How to add a separate thread in Python to avoid delays in the app?

I am developing a very simple game in Python.

In the game, when player hits the bouncing ball, I call a function named sayThis() that sends a GET or POST to a remote API located in my computer like below:

def sayThis(param):   
    try:
       api_url = param
       #param is here : http://localhost:54300/apistomach/say?text=great&blocking=true
       response = requests.post(api_url)
       response.json()
    except:
       print("service error occurred! check API connection ")

And within the game code where I call the sayThis() function:

while contGame: #a flag to continue the game 
   if (#conditions here)
      sayThis("http://localhost:54300/apistomach/say?text=great&blocking=true")

The code works well but when I get this line, the game pauses for more than a second (sometimes more) and waits the response from the API. This is frustrating because the game freezes.

How can I fix this problem?

For example, how can I create a second thread and call (run) this thread only "when the player can hit the ball (scores a point)?

PS: I developed my game in one file main.py.

Thank you

I would start a second process (you may even get away with a thread which is even lighter weight) and leave it running. It can block, waiting for messages and say them when they arrive, then go back to waiting for the next. The main program then only has to send a quick message rather than wait for a slow, synchronous API.

#!/usr/bin/env python3

from multiprocessing import Process, Queue

def announce(q):
    # This runs as a separate process, waiting for messages and announcing them
    print('[ANNOUNCER] Started')
    while True:
        # Block, waiting for messages to announce
        message = q.get()
        if message is None:
            break

        print(f'[ANNOUNCER] Received: {message}')
        # Your API call goes here
        api_url = xxx
        response = requests.post(api_url)

  print('[ANNOUNCER] done')

if __name__ == "__main__":

    # Create a queue to pass messages to announcer process
    q = Queue(8)

    print('[MAIN] Started')

    # Create and start announcer process
    announcer = Process(target=announce, args=(q,))
    announcer.start()

    # Run your existing main program here
    for _ in range(10):
        # Put a message in the queue to be announced
        q.put("message")

    # Tell announcer we are finished and it should exit
    q.put(None)

    # Wait for it to exit
    announcer.join()
    print('[MAIN] ended')

Sample Output

[MAIN] Started
[ANNOUNCER] Started
[ANNOUNCER] Received: message
[ANNOUNCER] Received: message
[ANNOUNCER] Received: message
[ANNOUNCER] Received: message
[ANNOUNCER] Received: message
[ANNOUNCER] Received: message
[ANNOUNCER] Received: message
[ANNOUNCER] Received: message
[ANNOUNCER] Received: message
[ANNOUNCER] Received: message
[ANNOUNCER] done
[MAIN] ended