#nonspeaking meme

[tobytalksaac]

Another alter helped make this for Toby!

[paranormalplanet]

me: *in nonspeaking episode*

neurotypical™️: ugh, just use your words, i'm not a mind reader

also neurotypical™️: *constantly refuses to just say what they actually mean and expects me to just figure it out*

me:

[autism-affirmations]

[arquaticdreamer]

When going to bed early is more ideal to you as an ND autistic than a late night out on the town

[autisticdreamdrop]

being semi/nonspeaking is NOT the silent treatment

[clownrecess]

AAC is cool

I'm like a real life talkoid (vocaloid) /j

[twinantithesis]

I don’t even watch him but at this point Jerma appears in my life so often I’ve had to give him a fucking sign name

[five-thousand-loaves-of-bread]

…something been in draft for while:

idk how say this exactly but often like. use what look like binary clear cut dichotomy that have set definition this is this that is that. because oftentimes call “cake” “cake” instead of “flour milk egg baking powder salt etc etc” that kind language faster simplier and nuance can easily put word count 10k+. and. with language communication disabilities not always able translate all nuance into tangible word on paper/screen/type sometimes have to call something with imperfect blanket word. and then you find out other people not really hold as much nuance as you & still simplify your nuance into something binary this this that that

but reality rarely that binary— say on here that nonverbal mean not mouth speak at all all time & semiverbal is struggle all time but can mouth speak some & verbal but actually more nuanced than that like some severely apraxic people who mouth do say thing but not in their control not what they want say & they still call self nonspeaking because it not intentional meaningful speech; or someone labeled nonverbal who actually do commmunicate with mouth words just not full sentence & not full clear pronounce but still labeled nonverbal anyway as almost like microaggression of not recognize their single or two word mouth word phrase as valid enough communication worth listen to; or someone with echolalia that not mean anything with it (vs someone with echolalia that is use echolalia as communication (think gestalts, etc)); or some research showing even able say 1-2 words more ability than those with 0 word; or research debate about where minimally verbal end is it 20 words 30 words 50 words

when combat “go nonverbal” crowd often say there is clear cut about what nonverbal and what isn’t and yeah there is clear cut but also is there

many not ready for this level muddiness & nuance because some take bring nuance as invite to say like “i nonverbal but can still (intentionally) mouth speak” or gateway to claim nonverbality as if fun new identity collect instead of some complicated complex experience with mixed emotion but often some level of grief at some point that get lot targeted awful ableism & discrimination like denied education refuse accommodation like IEP or put in segregated classroom without even consider accommodation in general ed to isolate away from peers n not actual to help nonverbal person where they best thrive, or secluded or restrained, or denied healthcare, denied communication, which all still happen now btw it still common now it not rare obsolete it majority still

which make me feel like this image

[id: meme. left side is philosophers (school of athens painting) with caption “talking about nonverbal nonspeaking with other nonverbal people”. middle say “vs”. right side image is parent guiding infant to look play at toy and captioned “talking about nonverbal nonspeaking with not nonverbal people. end id]

because sometimes really is that but also even this is binary. thinking about how some motor nonspeaking people without intellectual disability who language okay say their mind intact that they not stupid thus deserve education and not deserve abuse and throw people with ID & language impairment. or how nonverbal nonspeaking from autism so different from (but so similar to) from motor apraxia from cerebral palsy from intellectual disability from genetic or chromosomal disorders from stroke from TBI from aphasia from vocal cord dysfunction from dementia from from from… how talking to someone nonspeaking from primarily motor reasons without cognitive intellectual language disabilities as someone nonverbal because high level autism cognitive language disabilities, we not guarantee understand eachother experience, same with talk someone from acquired things vs mine neurodevelopmental, how what i say about nonverbal here may not apply to someone who not speak not because autism etc

but “if words so meaningless if experiences so boundless let abolish all” not helpful because for all kind way be nonverbal there experiences that 100% not nonverbal there experiences so different from nonverbal “not able meaningfully intentionally speak all the time” for every meaningless there meaningful reason nonverbal people use nonverbal and deserve word “nonverbal” for ourselves and how this difference in experience is intracommunity issue issue within nonverbal nonspeaking community something we have to grapple with and not invitation for people outside to talk about how “if nonverbal so wide, drawing line at going nonverbal & say that isn’t nonverbal is ridiculous and gatekeep” because as much vast different experience there is reason why there community why there this word we all call ourselves and. not one. of the reason is we can slide in and out of not speak and speak daily or weekly or monthly or regularly. there still common theme to what we call nonverbal despite different

wide word isn’t “functionally useless” it just you not know how n when use it

& this conversation not just apply to nonverbal but many other words n other things as well

