[ Contents | Search | Next | Previous | Up ]
From: Alan Badmington (to Laura)
Date: 19 Oct 2005
Time: 16:58:40 -0500
Remote Name: 81.77.249.148
Hi Laura, I was delighted to receive your response. Personally, I believe that (in the majority of cases) it is necessary to adopt a holistic approach to stuttering (that is, to deal with the whole self). I feel that the use of techniques, in isolation, is unlikely to be sufficient in many instances. Quite obviously, one would not generally expect children to have accumulated as much emotional baggage (fear, shame, frustration, anger, guilt etc) as those who have stuttered over a lengthy period of time. In fact, such baggage may not even be present where the children are very young. During my lifetime of stuttering, I was subjected to a huge amount of disappointment, frustration and heartache. Inability to participate in school and social activities; reduced opportunities for advancement at work; lack of success in relationships etc can have a hugely detrimental effect upon one's self-esteem, confidence and personal growth. (I should stress that most of these did not apply to me) ;-) Behaviours can also become much more engrained as time progresses. In answer to your second question - Yes, I have seen the approach that I used work successfully for many other PWS. However, it should be appreciated that every PWS is unique. What works for one may not necessarily be applicable (or successful) for another. We are all different. Laura, I wish you every success with your studies and future employment. Kindest regards Alan