Living with FMD

I went to the Doctor’s Office the other day. It was a regular routine check up. I don’t normally get nervous about these things, but when I saw the doctor enter the room I knew something was up. As it turns out I have FMD. It’s fairly common among humans. Most of you might know it as Foot in Mouth Disease.

The truth is I really didn’t go to the Doctor. I have known for some time that I suffer from FMD. There is no real way to know for sure, but if you ask around most people will probably tell you that some times I like to talk before I actually think about what I am going to say.

This often puts me in some real hot water and in the past it has forced me to do some serious reflection. People with FMD don’t always mean to say what comes out of their mouths, but the words fly out before they can stop them.

Being a pre-service teacher I began to worry that my FMD would start to turn up in my classroom. Just when I thought all hope was lost I found the solution to my problems. The Pros call it: Non-Verbal Cues, but I like to call it using your body to convey messages.

As it turns out research says that 60 to 70 per cent of meaning in conversation is derived from body language. Body language consists of posture, gestures, facial expressions, and eye movements. Humans send and interpret such signals subconsciously.

The word subconsciously rings true to me. Being a person with FMD I can relate to this idea of doing something without actually realizing your doing it. But, with body language you are always “on the stage.” We are always sending out messages to people with a quick look or a shift in body position.

The way I see it - if I can limit my verbal responses I may be able to get by with using body language to get all my meaning across.

That’s how Mimes do it. We all love them right?