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From: Tony Stewart
Date: 16 Oct 2006
Time: 15:17:03 -0500
Remote Name: 134.29.31.173
Hello John Thanks for this - very interesting indeed. You are right - can put myself into "non-stuttering" mode at any time, saying anything I like, and modulating my voice how I wish. But - it's difficult to think hard on my feet AND speak fluently at the same time. A bit like my PC having insufficient RAM and crashing as a result. Put me into a radio studio and I will not stutter either(auditory delay?). I'm always really busy, and do not spend time actively thinking about my stutter or how I can improve it. Involvement in this conference has caused me to suddenly become reflective, however. One thing I have just remembered is that when I tried hypnotherapy, my GP (family doctor) concentrated on improving my self-confidence. At the first session this worked miraculously, and I left the surgery feeling literally 9 feet tall. The effect wore off after a few days, and was not as pronounced on subsequent sessions. It does, however, occur that I seriously lack self-confidence. When I think about it, have done many things - become a health professional, consultant, professor, written 3 well-reviewed textbooks, published research and developed & led a very well regarded Masters course - all in spite of having a stutter (sorry - I'm getting too full of myself here). Yet I honestly cannot regard myself as "successful". Well, not for more than a couple of seconds. If one of my children did this, I would be immensely proud of them, and would definitely regard them as being massively successful! So perhaps finding a way of feeling better about myself, combined with some more therapy might help - though I suspect this would not be a once-and-for-all cure. Does this sound like a useful approach? Regards Tony