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From: Prakhar Sachan
Date: 06 Oct 2006
Time: 08:36:20 -0500
Remote Name: 202.141.136.155
Hi Sarah, You ask: >>”I was intrigued to know what you do prior to seminars and lectures for your career when you get nervous or feel you will begin to stutter? Do you have any speech therapy techniques that will calm your nerves?”<< There are many aspects to handle nervousness and apprehension associated with seminars, or interviews. One of the simple things is to pay attention to my breath. As with everyone, whenever I'm nervous my breath would tend to be shallow and random. I'd consciously start breathing abdominally, in a rhythm. Say, I'd breathe in till a count of 4, and breathe out till a count of 6. There are many alternatives to this as well. Another approach is, breathing in from the nose, and breathing out from the mouth, imagining/visualizing that all the tension etc is draining away on the out-breath. In addition to making one calm, breath consciousness adds to present moment awareness. In regards to speech therapy techniques, breathing abdominally aids in Valsalva control (Ref: Understanding and Controlling Stuttering – A Valsalva Hypothesis, by William D. Parry). “Phonation” and “easy onset” are helpful strategies as well. Another very important aspect, although a long term one, is paying attention to mental image and inner dialog. I remember, when I was in high school, if I had an oral presentation coming up, I'd start “thinking” about it weeks in advance. And what would I “think”? I'd create mental images of myself stuttering, and “failing” miserably. This would result in negative emotions, which would further fuel up nervousness, anxiety, apprehension etc.. A better approach is feeding to my brain what I want, NOT what I don't want. It's not as if this would guarantee me results, but this is the BEST thing I could do. There is so much to elaborate on all this, but, I think I have conveyed the essence of everything. If not, do let me know. In short, I believe, in my case dealing with stuttering and associated symptoms calls for an holistic approach. Since I mentioned such an approach, another thing which just occurred to me (although not directly related) is to go for a morning jog. It has been widely documented that jogging is associated with the release of “feel good” hormones called endorphins. Besides staying in shape, feeling good and energetic, reduction in stress levels etc, by jogging or any other related form of physical activity breathing abdominally comes naturally. Thanks for commenting on my article! Best wishes, Prakhar