[supercantaloupe]

happy sleepover saturday!!! next will question will be photos of lulu BUT would you like to draw your fav opera npc? i understand there arent npcs in operas but one w npc vibes. also. badass women in opera for the uneducated?

i would say that operas Absolutely have npcs, we just call them supernumeraries lol (supernumeraries are nonspeaking/nonsinging roles, like an extra in a movie or tv show)

anyway my fave has to be donna elvira's maid in this production of don giovanni. the maid is referenced once or twice in the libretto and in most productions she shows up maybe once but doesn't really do much, if she shows up at all. but in this one she's onstage a LOT and practically gets her own arc, despite the entire time being completely silent. i think it's a FASCINATING addition to the opera and i love it so much

[ask meme]

[fruitzbat]

Whichever OC you want to answer about:

18. What is the worst possible ending for your OC and why?

ooh, fun! Think I'll go with Felaun on this one, as I've been thinking about him a lot lately.

What is the worst possible ending for your OC and why?

Most of the original cast of devilverse are characters created to explore two main ideas: helplessness and transformation in the face of trauma and loss.

Felaun's case is kind of both: he's struggling with a form of speech impairment partially as a result of the experiments he was subjected to in the Snarl, and so he feels a lack of agency and isolation because of this.*

I think, for him, the worst thing that could happen would be him dying in a room full of people who refuse to take the time to understand him the way he needs to be understood.

*I'm really not sure what the exact term is for his situation, and I don't think I want to use the word "nonverbal" or "nonspeaking" because while that's his favored mode of communication, that's also a very specific condition to autistic folks; furthermore, his issue is not actually the physical action of talking as much as it being a psychological/psychosomatic affliction.

OC ASK MEME

[cybersp4ced]

whats wrong with going nonverbal?

losing speech ["going nonverbal"] is not wrong itself. i Assume you found my reply to a post that uses this phrase and i say is incorrect to use.

"going nonverbal" means when you lose ability to speak, and thus assumes that you generally can speak and this is only temporal. However this is wrong use of word. Nonverbal/nonspeaking refers exclusively to people who cant speak at all [or few few word sometimes] so you dont "go" nonspeaking or nonverbal. You are or aren't ::D

To grab word and take and misuse takes away the little space that nonspeaking/nonverbal people have. I know "is meme just fun" but always have chance to teach

Here post by nonverbal people explaining better:

here some words that can use in replacement:

nonverbal/nonspeaking info masterpost

fun fact i myself amn't nonspeaking but am intermittently speaking/verbalflux

[trauma-genic]

alter intros (updated)

so since we last checked, our system has almost doubled in size due to just getting used to our system as well as some trauma during the year, so we have all been meaning to make a new current and updated intro page for us, as well as to see exactly how many alters are active now...

Andrew, host, 23, cis gay man, 5’1 blonde hair hazel eyes, has major resting bitch face, anyisocial personality traits, cigarette addict, fictive of andrew from aftg 🚬

Nico, ex-host, 17, gay transguy, 5’7 brown hair light brown eyes, autistic with a special interest in animals, 💖

Aaron, identical twin to Andrew, 23, straight man, much more expressive than Andrew, wants a gf in body really badly, fictive of aaron from aftg ☀️

Charles, protector, 45, bisexual man, basically Andrew and Aaron’s father, identifies with Hades from Lore Olympus, like reptiles but specifically snakes, 🐍

Y, protector, age ???, nonbinary demiromantic, very robotic and monotone in body, completely nonsexual, likes reptiles as well but specifically lizards and geckos, love b/w aesthetics, 🦎

Sebastian, angel protector, 27, bisexual man, very slight british accent, introject of Sebastian from Black Butler, likes cats, taking care of littles, and tea, 🕊

Azazel, demon protector, ???, it pronouns, nonspeaking/animalistic in body, prefers to communicate through gestures and grunts/growls/purring/ect., very territorial of belongings/people, 😈

Jester aka Checkers, mute, it/they pronouns, giggly and excitable, childlike, likes shiny and jingly things, likes to steal small treasures, big Gremlin™️ energy, 🃏

Devon, anp, 25, heteroflexible man (bicurious?), loud australian man with nothing to lose, fun and reckless, loves Borderlands (ids w psychos), very heavy accent in body, 🤙🏽

Kyle and Daniel, split of each other, Kyle is 19, ADHD but has good discipline from marching military band, a proud bisexual polyam man, 💥 while Daniel is 25, not ADHD, gay monogamous man, very much a Big Bro, likes taking care of little bros, 💢

