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From: Lynne Shields
Date: 14 Oct 2010
Time: 11:00:26 -0500
Remote Name: 68.188.68.2
Mary, Let me start off by saying that I do not stutter. So, my thoughts on this are taken from reports of clients, both teens and adults, who have elected to 'advertise' their stuttering when speaking with people they are meeting for the first time, or in any more stressful speaking situations(e.g., public speaking). Almost to a person, these folks tell me that starting off speaking by using voluntary stuttering, or by actually saying something to the effect, 'by the way, I stutter sometimes', does help them feel less stressed and more comfortable in the speaking situation. Why? They report that stuttering is now in the open, and happens on their own terms. This is preferred to wondering and worrying whether or when they will stutter when they are in a speaking situation. Most of my clients also report that they are much more comfortable talking with close friends. While they will stutter with these people, there is not as much anxiety associated with stuttering, since these speaking partners already know that the person stutters and accept that. They are often people who listen to the person's message and tend to ignore the stuttering, so it is not an issue. The comfort level may certainly vary, depending on how the known speaking partner interacts with the person and reacts to any stuttering that occurs. I suspect that you'll hear from some of those on this panel who do stutter and can give you their personal take on your questions. Regards, Lynne