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From: Russ Hicks
Date: 17 Oct 2008
Time: 06:24:14 -0500
Remote Name: 70.104.19.41
Hi Jennifer, You've nailed the point of the paper EXACTLY! The more you really KNOW a person who stutters, the better stuttering therapist you're going to be in the future. And if you can have fun in the process, hey, nothing wrong with having fun, is there!? ...... Regarding your question about the NSA, what we offer is understanding and support, not any form of direct therapy. And that in itself can be a little unexpected for first timers to our organization. It's common for an initial reaction to be something like, "Hey, I want to learn how to STOP stuttering, not how to accept it!" While there ARE those who really do outgrown their stuttering later in life, that's extremely rare. (Senator Joe Biden is a perfect example of this.) But to the vast majority of people who haven't outgrown it by their early teens, that just isn't going to happen. And once that person realizes it - emotionally, not just intellectually - the more he or she will realize that stuttering does NOT have to govern your entire life and limit what you can do. You CAN learn to communicate very effectively and do whatever you want in life. The role models in the NSA provide proof of that, but it does take time for that to sink in. And couple NSA support with good professional therapy, and you really do have a winning combination! Hooray! .... I wish you the best in school and in your career, Jennifer. I hope our paths cross some day! .... Russ