you’re friend is probably right. you just want to get your point across. Oprah does the same thing.
I repeat myself a lot…but I’m just getting old!!!

I do say things over, sometimes is a different way tho. Especially when I’m adament about something.

I don’t know but it happens to me too.
I don’t know but it happens to me too.
I don’t know but it happens to me too.

I do it sometimes if I lose my train of thought because it gives me time to get back on course. Or because I’m talking to my boyfriend and his response was, “Well, he’s very furry, you know.”

(He has this bad habit of bringing the cat up in situations where the cast has no business being. Either that or answering with, “No man can say” which is usually completely untrue and mental laziness on his part.)

When we repeat ourselves or use additional, but similar language, to expand upon a point, we are generally acknowledging an inability to be articulate.

Some techniques to help you reduce this behavior might include pausing before you speak, carefully scripting out the main points you want to convey, or speaking in a slower cadence than normal. Be clear in your mind what you want say before articulating a point.

You may be Obsessive Compulsive. Do you repeat ritualistically? Search the net for OCD and see if you have other symptoms. If you DO, it doesn’t mean you need to be treated for it unless the symptoms are interfering with your life.

Listen to your interlocator. Don’t think of rebuttals. Being a good listener helps being a good conversationalist. Don’t be afraid of a few seconds of silence either. A little dead air is a Quaker technique.

My mother’s technique was to repeat herself and also raise her voice. It made trying to have a substantive discussion very difficult.

For starters, listen to Osakarob..

Mr M may be right. It’s actually the first thing that popped into my head and is a typical sign of OCD. It’s not necessarily something to worry about unless, also like Mr M said, it interferes with your life.

I’m slightly OCD myself, and I also repeat sentences that I’ve said, in my head, for no particular reason at all. I also find myself counting syllables on my fingers, for every word in a sentence someone just said, immediately after they say it. Then I make it end and begin on every single finger until it’s even. I do it without even realizing it most of the time, but when I do notice and I can’t get myself to stop, it’s highly annoying. I also get gross things stuck in my head which is why I’m very particular about the kind of horror movies I watch. Gory images can pop into my head months or even years, after I watched something and I don’t know how to get them out. (Which is where the counting comes in – it’s a subconscious way your brain distracts itself, thus not allowing any negative images to come into conscious thought.)

Anyway, it’s sounds much more worse than it is. It doesn’t actually distract from my day to day living, thankfully. But yeah, you might wanna check up on it, just in case.

Perseveration drives me batty. I find that there are a few types of perseverators:
1. The person who normally has a difficult time sustaining relationships.
2. The person who is trying to convince him/herself that his/her point is right.
3. The person who has a very difficult time listening…really listening.
4. The person who feels attacked.
5. The person who has social anxiety.

And which category might I fall in?