Getting Help With Stammering

Stammering (clinically referred to as dysphemia) is a form of speech defect concerned with an involuntary action of repeating or prolonging of syllables or words. For example, when a person pronounces the word “stop” but instead says it like, “sssssstop” or “ssstt-sstt-sttop,” that is stammering.

Naturally, the condition is frustrating for the patient as it not only hampers his/her ability to communicate well, it also opens him/her to perceptions that he or she is slow and stupid. There is no direct link between stammering and mental capacity. Studies show that speech defects like stammering are usually brought on by bad speech habits developed in childhood.

Can stammering be cured?

The answer is an overwhelming yes. Since the condition is primarily caused by habit, given enough time bad habits can be unlearned and replaced with the proper ones leading to correct speech.

How can you get help?
- If you (or someone you know) stammer, consult with a speech pathologist.
This is so that proper assessment of the condition can be made and verified whether stammering is the problem. The speech pathologist will have you read aloud a series of sample sentences or paragraphs, which is usually recorded for further analysis.

- Next a speech therapist will prescribe a series of exercises to correct the defect.
It’s been discovered that stammering is not merely a speaking defect but one that involves listening as well. So listening exercises may very likely be prescribed alongside breathing and relaxation exercises in addition to the ones for speech called oral motor exercises.

How can you help yourself?
- When working with a speech therapist, you may need to make several and frequent visits at the beginning of the treatment, which tapers off towards the later part as improvements set in. But the exercises should continue and be done diligently even outside these visits.

- Experts recommend that the minimum duration in treating stammering is 3 months of consistent therapy. To ensure permanency of results, six months to a year is prescribed.

- The optimum age in carrying out speech therapy is around the ages of 15 and 25. This is because young children may forget what has been learned and revert while older adults may have difficulty unlearning established habits.

Finally, there is nothing wrong with asking for positive reinforcement from friends, family and co-workers when you undergo the measures to cure stammering. It’s only right to do so and those who respect you will only be too willing to help you.

With patience, diligence and some time, the problem of stammering can be solved leading to a fuller and more productive life for you and everyone around you.

Stammering And Stuttering

Stammering or as it is sometimes known as stuttering is a form of speech impediment.

My name is Stephen Hill and I had a stammer for eighteen years. I went to various types of speech therapy which even though was of some use, never really offered me any hope of a "cure".

At the age of twenty two, after a lot of hard work I managed to overcome the stammer and I now help other people to achieve fluency.

These are the types of situation that I found that I was most likely to stammer:

Ordering food and drink at a bar
Phone calls
Introducing people
Meeting new people
Talking when under pressure
Talking when tired or stressed

On my first day at senior school, all of the first year pupils were shown to their form room, including myself. The teacher, who was to be our form teacher, introduced himself and welcomed us to the school.

He then said
"OK class, I have introduced myself. I don't know any of you in here and most of you won't know each other. So what I would like you first of all to do, is to stand up and tell me your name and which junior school you used to attend."

He asked somebody on the front row to start, but because I was hiding at the back of the room, I would end up being one of the last people to speak. This was not a good thing as it meant I had a lot of time to worry about it. When my time arrived to speak, I could not even get one word out, it was most humiliating.

This is one of many bad days I had during the time when stammering was ruining my life.

Now that I am able to talk without the fear of stammering, life has become far less of a struggle. It is like having a weight lifted from my shoulders. Helping other people who stammer is very rewarding. One lady arrived on my speech course last year extremely nervous, her husband attended as well as support for her. During and after the course she worked very hard and a few months later she sent me a card through the post. In the card she thanked me for all of the help I had given her and also for the support after the course (she would e-mail and phone me around twice a week). She stated that she had improved tremendously and had very nearly achieved her goal of fluency. Then she stated though that her husband now hated me as she now never shuts up. This put a smile on my face.

The Effects Of Having A Stutter

If you have difficulties with your speech, you are not alone. Latest figures state that over one percent of people in the UK suffer with a stutter or stammer. This article describes the effects that stuttering can have on a persons life.

