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Does anyone else find their ability to spell is completely messed up?

hixxy

Senior Member
Messages
1,229
Location
Australia
Especially over the last few months I've been noticing my ability to spell has gone down the drain big time. I find myself typing words into google to get corrections because I just can't seem to get the words right!

hixxy
 

SOC

Senior Member
Messages
7,849
Especially over the last few months I've been noticing my ability to spell has gone down the drain big time. I find myself typing words into google to get corrections because I just can't seem to get the words right!

hixxy

Yes. I used to be an excellent speller and never gave it a second thought. Now I mis-spell frequently and rely on spell checkers a lot. :(
 

beaker

ME/cfs 1986
Messages
773
Location
USA
and then , of course, there is the problem with then than affect effect etc.... those swim in my brain. used to be non issue.

and of course there is just plain writing the wrong word. sometimes they are sort of close in how they look , if not in meaning, like superb and suburb. but other times there doesn't seem to be a rhyme or reason to how my brain came up with it. :rolleyes:

you are not alone !
 

RustyJ

Contaminated Cell Line 'RustyJ'
Messages
1,200
Location
Mackay, Aust
I go through stages where I cannot recognize words that I often use. For instance the word ''toy'' may be incomprehensible for me for a month or two even when I see it in print or hear it spoken, then suddenly I have no trouble with it. As if the link to that tiny bit of data is blocked.
 

hixxy

Senior Member
Messages
1,229
Location
Australia
and then , of course, there is the problem with then than affect effect etc.... those swim in my brain. used to be non issue.

and of course there is just plain writing the wrong word. sometimes they are sort of close in how they look , if not in meaning, like superb and suburb. but other times there doesn't seem to be a rhyme or reason to how my brain came up with it. :rolleyes:

you are not alone !

Yes for sure! I completely mix words up. Make horrible grammatical errors I wouldn't have once made. I can remember some times when I substituted completely unrelated words and what I've been trying to say has turned into complete rubbish.

You have no idea how often I have to completely rewrite posts on here or come back and edit them. I think I'm the edit king. Sigh.

Another tidbit. When I'm at my worst, my handwriting looks like a toddlers!
 

hixxy

Senior Member
Messages
1,229
Location
Australia
I go through stages where I cannot recognize words that I often use. For instance the word ''toy'' may be incomprehensible for me for a month or two even when I see it in print or hear it spoken, then suddenly I have no trouble with it. As if the link to that tiny bit of data is blocked.

Hi Rusty! Another Brisbanite. I do hope I don't develop that symptom. It wouldn't surprise me at all tho.

There seems to be more ME/CFSers on here from Brisbane than any other part of Australia.
 

RustyJ

Contaminated Cell Line 'RustyJ'
Messages
1,200
Location
Mackay, Aust
Hi Rusty! Another Brisbanite. I do hope I don't develop that symptom. It wouldn't surprise me at all tho.

There seems to be more ME/CFSers on here from Brisbane than any other part of Australia.

Hi hixxy, welcome to the club. We're a funny lot up here, north of the border, lol. The symptom only appears now and again, the mental blackouts (all info is lost) while driving are scarier. Taste of Alzheimer's?
 

Calathea

Senior Member
Messages
1,261
Yes, it's a standard cognitive symptom. I never had to learn how to spell as a child, I picked it up without thinking about it, so I have no techniques to fall back on. As others have found, I make different errors when writing to typing. It varies enormously depending on how bad a day I'm having. At one point my former uni tried to diagnose me with dyslexia, although I really don't have adult-onset dyslexia (which can only be acquired through a brain injury or similar), I have neurological problems in the same area.

As for my handwriting looking like a toddler's on a bad day - nope, that's a good day for me now. On a bad day I can't even sign my own name. On a good day I can manage writing a shopping list if I take lots of pauses between words and use a very comfortable pen, as long as no one else has to read it.
 

heapsreal

iherb 10% discount code OPA989,
Messages
10,089
Location
australia (brisbane)
yes, especially i, e or words with oi or io i seem to get them the wrong way around and same with ie and ei. SOmetimes when typing i will be thinking to far ahead of what i am typing and miss words, i reread it and sometimes i cant understand what im trying to type. But the last 18months i reread posts alot to check for this and find many mistakes. sometimes i know i have spelled(rereading this i spelled spelled wrong, lol) something wrong but just leave it. or if i read someone elses post and cant understand a word i look at the keyboard and insert a letter into the word i dont understand that is close to the letter that doesnt look right.

cheers!!!
 

hixxy

Senior Member
Messages
1,229
Location
Australia
If we were back in school they'd probably stick us all in special-ed! \o/

Nah. I still have some problem solving skills above any beyond average. At least I haven't lost everthing -- yet.

It seems in many ways despite these handicaps, there's a very high lievel of intelligence on these forums.
 

heapsreal

iherb 10% discount code OPA989,
Messages
10,089
Location
australia (brisbane)
I forgot to vote yesterday and was reminded by my mrs that morning before she left. I didnt realise until the news was on talking about the elections, straight away i realised, and i was winging about being bored, now i may cop a fine for not voting, --it happens i guess.

cheers!!!
 

Calathea

Senior Member
Messages
1,261
I think your first guess was right, actually. I got ME in my first year at university. My marks dropped to half of what they had been at secondary school. Instead of looking at my academic history and realising that this was an incredibly intelligent student with medical problems, they just assumed I was a bit thick.

