[ Contents | Search | Post | Reply | Next | Previous | Up ]
From: Vince Vawter
Date: 10 Oct 2011
Time: 18:58:12 -0500
Remote Name: 67.187.126.12
I admire you. I have known both therapists who stutter and therapists who don't. Both can be effective, but perhaps the speech therapist who stutters brings a little more "skin" to the game. On my ideas concerning stuttering modification versus fluency shaping, I do have a strong opinion, but I always need to preface my remarks by saying I have no speech therapy training. My expertise only comes from 60 years on the journey towards fluency. I think a fluency shaping program is certainly the way to go for children and teens, especially teens. I think young people who have not been imprinted for decades with irregular speech are the best candidates for fluency shaping. I was 39 when I attended an intensive fluency shaping program, and I felt fluency there for the first time. As I said earlier, if I had gone through that as a teen, I'm sure I would be the NBC news anchor instead of Brian Williams. Just kidding, Brian. Speech modification therapy may make sense for older people who stutter. I think either one will work if the client and the clinician are committed to it. If I had to pick one, put me down for fluency shaping starting with 2-second syllables.