Long Island Stuttering Connection-Teen practice group

We had a great practice group last week for teens who stutter ranging in age from 10 to 17. We practiced introductions, public speaking skills and spend time getting to know one another. It was led by Lori Melnitsky, a speech pathologist who overcame a severe stuttering disorder. We are looking forward to having it again soon. Teens practiced easy onsets, breathing, connecting words together while offering encouragement and support. Of course we ate munchkins as well.

Stuttering Therapy-teletherapy

I am responding to the three calls I got this week from out of the country for fluency therapy for stuttering. I have a structured program that I run for people who can not come in for therapy. Please contact me at Lori@allislandspeech.com.

Six year old student who stutters on LI-Lidcombe program

I started treating a six year old boy several months ago for speech therapy. He stutters and had tried other therapies since age 3 with little success. Interestingly, his mother had been told that once her son reached age 6, the emotional impact of stuttering would begin. Her question was, Is the age of 6 too late to improve fluency and reduce the negative impact? My answer was absolutely not. We have done a modified Lidcombe Program and this child is doing beautifully. He responds to positive praise and his fluency has increased as well as his ability to establsh eye contact. He is starting to self correct and is speaking with increased confidence. His mom loves the parent involvement piece and emphasis on learning in a fun way. Has anyone else had success with a Lidcombe approach at the age of 6? I highly recommend it and am glad the mom pursued it.

Long Island Stuttering Story-Preschooler age 4-Lidcombe

Today I discharged a 4 year old boy from CPSE for stuttering. We followed the Lidcombe method for early childhood stuttering. It took 18 weeks and he is no longer stuttering. Parents were very involved and this program yielded great success. This child started out with whole word repetitions, part word repetitions, and avoiding eye contact. We worked on verbal praise and self correction. I highly recommend researching this program. I accept private pay and CPSE for early childhood stuttering.

To the parent of a child who stutters-

How difficult is it to watch your child struggle? It is tough. However, I have found over the many years of working with people who stutter, if you really sit back and listen to the content of what people say, you almost forget about the stuttering. Isn't it interesting that once a child feels more comfortable speaking, his or her fluency usually increases as does his or her ability to use their tools? What can parents do?

1. Let their child know they are accepted no matter what they say.
2. Establish eye contact.
3. Realize the best gift you can give your child is unconditional acceptance and love.
4. Remember all the wonderful qualities your child has.
5. Give them speech therapy.
6. Be patient with progress.
7. Surround your child with others who stutter so they don't feel alone.
8. Help them practice.
9. Hug them daily.
10.Praise them often.

Marital bliss-

Marital bliss-Does it make a difference in stuttering recovery?

Tonight I spent the evening with my parents and brother and sister n law. My father stuttered severely as a child and up until age 40 or so. I was talking to my father as my mother was involved in an intense conversation with my sister n law. I was talking to my father about a stuttering issue as I can only talk to another person who stutters. He all of a sudden inquired of my mother if his stuttering bothered her when they were dating ( he was 16, she was 14). She hesitated for a moment and said she didn't really remember. She then stated that it might of but she probably liked the fact that he let her talk. My mom is a talker. My dad become a talker in the last 15 years or so. She stated she was so happy for him that he could say what he wanted now. I was thinking that my dad never received fluency therapy. He never talked about stuttering when he was young nor did his family. His parents were immigrants. He is a pharmacist and stuttering did not impact his career or family decisions. Why not? What makes him different than others? I welcome others feedback as to why some are so affected by stuttering and others not. BTW-My parents are married over 49 years.

Stuttering Therapy on Long Island and Glee

Just curious what everyone thought of the glee episode where the girl pretended to stutter because she was shy and didn't want to make a speech in school? I would have preferred the show didn't use stuttering in this situation. I don't think it provided the public with stuttering education and knowledge. I welcome your opinions.

Also, there is a teen practice group next week. Hope all can attend. I am going to share a wonderful story of a teen who stutters entering college soon. A wonderful, inspiring story.

Long Island Stuttering -teens/Adult groups

So far four adults are willing to sign up for the adult practice groups. If you have taken prior speech therapy please call me and I will welcome you. Please e-mail me at Lori@allislandspeech.com or call 516-776-0184.

Just a tip-use easy onsets on vowels especially. Sometimes just a slight modification helps.

A 14 year old who stutters on Long Island-great strides towards fluency

I would like to share with you a great story of a wonderful 14 year old boy I work with. He gave me permission to share this. I don't want to use his real name so I will call him Dan. Dan started coming to therapy in Feb of 2009. He started stuttering at age 7 (later in life than most). His confidence was down, his eye contact not great and hesistant to talk. His stuttering was classified as moderate and he had many fears about talking in general. Dan is a very easy going, bright, handsome and athletic young man who was obvioulsy affected greatly by his stuttering. We started practicing breathing, connecting words and easy onsets. We also developed a hierarchy of feared situations. Dan did his homework daily, even though he was heavily involved in sports. He was very motivated and I am pleased to hear a high level of fluency with him. More importantly, I have seen a total transformation of confidence. Dan now answers phones, orders for himself, and talks freely with friends and family. He looks both myself and family straight in the eye when talking. We are still working on public speaking situations, which I explained are hard for everyone. He will get there. He has attended support and practice groups and talks openly about stuttering. Dan is a great role model and I am proud of him for all his hard work.

Speech Therapy on Long Island and Stuttering

How great it is to see kids and adults improve their fluency? It is so important to breathe properly and connect your words. Have you ever used a stopwatch to slow your speech down. It helps. Have you ever followed a strict schedule of practice? It helps. Have you ever had a speech therapist who stutters? It helps. Have you ever met others who stutter? It helps. Have you ever felt fluency without feeling guilty if you stutter? You can!!!

Can fluency sound natural with fluency shaping tools?

Sure, but maybe not at first and depending upon the severity of your stuttering. It is best to practice slow, exaggerated speech to FEEL the vibrations in your throat. I can't empahsize FEEL enough. "Turning on" a contrived way of speaking will not work, but feeling the whole system together will. I love that feeling of vibration in my throat and it keeps me fluent. It takes hours and hours of practice, but it works for me and many clients I treat.