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From: Marija
Date: 10/17/03
Time: 10:43:53 AM
Remote Name: 195.29.102.194
Hello Mary, thank you very much for asking this question. Please note that those are MY advices based upon MY OWN experiences which may or may not appeal to all. I hope they can help you anyway. Here they are:
1. Be very, very, very patient. 2. Don't patronize. 3. Be sensitive. Start therapy with a glass of juice, asking how the day went, and the day before. The person must feel that he/she is not just another name in your schedule for the day. The way you treat him/her forms his/her attitude toward the therapy. 4. Don't talk about yourself too much. If she/he is constantly asking you to, it may be their way to try to avoid therapy. We can be pretty clever (!). Answer honestly, admit that you had a bad day - it lowers the difference that we stutterers go through agony and those fluid people have it all so darn well. 5. Don't be too soft. Some may take advantage of this. If he/she isn't giving their best, you should say "I'm not satisfied with this, are you?", or "we both know that you can do this better". 6. Don't talk about this and that guy who stuttered and made it into law practice and is fluent now, "so can you be". You know what he/she is thinking then? "Yeah, yeah... well, good for him but I'll never get there so enough about him." 7. Don't say how you just checked yourself in for a vacation on Cuba by telephone. Your stutterer just sank 100 meters below waterline and it's all dark... Plus he is assured that you do not have a clue about a PWS.
That's all that falls to mind right now; I hope it helps :o)