Coping with Stammering
By Trudy Stewart and Jackie Turnbull - a Sheldon Press book

This is a self-help book for anyone who has a stammer, and who has questions and concerns, and things they'd like to change and cope with more confidently.

Trudy Stewart and Jackie Turnbull have worked as speech therapists for many years, and know what the real questions are. In this book they offer help and support for the issues that concern most people, including coping at work, handling phone calls, job interviews, making friends and being relaxed at parties and in other social situations.

Taking the first steps towards getting help can be the most difficult part, and Trudy Stewart and Jackie Turnbull have advice for anyone who wants to get the best.

Contents

Acknowledgements
Introduction

• What is stammering?
• Getting to know a stammer
• Why me?
• So you want to change?
• How can I help myself?
• Practical ideas
• How can I best put myself across?
• A guide to good communication skills
• How can others help me?
• Coping with difficult reactions and tricky situations
• Maintaining positive change
• Concluding remarks

Appendix 1: easy onset word practice lists
Appendix II: a relaxation routine
Further reading
Useful addresses
Index

Introduction

When writing a book such as this, the aim of which is to help other people, we need to assume we know something about our readers. Certainly we have met lots of people who stammer and have worked for many years in the area, so we do know quite a bit about stammering. One crucial thing that we have learnt is that no one individual who stammers is like another. There will be some important similarities — perhaps in the way the person stammers, the way they react to their stammer or, alternatively, the effect it has had on their life — but there will be many differences too. Because of this it is vital that we respond to those who stammer as individuals and not assume that they are all the same.

In writing this book we accept that we are unable to cater for each individual reader's concerns. However, we will aim to cover as many possibilities and eventualities as we can and ask that you consider those that apply to you, or to those you know who stammer, and skim over issues which do not apply.

Given that stammering is such an individual problem, you might feel that we are foolish to try to offer suggestions of a general nature to help people cope with it. You may be right! However, we decided we had to attempt it as many of our clients and their partners and friends asked us to recommend literature on stammering, and there seemed very little available which suited their needs. Some requested background reading as they started a course of therapy or for their partners and/or family members. Many, although stammering themselves, knew very little about the theories of stammering, how it develops, what maintains it and so on, and wanted to know more. Others wanted some information on the different types of therapy available before deciding which one was appropriate for them. Finally, we had some clients who were approaching the end of a programme of therapy and needed a book to remind them of techniques they had learnt and specific strategies to help them maintain those skills. We have considered all these issues, and include sections on background information on stammering, what it is and how it develops, how a person might approach changing their stammer, the different types of therapy available and a lot of ideas on techniques and maintenance strategies. We have also included details of some techniques which can be difficult to learn on your own. In such cases, we make it clear that it may be best to seek professional help.

Throughout the book you will find examples of the personal experiences of those who stammer. You may well find that these accounts are the most useful parts of the book. This fits very well with our belief that while we, as speech and language therapists, have some knowledge and information which facilitates change, the real source of practical help is the experience of each person who stammers. Individuals who stammer are the real experts on stammering, and we readily acknowledge that much of this book is based on what we have learnt from our clients.

About the author
Trudy Stewart and Jackie Turnbull are experienced speech and language therapists based in Leeds. They specialize in working with adults and children who stammer. They have written articles and books for professionals and a self-help book for parents of children who stammer.

They are actively involved in the British Stammering Association and in generally promoting the needs of those who stammer in the workplace and in society as a whole.