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From: Scott
Date: 18 Oct 2012
Time: 12:13:59 -0500
Remote Name: 108.17.124.241
Thanks for your posts - yes, it's sometimes difficult for parents to understand why we aren't just working on fluency in therapy. They want their children to be fluent - and who could blame them? Of course they do. The problem is just that stuttering isn't that simple... Over time, they can come to understand the true nature of stuttering and the ways in which comprehensive therapy can help children communicate more effectively and get the most out of their lives regardless of whether or not they stutter. One of the ways I like to help parents understand them is to ask them what they would like their children's lives to be like 5 years in the future... Most parents say that they want their children to be happy, healthy, able to do what they want to do in their lives, etc... Then, we can point out to them that these are exactly the goals that we're working toward in therapy - we're just not getting there the way the parents THOUGHT that we would get there. If we want the child to be happy, we work specifically on helping ensure that he's happy... if we want him to be able to say what he wants to say, we work specifically on making sure he's able to say what he wants to say, regardless of whether or not he stutters. Thus, we can show them that we are working toward the goal they really want... a happy, healthy communicator, who is never held back by stuttering... Of course, we also work on enhancing their fluency, but this is just a small part of the whole picture. As parents begin to understand this, it becomes easier for them to understand what we're doing in therapy. There's much more to say, of course, but this is the general idea... Thanks again for the questions... S