I don't know what to say anymore when others talk to me

[Clown]

I had this problem every time at the casino poker table ( and elsewhere with groups)
at first everyone doens't say much but after a while everyone is joking and talking
and also to me but my face just freeze and don't even know what they are saying so anxious
I can't respond back and when I leave and have a smoke with someone at the table I can suddenly respond everything with ease.
This is really the hardest part and makes me so depressed
How can I ever socialize at work ??? As long if there are groups I can't even years.at some point after months
at work I can understand people think im a weirdo

I used to be a funny and smart person.
I talked with ease with people and had no problems socializing.
Until I asked myself how come I'm being funny?
How come I talk to people like this? I didn't have the answers for these questions and I was accustomed to having an answer to all so I got anxious.
I'm overly self aware of my process of thinking and speaking. Before I just acted and it all went well. Now I think of the process and can't act well.
When people speak to me my mind stays blank and I don't know what to say back. I have to stay quiet. Why is my mind blank.
This is soul destroying when I know im actually funny and smart.
How can I recover the ability to know what to say?
Thanks.

 

[A86]

on the up side i bet you had a good poker face

i think like most "automatic" behaviors, its learned through repetition. Like driving a car. If you drive a car enough, soon its automatic and you can drive many kilometres not even realising you are driving because you can think about something else.

The problem here is that emotions tend to be more overwhelming than logic, so your not getting enough repetition. Everyone handles recovery differently, for me I had to walk myself into the deep end of the pool, as being thrown in was having the opposite effect.

 

[Gaucho]

hehe, i also was funny long time ago, i even always tried to be the funnies of all, i had the ability. somehow in a process i lost all my charm, my character. it arrived to the point were its nearly impossible to be funny, actually I'm not funny at all anymore.

 

[Imaginary]

I often experience it, but not always, but often, I can only look pleasing n funny to certain people, but I could even be a very quiet person with my close friends.

I also often experience it as I walked with the people, especially new people who just I know, they are absorbed in a joke, and I became worried, if I just stay quiet, they will stay away, but if I pretended to look nice n funny, I'll look awkward, and they will laugh at me and think I'm weird, that's the things that occurred to me as I walked with the people, as far as possible I away from them and I go alone, I'd rather talk to my own thoughts.

I think it's impossible to pretend, if your character is like that, because you will only lose who you are, the pleasing of these, you will actually find people/ friends, lover who accept you as it is, well, but have patience and struggle.

 

[xDreamseller]

I used to be a funny and smart person.
I talked with ease with people and had no problems socializing.
Until I asked myself how come I'm being funny?
How come I talk to people like this? I didn't have the answers for these questions and I was accustomed to having an answer to all so I got anxious.
I'm overly self aware of my process of thinking and speaking. Before I just acted and it all went well. Now I think of the process and can't act well.
When people speak to me my mind stays blank and I don't know what to say back. I have to stay quiet. Why is my mind blank.
This is soul destroying when I know im actually funny and smart.
How can I recover the ability to know what to say?
Thanks.

This is me, exactly. I used to have many friends, but now, I can't think of what to say when anyone is talking to me. It's like I have nothing to say, yet as soon as the "conversation" is over and I walk away, I'm full of things I could have said. It's like a zone-out and think to myself "What the hell should I say?" while my body is just stood there looking dumb.