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From: Leys Geddes, British Stammering Association
Date: 22 Oct 2007
Time: 15:54:18 -0500
Remote Name: 86.142.223.143
Yes, it is tough in the real world. Only last weekend, my girlfriend and I went to a restaurant. I asked a simple question of the maitre d'hotel and he replied to my girlfriend, ignoring me completely. He was a man and she is very pretty, but that is how it has been for all of my life. I have come to expect it but, more recently, I have been asking why the hell we should accept it. Stammering is featured very infrequently in the media and, when it is covered, it tends to be dressed up as a good news story, with the emphasis often being placed on the amazing effects of a particular treatment or device. This gives the unfortunate impression that stammering can be cured fairly easily. Thus viewers will go about their lives thinking that stammering really is no problem at all. Little emphasis is placed on the fact that, firstly, these commercially available devices and treatments do no work for everyone and, secondly, they cost a lot of money. Unfortunately, in the real world, stammering is not often considered and, therefore, it is not well understood. As a result, largely through ignorance, people who stammer are still being teased, discriminated against and laughed at - although it is just as unfair and hurtful to criticise or mock people who stammer as it is the disabled or ethnic minorities. That is why, to be of real use, a feature on stammering awareness needs to show people stammering, to explain the many difficulties they face and then to discuss possible solutions. Whilst stammering in adults will hardly ever be ‘cured’, therapy can help improve fluency, confidence and communication skills. Therapy with children under the age of five, however, can be extremely effective. Thus, by adopting an Early Intervention strategy, supported by the right levels of awareness and resource, the number of people who stammer could be reduced very substantially over time. The key need, therefore, is for parents and others to be encouraged to refer children early to therapy experts and for the government to have ensured that there are enough suitably trained speech therapists to respond effectively. The result would be happier families, kids more able to achieve their ambitions and reduced long-term cost to the government and society.