Things I Learned from Therapy

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Things I Learned from Therapy

From: Dave Williams
Date: 17 Oct 2009
Time: 17:37:28 -0500
Remote Name: 98.219.124.61

Comments

I've never read a more sensitive, thoughtful account of what a stutterer learned from therapy than this one. Pam is a mature stutterer who 'came out of the closet' three years ago, after a lifetime of trying to avoid and conceal her stuttering. She has taken to professional therapy and self-therapy like a parched desert wanderer takes to an oasis. She has made great progress in her search for improvement, and she describes her conclusions in this detailed analysis of her interactions with her clinician. I agree with everything she says with one exception. She states: "What we talk about in the therapy room should always be the client's choice." She backs up her assertion with some logical points, but at another place she describes how she initially resisted the use of voluntary stuttering ("faking"). She could not accept the clinician's explanation of the value of pretending to stutter, but this necessary discussion had to be the clinician's choice, not Pam's. I certainly agree that anything important to the client should be explored by both people, and never disregarded by the clinician. It's just a matter of timing. All in all, this is a splendid article. Congratulations, Pam!


Last changed: 10/17/09