Vivian, hypersexual abuser introject, early 20's, cis pan woman, introject of our last ex's most toxic traits, extremely hypersexual and will use sex to get out of situations, extremely unhealthy and cant be left alone, 🌺

Beatrice aka Bee, internal mom figure, 30’s, cis bisexual woman, kind warm and gentle, soft spoken, doesnt front in body much due to dysphoria, takes care of the littles, 🐝

Noah, little, actually 8 years old, is half husky puppy (has ears and tail), loves to draw and color, loves my little pony and the dragon prince, loves his big brother, 🐕

Vincent aka Vinny, 20’s, straight man, Noah’s big brother, half red wolf, forced to be active again from trauma and is learning to be a good person, loves running/hiking and being outdoors, 🐺

Taako, introject of Taako from TAZ:B, very gay cis man, system chef and resident cook for the body, makes sure we eat good healthy food, is horny for Death, 🌂

Cooro, fictive little, 10, introject of Cooro from +Anima, loves running around and feeling the wind in his face and hands, loves fresh fruit (apples especially) and warm baked bread, apple pie is his ultimate weakness, 🍎

Ajax, fragment?, furry, black, dark grey, and neon green flying fox, absolute buffoon in memes and trickery, has been around since we were 12 but recently resurfaced, is Monster Energy flavored, 🚫

Sammy, core, little girl, 6, likes to play dress up, loves disney movies and cartoons, LOVES cinderella and is her favorite disney princess, magical little girl, 🐭

EDIT: Added Vivian

alright and that should hopefully be everyone, i hope no one was forgotten lol

but wow it is kind of sad to see how much bigger our system got because of just the last 3 months and how much trauma HE caused. oh well, we are coping as we can now, and honestly having more people active now is a little interesting. definitely exhausting as hell with how much we were switching everyday, but its definitely slowed down since getting out. ill make a separate post explaining why the hell our system went from originally about 6 to fucking 18 in one year. literally last january was when we first started to notice our system.

anyway, we are the fantasy system and have found that each of us have found a grounding place in identifying with fictional characters alongside our identities! most of us identify with a fictional character but only some of us are actually fictives/introjects!!

[melmothblog]

Ask Responses: MISC

Any opinions on the Biscuit Ballerina? I know it's just a meme/funny Instagram account but personally it's always rubbed me the wrong way. I can't decide if it's because it's a crime against art/aesthetics or because it reinforces the idea that Americans don't really take ballet seriously. :/

I don’t follow Biscuit Ballerina, and it rubs me the wrong way too. I have never really thought about why that is, but what you wrote makes sense. I understand that the account is supposed to be humorous, and I have no problem with the concept but, personally, I don’t enjoy it. At all. It’s not for me.

What is the Vaganova prix?

It’s an international ballet competition run by Vaganova Ballet Academy, which focuses on the Vaganova method and the history of Russian ballet. You can read more about it here. 

Hi! do you know how frequent is the bolshoi ballet competition? like every 2 years or 4 years?

The series premiered in 2012. The second season ran in 2016 and the third - in 2018. The long break after Season One notwithstanding, the competition appears to run once every two years.

Hi Melmoth, I am so happy I found the Mariinsky Ballet Video site (from a link in Maria Khoreva’s instagram). The only down side is that most of the text is in Russian (for those of us that are nonspeakers). It seems to be a mix of old and new videos. Do you know who runs the site?

Sorry, I don’t. I’m aware of the page but don’t check it very often. I remember being incredibly annoyed with the person running it when the account first launched because they were spamming the hell out of my (and many others’) comments section in order to promote it. I came very close to blocking them.

When and how did you learn how to read Japanese?

I grew up in Japan.

d i s c l a i m e r 

[haveievermentioned]

If you're still doing the ask meme from last night: Innocent Physical Contact + Scars (writer's choice)

