Hi all!
At the weekend, my speech failed abruptly. Usually, when I’m tired, it will slur and become hesitant and scanning, but it doesn’t just fail between one word and the next. I was visiting friends, and half-way through asking for a glass of water - nothing. No slurring, problems with swallowing or breath control, I simply couldn’t make words. In the past, when I’ve struggled, it’s been with working out how to articulate specific sounds - placement of tongue and lips sort of thing. This was more like hitting a brick wall. I could make incomprehensible sounds, but I couldn’t get past the first sound of any recognisable word.
Fortunately, I was able to write things down and explain what was happening, and by the next day things were almost back to normal.
Has anyone else had a similar experience? I was wondering if this could be due to stress - last week, I had the delightful news that I will be losing my job in August, as the new ‘Youth Offer’ apparently has no need of my role. I was upset and a bit stressed, as you can imagine, as I’ve been working in this job for ten years and - although it’s difficult and challenging - I felt that I was doing something worthwhile and obviously the money is important. I’ve also been caring for one of the friends I was visiting (my visit was to take her home after a month with me) and my mother, who is elderly and currently unwell. I’m generally a bit run down, but not ill, and I haven’t had any significant relapses since I started on Tysabri almost three years ago.
Any insights or reassurance that I haven’t broken my brain any more than usual would be gratefully received!