiku couldn't communicate much until Kiku was 15, but Kiku didn't know that very well or why. But because of how Kiku grew up, thinking was verbal, Kiku struggles with imposter syndrome.

This got much longer than Kiu though. Oops. Kind of a ramble. 😅

[anautistic]

Video description:

"Zekwande Mathenjwa shares his dreams for autistic nonspeakers that he thinks could be reached within his lifetime in Africa.

Zekwande is the founder of the Zekwande Foundation in South Africa and has been using AAC for almost 5 years. Zekwande calls for more access to communication services for nonspeakers in South Africa."

[nonspeakingkiku]

Kiku decided go up grid size on AAC recently. And then today Kiku decide go up again. When first got AAC Kiku though big buttons be best idea but Kiku now think smaller buttons okay. Not smallest buttons but lots buttons on page. AAC hard. Got learn where words are and put together sentence and remember practice all by self. Kiku doin it, just slow and hard and hard to explain to not AAC user. AAC slower. Especially when learning. But Kiku determined and want have AAC work best for Kiku. Want set up way easiest use. Organize best. That take time. Take time come to terms with AAC slow learn and that okay. And take time accept that it okay Kiku call self nonspeaking/nonspeaker. Because when little time Kiku can talk it hard and drain and people not understand what say. Speech unreliable. Never know when have it. But AAC help even with learn slow. It mean can say what need/want to. Kiku maybe full time aac user. Kiku not know. But use lot. Work on use lot. When not use just not talk. Kiku don't know. But Kiku know AAC help lot lot.

[neuroclastic]

Poetry: My Reflections on MLK Day and My Dreams for Nonspeakers

Inspired by the legacy of Dr. MLK, Jr., nonspeaking student Swarit Gopalan writes powerful poetry about his mighty dreams for Nonspeakers.

History is a work in progress for MLK’s dreamsMany of the oppressed vouch by its underlying themesEssential, the trifecta of truth, peace and justiceWhat will we give to realize his dreams as isRight at the very core of every nonspeakerThere exists a truth and justice seekerWhose heart beats for the rally of the oppressedWhose soul does not rest with justice surfaced Poignant is this moment in…

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