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From: Cheryl E. Smith, East Carolina University Graduate Student
Date: 10/18/01
Time: 4:02:38 PM
Remote Name: 66.26.186.103
Mr. Hicks, I enjoyed your article about Shady Trails and I have a couple of questions for you. First, you said in your article that there was "no regard for any of the psychological aspects of stuttering at Shady Trails" and that there was never a formal discussion of "openness and acceptance" in regards to stuttering. My question is, did you discuss these aspects of stuttering with fellow campers and cabin mates informally, even though it was not a structured part of the therapy you received there? If so, do you think that it helped you in accepting stuttering as a part of your life? If not, why do you think that these topics were avoided? Second, after realizing that your four summers at Shady Trails did not help your stuttering, would you still reccommend the camp to others in your position, provided that it still existed? If so, what would you tell them to expect to gain from going to the camp? Third, do you still believe that the reason you stutter is because you "don't want it bad enough" or that "you aren't working hard enough" to change your speech? Thank you for taking the time to respond. - Cheryl E. Smtih