Vanexion!  Because I never get to write them :( 

Ienzo sat outside of the castle of Radiant Gardens, a nonspeaking book in his hands.  Weiss had gone off somewhere, muttering about how he wanted sunlight and quiet.  Not too far, he could never get too far from Ienzo.  But it was far enough.  Ienzo turned the book over in his hands.  Vanessa Doofenshmirtz (his girlfriend? Maybe? Whatever that was?  Even just had a knowing smile when he saw them together and refused to say more.  Aeleus was worse as who knows if he was keeping quiet because he was quiet, or because he was still mourning his wife, or he was being like Even.  Either way, that word had been whispered.  Yes, he liked Vanessa, not like the rest of his Warriors.  But what made her any different than say Harley or Max or Kate or Lara?)   Vanessa had given it to him a day or so ago.  The mystery behind a town in her country that had disappeared over 200 years ago and no one knew why.  She said it was interesting and different from his life.  She was correct on that.  Maybe too much so.  There was so much he didn’t understand, what were colonial times? What was England?  Where was Virginia?  What-“Hey.”  Vanessa sat down next to him, still flicking through her phone.  “Dad says he’s trapped in another dimension for at least a week so I can stay here if my mom doesn’t mind it.”  “And does she?” He asked as he went back to the book.  “She thinks I got hit with one of Phineas and Ferb’s inventions by way of my dad and I’m stuck out here for a bit.  She’s okay.”  She thumbed something else on her phone.  “I am glad you have someone who cares.”  He finally said.  What was left unsaid was his only family.  His mother, the goddess of Harmony who sought to use him and his warriors to overthrow Chaos in all of its forms, including beneficial ones.  His father, Master Xehanort, who sought to recreate a universe destroying war.  Radiant Gardens, his home, that he unintentionally led its destruction with its research.  “Yeah, they’re fine.”  She said, then glanced up.  “OOH. Nice.  You got a  body mod?”“What?”  He looked up, then tried to pull back as she reached up to his neck.  She pushed his hair aside and put his hand beside his neck.  He screwed his eyes shut, waiting…“Ienzo,”  Vanessa said evenly.  “Did you scar your neck for Fashion reasons or is there something else going on.”  “Can you remove your hand from my neck first?”  He replied, and he could not keep his voice from rising in pitch.  She did so but moved her body so she faced him on the bench where they sat.   “Thank you.  Lea convinced a Replica to strangle me in order to be considered a real boy.”***“EDYM!  THIS IS NOT FUNNY!”  Edym looked up, and blinked.  Lea stood in front of him, with his own personal rain storm.  “Ignoring the fact I am a MESS I can’t set anything on FIRE!  What if I need to set things on fire!”“You’re human now, and you died by setting yourself on fire. “ Edym replied.  “AND NOW I’M ALL WET! AND MY FOOD IS WET! AND-”***Far away, Vanessa was trying to figure out how to make her father’s raininator create thunder storms.  

[clownrecess]

Aaaa you have vocaloid stickers on your aac device!! I love vocaloid!!! /happy /gen

YEAH!!!!!

We have some on the front, and some of the back, its very fun.

I love Vocaloid, and I like to joke about being one because I also communicate with technology like vocaloids

[five-thousand-loaves-of-bread]

autism ask meme: 5. 42.

questions

5. What do you wish more people knew about autism?

ooooo many many many. so many. want people to know more about level 2/3 autism. nonspeaking autistics. autistics with "severe behavioral challenges." severely autistic people. etc. the online autism community may tell me enough people know all of that already and that it's all allistic people focus on. but not true, people like me and people less privileged than me and with more struggles than me(*) get abused and neglected all the time. want people to know how others (sped teachers, professionals, parents, other autistics etc) mistreat us, how to help, and how to actually help us thrive. like seclusion, restraint, how to help apraxic nonspeaking autistic kids (who don't know how to read yet or struggling to learn that) gain functional communication and AAC, respite care and child care specifically for families with more disabled autistic people, how to actually do "special ed" aka how to actually include more disabled autistic kid how to actually help them learn, etc.

many people focus on language, like autistic person instead of person with autism, support needs instead of functioning labels, no "special ed" or "special needs," and i think can definitely be important, but hope people also spend time advocating for legislative changes and educating self on ways that can more directly change lives of more marginalized disabled/autistic people.

this especially goes for disability justice advocates and autistic adovcates. if you say you advocate for all disabled people for all autistic people then don't forget us, then get it right.

(*i don't think i'm necessarily very severe or very level 3, iso take grain of salt when i say "us" because compared to other severe autistics level 3 autistics i don't have same experience i have it easier. don't want to take up their space, so please don't just listen to me.)

42. Tell us something about your special interest.

autism is a special interest especially level2/3 nonspeaking minimally speaking semispeaking autism!! so everything above is infodump.

but!! another special interest is mushie!!! favorite mushie is the giant puffball mushroom. can get as big as watermelon!!! they make really really nice sounds if you give them gentle head pats. pat pat pat pat pat. they edible if you cut them open and it's all solid white on the inside!! people use them to be pizza crusts :o n mock tofu!! some say they have earthy taste others say no taste and obsorbs taste of things cooked with it. love love love puffball mushie. it's puffball mushie season right now!!!!!!!!!!!!