My question is addressed to anyone who is willing to answer:
How has meeting other people who stutter influenced your perspective of stuttering and what advice do you have for someone who has not yet met others who stutter and may feel alone?
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Hello, Madison. Thank you for these interesting questions!
I have always greatly enjoyed meeting others who stutter – and I have literally met hundreds of others who stutter – through attendances of many regional, national, and international conferences; therapy reunions; and self-help meetings.
When I am with others who stutter, I feel that stuttering is the “norm”. Stuttering becomes expected, a way of speaking that is totally “normal” and natural. Indeed at gatherings of people who stutter, fluent speaking is the exception. The world is turned on its head in these gatherings – instead of being part of a very tiny minority, I become part of a very large majority, with almost everyone around me having the same disorder as I do.
This is a feeling of empowerment; we who stutter then combine together with unified strong self-acceptance. It is a feeling that we all speak in natural ways, in expected ways – and that we don’t have any speech difference. For me, this feeling is refreshing and exhilarating.
I look forwards to large gatherings of people who stutter!
For those who stutter who haven’t yet met someone else who stutters, I highly recommend seeking out self-help groups, and/or attending national conferences of people who stutter. It would really help change the inner spirits of people who stutter, to realize they are not alone, and that others share the same challenges as they do.
When I was a very young boy, I knew others who stuttered – one of my father’s first cousins, as well as one of my elementary school classmates. It really helped my self-acceptance and self-confidence to realize that my problem in speaking was shared by other people.
Hi Madison
I had a very hard time as a kid who stuttered. I was told stuttering was wrong, and life would be meaningless as I was a failure, I was bullied, until I tried to give up. Things changed when I met the right people. A boss who told me I was doing a good job. A boyfriend who told me I was a great person. At the age of 27… I found a broschure about the stuttering support group. Wait, what?? Are there others?? From that moment on I never stopped talking and found my self worth. Meeting other PWS who have great lives, from all corners of the world, who pulled me up and challenged me to expand my comfort zones, while being there for me while doing this, helped me to find myself, my personality and my skills. And I’m so happy I can pay it forward to the next generation, and see them pay it forward themselves.
Show the way to meet others who stutter, like camps, meetings, chat groups, game groups, in-person and online events. But also group therapy to proof they are not alone and can support each other. Let him/meet other adults who stutter. Bring a friend into the therapy room and let them do homework together. But… add fun!! When it’s fun, it’s more likely to continue, and to open up. To find you’re not alone can literally save lives.