r/AACusers

Hello, i'm Teagan and i'm sure some of you remember me from TikTok (ihaveautism1.2 or from Instagram, moderatelyautistic). I used to have another Reddit account but i deleted it, the name was Amber_Barrage23748.

I'm a semiverbal part time AAC user. I use two apps, of which are TD Talk and Proloquo2Go! I like using these two apps because of how personally easy it is for me to navigate through them, but i especially like TD Talk because it's textbased so it is very easy to use than Proloquo2Go is for me.

Anyway, how are we all doing?

Does anyone know a nice tumblr or Pinterest account where i can find cute images for my aac ?

Hi! Does anyone have any recommendations for a set up that can work ok on a phone? I don’t like trying to carry my iPad many places, but I usually have my phone on me. I have weavechat on my phone, but it’s not intuitive to navigate and I keep forgetting where basic words like “sorry” are unless I add them to the preloaded phrases

i like my aac but god i want the speed and efficiency of verbal speech. aac is so slow in comparison and its esp frustrating when i can tell the person im talking to doesn't want to wait. i end up forcing myself to speak with my mouth even when it takes a lot of energy or the words aren't coming out right and im not saying what i mean. aac is so much easier to use than my mouth but ugh i really crave the speed of (reliable) verbal speech

Hi! 15 year old with cp autism and selective mutism in high stress situations. Finally getting an aac assessment, thoughts?

I heard about ConnectAAC which is free but any others free?

I’m fairly new high-tech AAC user. I have an expressive language disorder and can’t speak at all. I got high tech device with proloquo2go February-ish. I’m an adult and do virtual speech therapy, so do all editing on device myself.

Just feels like recently……ALL. I. DO. IS. ADD. WORDS.

Speech needs did go neglected for bit, so definitely some this is catching up. I don’t know how normal this is. I’m spending least 4 hours daily adding to device.

Is it normal to be throw into the fire and just forced to figure it out and do it all on own?

Please any encouragement. So defeated right now.

I have seen multiple AAC users on TikTok and on other social media platforms talking about how they use this app but then also use this other app. Like for example, someone uses Proloquo2Go but then uses a text based AAC app like Speech Assistant or something like that.

And i never understood why they did this. All i know is that switching between two apps in AAC might be too difficult for me, because i don't like routine changes and this is one of them.

Edit: I am not criticizing or being negative towards those who use two AAC apps instead of one. I just want to know how to best utilize both for certain times or tasks. I just didn’t get to typing that part of this post up so sorry for the confusion.

Hi my name is Teagan! I have autism spectrum disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder as well as a specific learning disability in written language and in mathematics. I am a Demi verbal AAC User. I’m sure you guys know me as Ihaveautism1.2 from TikTok! It’s so nice to meet all of you guys!

Hi, all,

I realized I forgot to add a flair for sign language. Complete oversight on my part. That has been corrected. 😊 As part of that correction, I'll kick off the new flair with this post.

I use some functional signs with my loved ones. The most common one I use is "I love you" since I am lucky to have a spouse who really steps up when I'm down. I also use "help," "thank you," and "stop" a lot. I don't really need to say "safe" to others much, but I love the sign and doing it makes me feel safer, so I use it with myself haha.

What about ya'll?

How have I never heard of real-time text (RTT) before today? Stumbled upon this completely by accident. I wanted to share because I know phone calls are a major obstacle for us, and this definitely seems like something that could help.

Edited to Add:

The rabbit hole continues. Samsung Galaxy has a feature called text call that is basically the same thing except an automated voice will answer ask the caller why they are calling after you pick up and convert what you type afterwards into speech. Here's an article about how to use it if interested: click here

I have seen a post on this subreddit sharing that TD Talk is free, and i have since downloaded it.

It is very helpful as it is faster and i don't have to navigate to folders to find certain words. I can just type it in instead of having to navigate to different folders each time, and i am so grateful. But i am so mad that i went STRAIGHT to symbol based AAC instead of at least trying out an app that is text based like TD Talk is because it's free and perfectly fits me and my needs as an AAC user.

But i don't see anyone else online talk about TD Talk, i don't even see people who say they have TD Talk as their AAC app or one of their AAC apps that they use. So i don't know if it is popular or not, i also want to see if anyone else has this app. I feel lonely in that i am the only person who uses this app, apparently.

Just a clusterfuck of a post really for my first ever post on here. I hope that you can understand this somewhat, but feel free to ask for clarification if not!

hi gang. i figured someone here would have some input on this :’) for the record, i dislike the term “non-speaking”; i’m a mute individual that uses alt methods of speaking (asl and aac), lol. just hate leaving my flair empty and i’m pedantic.

not the point. how the fuck do yall do phone calls? i typically use HCO (hearing carryover) through my state’s 711 relay but it’s godawful. sometimes the operators act like it’s their first day on earth, the typing gets garbled (how???), often when the call connects i have the potential to be hung up on or not spoken to directly.

i hated phone calls when i could speak and now i avoid them as much as possible, but its frequently a necessary evil. i used to bully my roommate into doing my phone calls for me but they hate it more than i do. ive seen some deaf people suggest a type of video calling using asl but my asl is not THAT great compared to how fast i can type.

is this just a problem forever now? what in tarnation. it’s so annoying

Hello, I'm not sure if this is the right place for this, please let me know if it isn't.

I haven't been able to speak since May, so I've been using a basic text-to-speech app (for about 2 months now) to communicate with my mother and brother. I don't dare use it with anyone else.

I'm having some problems, and I'd appreciate any advice you might have.

First, I'm really self-conscious about using aac. The fact that it's not my own voice bothers me a lot, and on top of that, there's the social awkwardness. As an adult, I'm terrified it will seem strange or seen as just a whim or an attempt to attract attention.

I don't really have any friends, but I usually see some friends from middle school once a year during the summer. This year I think I'll find an excuse not to see them.

Also, it's really not smooth. Even when I type fairly quickly, it takes me several minutes to answer a question (except for yes/no), and by the time I've finished, the topic has changed or the question has been forgotten.

Plus it's incredibly frustrating. I was already very isolated, but now it's worse than ever. I'm very lonely and I don't even dare go out anymore for fear of being approached and not being able to respond. I feel like I've become "stupid" to others too, I'm treated like a child, my mother has to accompany me everywhere, and everyone speaks for me...

If you are willing to share your experience or some advice, it would help.

Anyway, all my support to those who have had to deal with all this for a long time, honestly I am impressed, it takes incredible energy and determination to stand your ground in these conditions.

I'm trying to delete buttons that don't apply to me but I can not figure it out. I tried going into all the board settings but I am very confused.

Can someone show me how to do it?