How Parents Can Best Help?
I am a future SLP taking a class on stuttering and for a project to present to my peers I wanted to create a quick guide for parents regarding how they influence perception of stuttering in their children who stutter. Parents rarely have bad intentions, but sometimes their good intentions do not transfer over well in action. What were some ways that your parents encouraged and discouraged you as a child, and continue to encourage and discourage you now?
HI Lyndsay – You’ve asked a great question, but it’s a tough one to answer. Many of us believe that the parents’ views and beliefs about stuttering do indeed affect a child’s reactions to stuttering; however, the relationship is not straightforward. For that reason, it’s hard to create a “quick” guide about the topic. I don’t know how to answer your question specifically (about how parents encouraged me, etc.), but I can share with you some of how I seek to help parents look at this issue. I have a free “Practical Tip” on my Stuttering Therapy Resources site that talks about how parents can work to create healthy, appropriate attitudes toward their communication skills in young children who stutter. (You can find it at http://www.StutteringTherapyResources.com/resources)
(Note that the issue is even more complicated for school-age children, and there, the main issue that I focus on is parental acceptance of stuttering, so the parents can send positive messages to the child about speaking and stuttering. Again, much more to be said there.)
Thanks again for the question. We do indeed want to help parents provide positive support; helping them get there can be challenging, however.
J Scott Yaruss
Thank you for your reply and offer of additional resource, Dr. Yaruss! I will absolutely reference it in my continued research and do recognize the complicated nature of this question. I am aware that people have individual backgrounds and life experiences,so I am additionally interested in personal accounts so I can expose my peers to some of the wide variety of perspectives out there. It may turn out that the product of my research does not make sense as a “quick guide.” My presentation may end up being of more value as a tool for students who are learning how to counsel clients and their families, which could affect the efficacy of our treatment and ability to impact longterm quality of life in a positive way. Thanks again!