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From: Judy Kuster
Date: 10/12/03
Time: 8:52:32 PM
Remote Name: 65.29.28.137
Gert,
There was a time here in the US where the feelings between the self-help movement and the professionals was, what shall I say, "tense." A lot of that came from our not communicating with each other and because of our expectations of each other. Some slps felt frustrated because they discovered they were not able to "cure" stuttering and some people who stutter seemed to have a lot of anger that SLPs didn't have all the answers. In the past 10-15 years, a lot of that attitude has dissipated and we understand each other better BECAUSE we are communicating with each other. This conference is a small example of that. Personally I credit a lot of the change to the community of people who stutter, who although they are frustrated, and some are even angry that slps can't "fix" everything, have welcomed professionals to join them in their support organizations. Maybe a first step would be to invite the professor to your support group meetings and to any national conferences you have. Enlist her support with her knowledge, too. Try not to create an adversarial atmosphere that pushes into a defensive mode -- trying to defend her field, her training, her ideas because of strong ideas people in the self-help organizations have as well.
Judy Kuster