The Iceberg Matrix of Stuttering

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Re: Thanks for your ideas

From: Russ Hicks
Date: 21 Oct 2005
Time: 18:45:08 -0500
Remote Name: 24.1.61.18

Comments

Hi Shawna, .... I'm glad you enjoyed the paper. I had a lot of fun writing it. .... Regarding your question about support groups, there is a paper in this conference called "Support Group Meeting Activities by Judy Kuster's Undergraduate Stuttering Class and several National Stuttering Association members." While it doesn't directly address your question, it offers quite a bit of experience about effective support groups. .... One very key ingredient to an effective stuttering support group is the involvement of legitimate professionals in the field. While they don't LEAD the group, their very presence at group meeting adds tremendous credibility to the group. At the other end of the spectrum a group which develops into an "ain't it awful pity party" is doomed to failure. You gotta have FUN at these meetings and be with people you genuinely enjoy being with. Also tenacity to keep the group going is very important too. Sometimes attendance drops to only a very few people, but just knowing that such a group exists is extremely helpful to even those people who are NOT there! And by the way, FOOD helps! Ha, ha, ha! As simple as that is, hey, it works! Our Ft. Worth SLP always brings cookies! Who cares if you stutter if you can eat cookies? Ha, ha, ha! .... Also check out the National Stuttering Association's website at www.WeStutter.org for lots of good ideas of things to do at support group meetings. There's a wealth of information on that site. .... Regarding Toastmasters, oh yes, your mom has the right idea! There are nearly 200,000 Toastmasters all over the world, and 99% of them do NOT stutter. It's a fantastic organization for personal development. You ought to get involved. You'd love it! .... Good luck in school, Shawna. I hope our paths cross some day. .... Russ


Last changed: 10/24/05