What is Stuttering?
We will provide two definitions:
and
Stuttering as defined by people who stutter
ASHA describes stuttering as:
People who stutter may have more disfluencies and different types of disfluencies. They may repeat parts of words (repetitions), stretch a sound out for a long time (prolongations), or have a hard time getting a word out (blocks).
Stuttering is more than just disfluencies. Stuttering also may include tension and negative feelings about talking. It may get in the way of how you talk to others. You may want to hide your stuttering. So, you may avoid certain words or situations. For example, you may not want to talk on the phone if that makes you stutter more.
Stuttering can change from day to day. You may have times when you are fluent and times when you stutter more. Stress or excitement can lead to more stuttering.
ASHA goes on further to explain typical disfluencies, and stuttering-related disfluencies:
The following typical disfluencies happen to many of us and are not stuttering:
1. Adding a sound or word, called an interjection – "I um need to go home."
2. Repeating whole words – "Cookies cookies and milk."
3. Repeating phrases – "He is–he is 4 years old."
4. Changing the words in a sentence, called revision – "I had–I lost my tooth."
5. Not finishing a thought – "His name is . . . I can't remember."
When children are learning a lot of words or new speech sounds, you may notice some of these typical disfluencies. This is normal.
The following types of disfluencies happen when someone stutters:
1. Part-word repetitions – "I w-w-w-want a drink."
2. One-syllable word repetitions – "Go-go-go away."
3. Prolonged sounds – "Ssssssssam is nice."
4. Blocks or stops – "I want a (pause) cookie."
You may also notice other behaviors like head nodding or eye blinking. Sometimes people who stutter use these behaviors to stop or keep from stuttering. They may also avoid using certain words or use different words to keep from stuttering.
People who stutter define stuttering as:
“The thing that has made me feel small countless times
A fun fact about myself
What tends to introduce itself to new people before I can properly introduce myself to them
One of my greatest teachers
The thing I wanted nothing to do with for most of my life
What makes me memorable
An embarrassing part of myself that makes me wonder if my voice is worth being heard
One of the many things that make me uniquely me”
“A mysterious condition in which my brain and my mouth decide they are not willing to work together.”
“Not feeling in control of your speech.”
“ It is an invisible disorder until I speak.”
“Stuttering, as defined by Ezra
Stuttering is a fluency disability that can have various neurological or psychical causes. It affects the speech fluency patterns - repetitions, blocks, prolongations. There is no known cure at this time. “Persistent” stuttering (if it begins between 3-5 and continues past the age of 8) is likely to last a lifetime.
Stuttering is an emotional weight that I was handed the day other people decided I would be better if I were fixed. While I enjoyed talking, other people seemed to discourage me from doing so unless I did it “fluently”. In other words, stuttering was something wrong with the way I talked. And as much as I tried to make it go away, it remained.
Stuttering is another way of speaking. Like an accent, sometimes the listener may need the speaker to repeat what they said. But otherwise, it need not have any effect on communication. Stuttering is unfortunately often misunderstood by society to mean things it doesn’t: nervousness, trauma, shyness, lying, uncertainty. It is none of these things- it is simply how some people communicate. People can be understood with a stutter and should be given equal opportunities as their non-stuttering counterpart.”