Echolalia

Echolalia is a very interesting aspect of ASD and kids seem to have this to varying degrees. Echolalia is when a person echoes phrases or noises that have been said or heard. Upon research, it appears that around 85% of children with Autism/Aspergers have echolalia to some degree. Echolalia is classified as immediate echolalia or delayed echolalia.

Immediate echolalia is the repetition of words or phrases that occur immediately or very soon after the original words are spoken. Delayed echolalia is the repetition of words or phrases that are echoed after the fact, even hours, days, weeks, or months later. An echolalic phase can last for days, weeks and even months.

We've lived with echolalia to some degree most of Master 9's life but of course we didn't know what it was until he was diagnosed. I remember him as a toddler repeating words and sentences for weeks on end until he found something else to latch on to. And not much has changed. I find at times this can be extremely funny as he can remember lines from movies and along with the correct voice, can repeat it at exactly the right moment which can be absolutely hilarious. In fact, his ability to remember line in shows and movies is amazing. Not only that, but he'll remember events and voices such as those at a clown show or live show that he has seen somewhere, years later.

But what can also be extremely frustrating is that he picks up on certain sounds and will just randomly let it out at the most inopportune time! One of his favourite sounds that has been going on for years are bird noises. He can be sitting in his room playing his Xbox and suddenly come out with a bird noise. Another frustrating noise he does (which he did to me today) is the noise of a dog yelping. It makes me turn every time because it's so realistic that I think it's the dog!! And no matter how many time I tell him not to do it, it seems he just can't help it. It just happens, it just comes out.

Perhaps the most frustrating for me is when he takes a phrase, along with a voice, and constantly uses it day after day after day. About a month ago he began the phrase, 'Terminator - LUL' - in the terminators voice. Honestly, I have now heard this 100's of times until I feel like tearing my hair out. He'll often just talk in the Terminator's voice as well and he doesn't even know he's doing it. And it's not limited to home either. I was at work in the staff room the other week when I could hear this voice through the door and instantly knew it was my terminator talking son. Some day it really grates on me and I have to remember that it's like and obsessive thing to him. It's random and it just comes out - regardless of where he is or what he is doing. On occasions he does this with facial expression. He rolled his eyes until I could see the whites of his eyes obsessively for about a month. I hated it and tried hard to ignore it.

Perhaps then I should be happy that he's being Mr Terminator instead of rolling his eyes!! And another thing, Master 9 has always been obsessed with are 'words.' He hears a word and he'll repeat it for month on end, until he finds another word. I don't always know where they come from but sometimes it's a word he read somewhere or heard on the television. And when he becomes obsessed with a word he'll often use it at the beginning, middle or end of the sentence. I remember when he was about 6 and 7 years old (yes it went on for a year), he was obsessed with the word 'bum.' So our conversations would go something like, 'Mamma, bum, can I have a drink please bum bum.'

It seems funny now but at the time I hated it. And it was everything. Bum came into just about every sentence for over a year!! But as his vocabulary advanced, so did his knowledge of words. And of course the day came that he became obsessed with the C word. Oh yes he did. And it horrified me and I tried everything in my power to stop it. No pleading, consequence or removal of privileges worked - this word was stuck in his head and it would come out of his tongue at the worse times possible (really - is there a good time?). He did get clever after awhile, and he would simply voice the sound 'C.' I knew what he meant, but it was a darn sight better than the full word.

One day out of pure frustration, and also having a nephew with mild Autism saying the same word, I sat down and told them what the word actually meant. I didn't hold back but explained to them what they were referring to every time they said it. My poor sister was horrified but I asked her to trust me. These kids are visual kids and I just gave them a picture they probably didn't want in their heads. And it worked. Neither of them have said it since. That was a big sigh of relief I can tell you!!!

So I never really know what is around the corner. We saw a clown show the other day and Master 9 was enthralled by he sound he could make while he talked. I cringed wondering if that was our next sounds but no, he's not ready to give up Mr Terminator just yet.

So if you ever do hear a strange word or sound, coming from my son's mouth - don't worry too much. It's just part of his quirky nature and the echolalia that we all live with.

* This is taken from my group 'Diary of an Asperger Mum.' You can find this page through Facebook. This is a closed group (ensuring privacy to the degree that Facebook can!) where I am able to share my journey with Aspergers and offer support and an avenue for people to chat.