How do you handle an incessant talker?

LasMa
Fri, 15 Nov 2013 14:31:32 +0000

I think some of the people are nervous or worried about gaps in the conversation (you know, when people are actually thinking about what to say next) and they want to “keep the conversation going” so they blather because oddly they think they’re being polite.



This is precisely what my mom’s issue is. She cannot abide even the tiniest natural pause in a conversation, so she rushes to fill it. When we’re out driving, if there is a nanosecond of silence and nothing immediately comes to mind, she will actually start reading traffic signs out loud until she thinks of something better. “45 miles per hour. Merging traffic. Oh! Did I tell you what your brother said?” That’s what we’re reduced to by her inability to tolerate quiet.

Her natural extraversion plays a part too – for her, contact with the world means talking with the world. If the world has nothing to say at the moment, she will oblige. Content is irrelevant; a flowing stream of words is all that matters.