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Question For A PWS — 3 Comments

  1. The general rule would be not to finish the words or sentences of a person who stutters. But my personal advice is always to ask the person in front of you.

    Personally, I don’t get annoyed if a person tries to finish my words, because I understand that they are trying to help me. If that happens, I try to explain that it is better to give me more time.

  2. Hi Braelynn,
    I would agree with Andrea – it is a general rule that you don’t finish the words or sentences on a person who stutters. But I think its always important to ask the person you are speaking to; they then get to choose how they would like to be treated.
    I personally don’t mind if a stranger finishes my sentence but I would make my family and friends aware that I don’t like it when they do it.
    I hope that helps 🙂

  3. I believe the very large majority of people who stutter, including myself, really dislike it when someone tries to finish our sentences for us. This is really disrespectful behavior, although I understand that some who don’t stutter may think it is helpful. Please don’t do that with people who stutter.
    (And sometimes, a person will guess wrong about the word intentions of a PWS.)

    It’s my policy that when someone finishes my sentence for me, I still finish it myself – regardless of whether a person guessed right or wrong as to what I was intending to say. If this is done a number of times, the interrupting person will get the message.
    Indeed in these circumstances, I stubbornly finish the sentence, even if a conversation has moved on to other things.

    There shouldn’t be any difference between how a person who stutters is addressed or spoken to, and how a fluent person should be addressed or spoken to.
    Especially – don’t slow down or simplify language, or speak louder or more deliberately, with a person who stutters. Stuttering doesn’t affect mental capacities or hearing or language understanding.

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