A Manual for Stuttering Therapy

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A Manual for Stuttering Therapy
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Definitions

• Hesitations Football Practice is um- um-
• um tonight
• Blocks He rode his .........................bike
  .
• Repetitions I ha-ha-ha-have a cat.
• Prolongations I can go tomor-r-r-r-ow.

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What is difficult for you?

• Sounds

• Situations

S KL
BT ND
AG ER
____M ____P
____

• Talking on the telephone
• Answering questions in class
• Meeting strangers
• Talking to Boys/Girls
• Talking with older people
• ______________________________
• ______________________________

4
Do you use the following tricks?

• Blinking your eyes
• Twisting your mouth
• Gasping for breath
• Snapping your fingers
• Tightening your fists
• Pounding the table
• Jerking your head
• Clenching your teeth
• Pushing your tongue
• Others.

5
Which of these describes how you feel?

• I guess the worst thing about stuttering is the
  feeling about being helplessly stuck. Its that
  your mouth wont move. My tongue feels jammed. I
  try to break it open, but its glued shut. Its a
  terrible feeling of being helpless.
• What I hate the most about it is that I cant
  control myself. My mouth seems to just run away.
  I start to say a word and I start to repeat the
  first sound and I cant stop. It just keeps
  jumping my lips or my jaw

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• I feel it most in my throat and stomach. Its
  like a heavy pressure or straining to get
  something out that wont come. The harder I press
  the tighter Im wedged.
• When I stutter I feel nervous, jittery first,
  then scared. Im scared Ill get stuck or make
  faces or be unable to talk at all. Its the fear
  thats the worst.
• Its a mixture of being rattled and being
  ashamed. And being mad at myself or even hating
  the guy who is watching me with that funny look
  on his face.
• How do I feel when I stutter? I feel rotten. I
  feel like a fool, an idiot. I fell unclean. I
  feel like I smear the conversation, spoil it for
  everyone, me included.
• I try not to feel anything. I just pretend Im
  not stuttering and I forget it just as quickly as
  I can. I try to ignore it, let it go and think
  about something else. The more I think about it
  the worse I feel, so I just try to do something
  else. But it is hard to do and I usually think
  too much about it afterwards.

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What do you expect from speech class?

• Nothing
• 3 pink pill to cure quickly
• A chance to talk to someone who might understand
• Grief and trouble
• A chance to talk without being clobbered

• Reduce my fear of speaking
• Stop stuttering
• Get some confidence
• Understand what is wrong and what I can do
• Have some nosey teacher butting into my private
  affairs

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What are the best reasons to be in speech class?

• I want to be cured of my stuttering because other
  kids make fun of me
• I dont want to stutter anymore
• I think if I changed my speech, my grades would
  be better
• Im in speech class because My teacher said I
  needed to come
• I dont know why Im here, my stuttering doesnt
  bother me
• I want to stop stuttering because I want to be a
  coach
• My parents want me to stop stuttering
• I want to talk like other kids
• Others

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What is the hardest for you to know?

• Your words and sounds
• Hardest speaking situations
• Avoiding situations increase fear
• How you hide your stuttering
• Struggling makes it worse
• Which speech is stuttering free
• You stutter differently at different times
• Figure out your feelings and how to control them
• How to handle yourself intelligently

Bruce Willis
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Agree or Disagree

• When visiting a friend, chose a game that
  requires little talking.
• A boy will struggle more with his speech when
  talking to a girl.
• When he thinks he will stutter, a boy should
  boost his courage by telling himself he wont.
• A boy should answer a question in class even if
  he thinks he will stutter.
• A girl who stutters should expect to stutter in
  every situation.
• If a boy is teased, he should hit the kid teasing
  him.
• A girl who stutters should try to hide it from
  her boyfriend.
• A student will stutter the same way when speaking
  and reading.
• A boy may talk to his dog without stuttering

• A boy should hide stuttering by saying easy words
  for a word he will stutter on.
• A girl who stutters should let someone else in
  her family answer the phone.
• A boy at a party should sit quietly and not talk
  to the girl he is with because he may stutter.
• A stutterer should ask for things to do in the
  class that require little talking.
• When giving a book report, one should talk slowly
  to put off saying a word he will stutter on.
• When eating dinner, one should switch a word she
  may stutter on.
• When introducing someone and may stutter, hold
  out sounds and say ah-ah until he can get the
  word out.

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Taming your StutteringYour most important goal
is to learn to control and eliminate your
stuttering moments

• Learning to attack hard words in a normal way
• Learning to change your stuttering so that it
  will become less and less normal for you
• Learning how to decrease fear of words and
  situations
• Learning to strengthen your normal speech
• Handling the feelings you have
• Increasing self-confidence (p.11-15)

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Touching stuttering is like touching a snake for
the first time

• It took lots of courage and I was surprised that
  it didnt feel slimy and slippery like I thought
  it would and that it was really dry. It took a
  while before I could really handle a snake
  without any fear, but after the first time it got
  easier and easier.

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Here is what some have said. But before you
begin, guess how many words you will stutter on.

• The best part about licking my stuttering is
  that Ive got all the self-confidence in the
  world now- maybe too much. Im always arguing and
  sticking up for my rights. But I feel if I could
  lick that stuttering I could lick anything. Its
  a good feeling. 48

14

• My name is John and I am a stutterer that is, I
  used to be a stutterer. Cant remember when I
  started stuttering. I never did much with my Dad.
  In fact, he hardly ever talked to me. When I was
  thirteen I started in speech class. At first I
  didnt know if I would like it or not. Would it
  do me any good? But I gave it a try. I remember
  the first day. I was scared. I didnt know what
  was going to happen. Well, it turned out okay. I
  am glad I went. My clinician understood my
  problem and me. That was something new! I worked
  hard and at times I felt like giving up. Now my
  speech is good, except for once in a great while.
  I know what to do and to control it. It is great
  to be able to say what you want to and not feel
  embarrassed or ashamed or guilty. 160

15

• I did it! I died a hundred times but that wasnt
  anything compared to what I felt before I started
  working on my stuttering. Now I am free! Free to
  talk when and how I please. 36
• Ive been talking fine now for three years, and
  Ive just about forgotten how it feels to be a
  stutterer. I dont think of it. Im not afraid to
  talk now, anywhere. I used to be afraid of
  strangers. I was shy around girls. Now things are
  really different. 49

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Think About This Statement

• No one has to tell you how to talk WITHOUT
  stuttering. You already know that. What you do
  not know is what to do WHEN YOU GET STUCK or
  become afraid to talk.