Mind Meld

If you have ever watched Star Trek, you will know that Vulcans can do something called a mind meld.  According to the Star Trek Database, a "mind-meld" is a technique for sharing thoughts, experiences, memories, and knowledge with another individual. It is a touch technique that allows a Vulcan to merge his or her mind with the essence of another's mind purely by using specialized contact fingertip-points--in a humanoid, usually around the targeted partner's skull temples. Hypnosis-like relaxation and a rhythmic verbal device, such as "My mind to your mind, my thoughts to your thoughts," are often used to perform this action.

Many of us with MS have a battle with saying words from time to time.  The word will be in our thoughts, but it will not come out of our mouth as a “word”.  I can hear myself speaking gibberish sometimes, much like someone who has had a stroke.  It is a very frustrating experience.

Speech disorders are fairly common in MS. Speech patterns are controlled by many areas in the brain, especially the brainstem. Lesions (damaged areas) in different parts of the brain can cause several types of changes in normal speech patterns. They range from mild difficulties to severe problems that make it difficult to speak and be understood. Medically, speech disorders are called dysarthrias.

One pattern that is commonly associated with MS is so-called scanning speech. Scanning dysarthria produces speech in which the normal "melody" or speech pattern is disrupted, with abnormally long pauses between words or individual syllables of words.  People with MS may also slur words. This is usually the result of weakness and/or incoordination of the muscles of the tongue, lips, cheeks and mouth. Other speech problems include nasal speech, which sounds as though the person has a cold or nasal obstruction.

I am wondering if we could get Mr. Spock to teach us to mind meld.  It would be great not to have to try and make someone understand what you were trying to say, knowing the words were not going to come out right no matter how hard you tried.  There is only one problem with this; usually when I cannot speak correctly, I am not thinking correctly either.  I can only imagine what a muddled mess someone who was reading my brain would see!!