REASONS FOR DOING SPEECH THERAPY TO OVERCOME STAMMERING

I received many such a following questions from the members and seek my opinion.

1. I am talking well with my parents and friends, but stammering with strangers. How to talk well with strangers? 

2. I am having lack of confidence in facing interviews, thus stammering and get rejected. How to face interviews? 

3. It's very difficult to give seminar and presentation. What is the way out? 

4. It's difficult to pronounce words beginning with vowels for some pws; for some pws some other letters. Are there any tips? 


5. I am stammering less in mother tongue, and more in English. What can I do? 

6. How to use Prolongation and bouncing techniques in the real speaking situations?

7. I am low at my confidence? How can I gain more confidence? 

I can give the following suggestions:

1. While talking to the strangers, take a deep breath and start speaking; use your head movements and start speaking. Then, you will speak well. 

2. While attending interview, you think "This job is not worth for my qualifications. Even they offer, I won't accept this offer. I will get better offer later on. It's just like 'practicing' interviews for future attending interviews, etc... etc..."  Then, you can speak well in the interviews. 

3. While speaking in seminars and while giving presentation, you think that "you are the only intelligent person present there and all  others were stupid. " Then, you can speak well. 

4. To pronounce difficult words, you very well know that you are going to stammer on the particular word, and hence simply use bouncing technique. 

5. To speak with less stammering in English, improve your vocabulary so that you can easily substitute with another easy word. 

6. You can practice Prolongation and bouncing techniques at home, and then apply in the real speaking situations. 

7. To increase your confidence level use Prolongation and bouncing techniques in the real speaking situations without any shame and fear, join in toast master club, stutter voluntarily as much as possible and read as many books on self-development and positive attitude books. You will become more confident personality. 

But, alas none of the above suggestions could be implemented practically by most of the pws and get the desired result ie speaking without stammering. 

By following the above suggestions, you might have accepted your stammering whole heartily, you could have got rid of fear and shame; you could have gained more confidence but what about your fluency in your speech. 

I request the readers to keep it in mind that, while reading my following opinions it is generally applicable to majority of pws. Though one or two pws here & there might have improved their speech by following the above suggestions (even those pws might be mild stammerers and not severe ones). But the opinions given below will be applicable to majority of pws. 

I applied all the above techniques except attending interview, where luckily I got a government job without facing interview . 

Yes, I had given one speech at Chennai Toast Masters club for about 10 minutes using maximum body language with only 2 or 3 blocks. Everyone appreciated and at that time, I felt that I was standing on top of the world. But in the very next day, back to square one ie stammered as usual. 

I applied voluntary stammering, Prolongation and bouncing techniques frequently. Though I got rid of my maximum fear and shame, but my fluency level increased a little bit only. 

I have read lots of self -development and positive attitude books. While reading, I was able to get some more confidence . But after completing it, the same story continued. Yes, back to usual stammering. 

Then, what is the reason for stammering and ways to come out of it. Then I started believing there is some other problem in our body system, which preventing us speaking normally.

This may be due to minor neurological problem by default with all pws, which is not coordinating correctly between our brain and speech mechanism. 

For the fear of stammering speech, pws speaks little only and not using their speech mechanism to the fullest extent.  Because of less usage of speech mechanism over the years, the speech mechanism get "RUSTED", that’s all the speech mechanism muscles become tough. Only if we use the speech mechanism to the full extent, like opening of our month fully, articulation of tongue and jaw muscles, give more stress to each syllable of a word so that we can  pronounce each word, which in turn a whole sentence clearly. 

As we know, sound is formed while exhaling air through mouth while speaking using speech mechanism. Some pws were telling that they could not pronounce certain words without stammering like words starting with vowels etc...  Even normal persons finding it difficult to pronounce correctly certain words due to certain minor problem in their speech mechanism by default. 

As words are combination of sounds only, if we use our speech mechanism properly, we can speak any words, any languages fluently. 

Because of the above reasons "Acceptance" of stammering is also not helping us in improving a pws speech fluency. Before a few months back, I was also of the opinion that acceptance alone was sufficient to overcome stammering. But it was not correct. 

In the present competitive world, a pws need fluency to get better job and to get good spouse . May be those who are living in small towns and villages, mere acceptance is sufficient for their living. But, not for those who are living in big cities. 

Suppose, a pws says in an interview " Sir, I am very intelligent but stammering only. But, I accepted my stammering whole heartily and there is no shame and fear with me. It you give me an opportunity, I will discharge my duties to the best of my abilities even with my stammering". Will the employer gave the job to the pws? . Certainly not, unless the pws was outstanding in his profession. 

Before coming to overcome our stammering problem, first we have to understand what  wrongs  pws were doing while stammering? They were always in a hurry to speak or reply immediately (due to that minor neurological defect) with short of breath. How we have to do to correct it? The only solution is practicing speech therapy. Because speech therapy is 100% PHYSICALl exercise which requires sustained PHYSICAL hard work only. All other techniques relates to mind control / or mind alteration which are easier said than done. To my opinion, controlling of mind by 90% pws is highly impossible.

Then, how come the speech therapy alone address the above issues? 
This speech therapy consists of the following activities. 

1. Breathing exercise to expand lungs capacity.

2. Exercising speech mechanism to the maximum extent. 

3. By giving more stress to each syllable, maximum tongue articulation also used. 

4. By head movements, the pws will get relaxed and feel fully charged after the practicing session.

This speech therapy has to be practiced one hour daily for a minimum period of one year. This therapy is like charging battery daily. If you charge battery daily, it will work. Similarly, if you practice speech therapy daily, you will speak well. One hour is a must because, after 20 minutes practice only, the actual rhythm and mood of practice will come. 

The progress can be ascertained in the following ways:

1. 1st 15 days, some pws may stammer more. Because the mind would not allow us easily from our normal mode of speech to a another different mode of speech.

2. The improvement can be noticed after 2 months only. 

3. From 2 to 4 months, you can speak fairly well upto 12 noon. With mild stammering from 12noon to 4pm. Afterwards as usual stammering speech. 

4. From 4 to 6 months, the  corresponding timings extended  up to 2pm, 5pm and after 7pm respectively.

5. From 6 to 9 months, up to 4pm, 7pm and after 9pm.

6. From 10 to 12 months,  up to 7pm, 10pm and after 10pm.
7. After one year 24X7 stammering free speech.

I have started my  practice from 1^st January,2014. Now, I have almost overcome 98% of my stammering (with daily practicing only). I proposed to practice till the end of thisn year. Now ,I am also pausing while speaking without my knowledge. Before practicing my feared words were those starting with the sound thi like three,  Tirupathi etc.

 Now, I can able to say these words comfortably. For the last 10 days, I can also able to tell my name calmly, slowly and authoritatively with any anybody without stammering. These are all the results of speech therapy.