I am somebody who has overcome a stutter or what some people call a stammer that had basically ruined my life for eighteen years. Stuttering affects people in different ways, however these were the aspects of life I found difficult:

Introducing people

Ordering food or drinks

Speaking on the telephone

Attending interviews

Trying to attract a girlfriend

Socialising with friends or family

In general the stutter made me accept second best in life and made life a huge struggle. I found stuttering a disability and was forever looking for ways at beating the stutter.

People who knew me including family and friends were not really aware of how the stutter affected my life and were quite shocked when I eventually told them.

I attended speech therapy from the age of four or five. My attitude was possibly not what it should have been, in my own mind I always believed that they could not truly understand what I was going through as thay themselves had never had a stutter. The therapy included group and one-to-one treatment and lots of advice to speak slowly and to take deep breaths.

I never accepted that I would have the speech impediment for life and aged twenty-two decided that I would attempt to achieve fluency. I was very lucky as I had superb support from my family and friends. This was vital as these were the people I spent hours practicing the techniques I had learnt.

I spent about six months working out the techniques and it took another five months to make these techniques a natural part of my speech.

As a career I now help other people to achieve fluency by running one to one speech courses which are based in Birmingham. People leave the course with a dvd and a written booklet which act as a reminder of what to do. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me at info@stammering-stuttering.co.uk

What Causes People To Develop A Speech Impediment?

I am one of many people who are unfortunate enough to develop a speech impediment in childhood. This article describes why these impediments may occur and how I went about achieving fluency. For the purpose of this article, I concentrate on the speech impediment known as stuttering.

There are many reasons why people may develop a stutter, it can be as a result of bullying from school, an over aggressive member of the family, a shock reaction to an event such as a car crash, or it could be passed down from another member of the family who has a stutter.

I have met many people who stutter as I now help people to achieve fluency as a career. I always ask them to talk about how and why their stutter started. The reasons above are the type of answers I receive.

Stuttering normally originates in childhood and nine out of ten people who stutter are men. Around 1% of the population has a stutter according to recent reports.

I have now managed to beat my stutter which had basically ruined my life for eighteen years. When I had a stutter, I found it difficult to say certain words beginning with certain letters. I would always avoid these words or I would think of an alternative word to say.

Aged twenty-two I decided it was time to try to overcome my communication problems. I started to observe what I called very good fluent talkers, I was watching and trying to work out how they were talking and breathing. I also tried to find differences between their speech and my own. I also started to read books about things like, positive thinking and mind over matter as I also realised I needed to change the way I was thinking.

After nearly a year of working and practicing very hard, I managed to overcome my stutter, much to my relief. As a career I now help other people to achieve fluency by running one to one speech courses from my home in Birmingham. A also offer a self help ebook and seventy minute dvd for people who are unable to attend the courses.

The gift of fluent speech

There are many people in the world who have problems with their communication. In this article I concentrate on the specific speech impediment called stuttering.

Why do people stutter?

There are many reasons people may develop a stuttering problem:

A traumatic event such as the loss of a relative

Someone in the family such as a parent may have had a stutter

The person who has a stutter may have copied a friend at say school who has a stutter and then it has resulted in them also stuttering

An over aggressive relative telling the person to spit their words out etc.

A while ago I had a female client who told me how she had developed a stutter. She was fluent until the age of twenty four. At this age she became pregnant for the first time, she was very happy and excited about the prospects about becoming a mother.

She was apprehensive about the birth and her friends had been winding her up telling her how painful the experience is. She knew that they were only teasing and tried to keep relaxed.

The day of the birth arrived and unfortunately the delivery was particulary hard and she was extremely shocked about how bad it actually was. After the birth of the baby, who was a healthy boy she developed the stutter.

Not all people who stutter have it from an early age, another one of my clients was fluent until the age of nineteen. At this age he had a car crash and this was the trigger to him starting to stutter.

Stephen Hill