Birch Tree Foundation Workshops

The Birch Tree Foundation hosts a series of day-long workshops for people who stutter. The next series of workshops is anticipated in the summer of 1998. Specific dates will be announced later. Those interested should send email to Woody Starkweather or Janet Givens Ackerman, or call Woody at 215-222-4559 or Janet at 215-662-0925.

Offers a combination of Gestalt experiential therapy techniques, some of the elements of 12-step recovery programs, and some traditional speech therapy techniques in combination. The object of this workshop series is to help people work on the emotional and mental baggage that often accompanies stuttering, rather than fluency itself. Woody Starkweather has included a letter with this announcement for either speech pathologists or people who stutter who are interested in this program.

The first workshop focuses on becoming more aware of behaviors, thoughts, and feelings related to stuttering.

The second workshop focuses on increasing one's sense of self-acceptance and self-worth, particulary at the moment of stuttering but also in a more general sense.

The third workshop focuses on issues related to the person's family of origin, where many aspects of stuttering's emotional baggage become tangled up with other issues.

The fourth workshop focuses on learning how to get out of the way when natural changes, such as increased fluency, increased self-acceptance, or decreased avoidance behavior, occur.

The principles on which this approach is based are described in more detail in Stuttering, by Starkweather and Ackerman, Austin, TX: Pro-Ed Publishers, 1997.

Both of the facilitators, Woody Starkweather, a speech pathologist, and Janet Givens Ackerman, a recovered stutterer, have had experience and training in Gestalt experiential techniques and in 12-step recovery programs.

Lead by Woody Starkweather and Janet Ackerman

Consists of a series of four, 6-hour workshops

Cost -- $150 per day

Location: Philadelphia, PA

Anyone with questions can contact Starkweather at v5002e@vm.temple.edu or Ackerman at ackerman@eniac.seas.upenn.edu.



Dear Friend:

For those of you who have not heard about the Birch Tree Foundation this new approach combines three otherwise disparate elements: (1) experiential techniques from a Gestalt therapeutic approach, (2) some of the principles of 12-step recovery programs, and (3) some of the anti-avoidance techniques of traditional speech therapy.

This is an entirely new combination of approaches to stuttering therapy which seems very promising and which we are committed to developing. Consequently, we are looking for willing participants eager to explore with us new ways to apply the principles of our approach in a group therapeutic setting.

In a nutshell, we have come to summarize our approach as consisting of an ongoing three step spiral of awareness, acceptance, and change. During the first step, we will help you increase awareness of your physical self, and of the feelings and thoughts that are associated with your particular stuttering pattern. We strongly believe that stuttering is a highly individualized problem, with individual patterns of development. As a result, becoming more aware of one's own pattern of behavior, thoughts, and feelings is a first step on an individualized journey of recovery. Increasing an awareness of the problem helps to overcome the natural tendency people have to deny or minimize.

The second step consists of increasing acceptance of yourself at the moment when stuttering occurs. This is not an attempt to make you a happy stutterer. Rather it is designed to reduce struggle and avoidance behavior by accepting the reality of what is happening.

The third step allows the natural process of change to occur. Although this step is one that will likely happen spontaneously, it is often necessary to learn how not to interfere with the process -- to learn to get out of your own way.

These three steps are repeated as deeper levels of understanding and growth are developed. The approach is spelled out in somewhat more detail in our book, Stuttering, which has just been released by Pro Ed Publishers.

The fees for our workshops are low because we are still in the process of developing the approach -- $150.00 for each six hour session. We do, however, want to ensure that those who participate are fully committed for all four sessions. As a result, we are asking participants to pay for all four sessions at the outset. For those with restricted income, some financial aid may be available.

We believe this approach will be most successful with adults committed to personal growth. If you are interested in participating in these sessions, let us know at any of the addresses given below. Thank you, again, for your interest.

Sincerely,

C. Woodruff Starkweather, Ph.D., CCC-S Janet Givens Ackerman, M.A.
Directors, The Birch Tree Foundation 3615 Hamilton St.
457 Old Farm Rd., Wyncote, PA 19095
Philadelphia, PA 19144
Tel.: 215-886-0368 Tel. 215-662-0925
Fax: 215-886-0945