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From: Peter Louw
Date: 04 Oct 2012
Time: 04:24:58 -0500
Remote Name: 196.23.48.58
Dear Dr Bohnen, many thanks for your interesting and stimulating article. I am not a speech pathologist, but as a PWOS (Person Who Occasionally Stutters) I have been much helped by fluency-shaping techniques focused on vocal-fold management (slowed first syllable, passive airflow, softer speech, stress management etc.). I suspect that the larynx is where the cause of stuttering will ultimately be found, and that somehow the muscles of the vocal folds malfunction due to some kind of tension hypersensitivity. Have you found signs of the vocal folds "freezing" or "locking" (whether open, partly open or closed) due to stress, thus creating the primary block resulting in eg. repetitions or prolongations? This premise has helped me much in understanding stuttering and working toward improved speech. Many thanks for your important work as I humbly think that you are working in the right direction in studying the larynx. Kind regards and looking forward to your reply.