Why should I do Voluntary Stammering?

 I came across a significant question in the “Morning Circle”: What should I say to a new member in the SHG who asks: Why should I do Voluntary Stammering (VS)? Another related question is: Will VS not become a habit in the long run? Here are my thoughts, as someone who has done VS himself and taught it to others for a long time.

Why should I do VS?

Yes, you should not — if your problem is not stammering. And if stammering is not your problem, you should not be wasting your time in SHG/TISA, etc. If you have some other issue, like Social Anxiety Disorder, you should really seek help elsewhere and try other approaches — not VS.

But are you sure? Have you had a proper diagnosis from an expert?

It is also true that many of us (myself included) have spent (wasted?) many years nurturing other beliefs:

“I don’t stammer. I just hesitate on some words.”

“I don’t stammer. My throat just locks up sometimes. No sound comes out…”

“Maybe something is wrong with my throat, or tongue, or breathing. I get choked up…”

At 44, when I first went to a therapist, my “presenting complaint” was: Why do I get so tired by the evening?

The therapist was skillful, and over a two-hour discussion, he helped me understand that my real problem was stammering after all. I was juggling words to mask my stammering. I had become so good that I was masking it from the world as well as from myself! Finally, I understood that accepting this fact — that I stammered — was the only way forward. I had spent 44 years masking the problem, taking shortcuts, and finding “hacks.” Nothing had helped.

So, if you have reached this point in your search for relief, if you are convinced that stammering is your issue — then you may consider VS. You are stammering in any case. You are blocking now and then, aren’t you? Then why shy away from a little bit more of the same?

What are the advantages of VS?

If you do it with full presence of mind, you can understand what mistake is causing you to stammer: where exactly you are applying extra force; where you are wrongly moving your tongue, lips, or jaw, etc. When you understand this, you can reverse it and deal with blocks successfully. Think of it as a simulation — a reverse-engineering project.

A second benefit is even bigger: VS helps you become free of years of shame, fear, and guilt. You are able to break the old habit of negative thinking, feeling, and reacting to moments of stammering.

Second question: Will it become a habit?

No — because for habit formation, you require a system of reward (“operant conditioning”). If you begin to enjoy this act, and/or society starts to reward you every time you do VS, then maybe. But that is unlikely. Think: how does drinking coffee or smoking become a habit? You consciously do it to get the “kick.” Such a “kick” will never be in VS. In a few months’ time, you will reap the benefits and move on — on the path of better communication.

If you still have questions, join the next Lounge and ask Dr. Amit Bajaj!