Similarly, when I went to see a memory specialist, many years ago when my memory wasn't nearly as bad as it is now, she made no attempt to find out what my IQ was prior to my becoming ill. She selectively interpreted the results to decide again that I'm just a bit thick. This involved ignoring tests where I couldn't even begin to answer the test, e.g. giving me a paragraph to read, taking it away, asking me to write it down, and finding that I had no idea what the subject had even been, let alone the details. Those memory specialists only deal with elderly people with Alzheimers and evidently have no clue how to deal with someone younger with other memory problems. I had most of my life missing and they failed to notice a problem.

I now have a friend who had a traumatic brain injury when she was 14, which caused total and permanent amnesia as well as continuing problems with various cognitive functions. You'd think that something that massive would be obvious - she didn't know her own name or recognise her family, and the memories of her former life never returned. She didn't even get diagnosed for nearly a year. Doctors are really not well-equipped in this area.
 

hixxy

Senior Member
Messages
1,229
Location
Australia
Just are equipped Calathea. They are just closed minded. Many can't think out of the box. So many are also ruled by their biases and stereotypes. The skills can often be there but these aforementioned problems crippled them.
 

RustyJ

Contaminated Cell Line 'RustyJ'
Messages
1,200
Location
Mackay, Aust
What gets me is when spell checker says there is a spelling mistake and I can't see it, I end up googling it and staring at the word and then at my post for ten minutes trying to work out what the difference is. Most times I just copy it over to my post to avoid the effort.

Another things is knives and forks. Instinctively you should know which hand holds which. But for periods of time (usually over a month) I sit down to meals where I just sit there swapping them from one hand to the other trying to work out which goes where. Not only cannot I not remember, but I can't feel what is right. Bizarre, like two different mechanisms or types of memory fail at the same time.
 

hixxy

Senior Member
Messages
1,229
Location
Australia
What gets me is when spell checker says there is a spelling mistake and I can't see it, I end up googling it and staring at the word and then at my post for ten minutes trying to work out what the difference is. Most times I just copy it over to my post to avoid the effort.

Another things is knives and forks. Instinctively you should know which hand holds which. But for periods of time (usually over a month) I sit down to meals where I just sit there swapping them from one hand to the other trying to work out which goes where. Not only cannot I not remember, but I can't feel what is right. Bizarre, like two different mechanisms or types of memory fail at the same time.

Indeed that first one sounds like me to a T.

I've always been a bit weird with my cutlery anyway, even pre-ME! :)
 

xchocoholic

Senior Member
Messages
2,947
Location
Florida
My spelling has been affected since this started too. Actually, I was working as a programmer analyst / task leader at the time I got sick and immediately lost the ability to read my own programs much less help anyone else. The letters written for my disability hearing from my co workers stated that basically, I had become useless.
The SS judge appeared to get tired of my inability to answer his questions so he told me that he would recommend I get approved ... It was sad, but reassuring at the same time.


Nothing I read made any sense from 1990 - mid 2005. It wasn't until I eliminated gluten, etc that I could read again.

Back in 2005, when I gave up gluten, etc my mind became crystal clear but has faded over time. They say that celiacs who go on the GF diet are more likely to develop cognitive problems later in life. I assumed it was from all the gluten in those GF foods but now I'm not so sure. My new hypothesis is that we've damaged our brains from gluten and there are just some things that don't regrow as easily when we age ...

Um, I mention celiac disease because that's the research I'm familiar with but there are many other forms of gut damage. Did you know that NSAIDS can damage our villi the same way that celiac disease does ? Damaged villi equals decreased nutrition.

Btw .. there are neuropsych tests for this. They're very thorough and can pinpoint where your brain stops working. I failed miserably. On a bad day or if I'm tired, I'd fail again.


tc ... x
 

roxie60

Senior Member
Messages
1,791
Location
Central Illinois, USA
I responded last night but my entire post got lost and I was too tired to ty again. Today is another day so another try. Seems my second attempts are never as good as the original, oh well.

I use to be a very good speller and stong vocabulary but I have noticed especially in the past few years I have trouble finding the right words and spelling them (and saying them if in a conversation, my brain is thinking one word but cant say it or entire different word comes out, very frustrating). At times I know how the word is spelled but when I type or write is I transpose numbers and letters, usually right next to each other so find myself constantly going back to correct or as others have said using spell cker. As thought there is a disconnect (black hole) between my brain (what I want to say or write) and my fingers/tongue. I feel like a bumbling idiot when speaking now and I have to spend so much more time when writing reponses or documents. Comprehension is out th window as well, I have to read things over multiple times before my brain understands even though I recognize the words. It has made it very difficult at work, you are expected to be quick and brief with conversation and and all forms of communication. I find myself trying to hide from co-workers or not engaging as much because I am struggling with this and their responses (baody language, etc) are negative. I am also writing more info because I am having trubs with memory so I put more down in writing but then it takes me more time because of comprehension, spelling and cognitive blocks asI'm writing. This has become significantly stressful since 2006.
 

garcia

Aristocrat Extraordinaire
Messages
976
Location
UK
> Does anyone else find their ability to spell is completely messed up?

yed
 

SOC

Senior Member
Messages
7,849
> Does anyone else find their ability to spell is completely messed up?

yed

LOL! Now that's a succinct answer!

I know next to nothing about neuro-cognition, but shouldn't the magnitude of verbal difficulties we are discussing here tell someone in the know what part of the brain is affected? Isn't this a clue?

A lot of my word-based difficulties have improved since I cleared (or shoved back into latency) my hhv-6 infection. I'm not back to 100%, but I'm a lot better than I was. That makes me wonder about the importance of neurological infections in this illness.