The Nassau/Suffolk Long Island Stuttering Connection

Please help me connect people who stutter on Long Island. Please join NSLIStutteringConnection@yahoogroups.com. For those of you don't know, I am a speech pathologist who specializes in stuttering therapy for children and adults who stutter. I overcame a severe stuttering disorder myself. Any questions, please e-mail me at Lori@allislandspeech.com.

Intensive therapy offered this summer. Please inquire.

SpeechEasy follow up provider

Just wanted to let everyone know I am a Janus SpeechEasy follow up provider and have been for about 2 years.
While I am not a direct provider, I am certainly available for follow up therapy and practice.

Fluency Shaping tools leading to increased fluency-it works!!

I have known many people who have benefited from fluency therapy with intensive fluency shaping courses. Besides me, I know other SLPs, an airline pilot, a nurse, a doctor, a DJ, musician and many others. It does take hard work, practice, and joining a practice group. It is great to have control. Some people think they sound different using slower prolonged type speech. You do!!!! But so what? If you can speak with less tension and stutter less, why not try it? It may not be for everyone, but it has worked for so many in my practice!!! I can also tell you after using it for so many years myself and working on reducing feared situations, I don't have to exxagerate as much anymore but I actually embrace feeling in control!! I try and offer some intensives over the summer and with enough interest I can offer groups!!!! Please contact me for more information-Lori@allislandspeech.com
www.allislandspeech.com

Can adults who stutter be helped after years of failed therapy?

Hi all-
It's been a busy time of year so I apologize for not being in touch. I have received many calls from teens and adults lately who have felt they were failed by therapy. I understand their hesitance in trying new approaches or wanting to shell out more money in this tough economy. So why are so many us filled with anger or even more upsetting, why have so many of us given up on speech therapy? I went to a conference the other night. They talked about acceptance but very little speech therapy. Why??? Why has the pendulum swung so far the other way that effective speech therapy wouldn't be presented? I guess only those of us who stutter know why.

First, let's remind anyone reading this that stuttering CANNOT be cured, BUT it can be decreased without a doubt. Fluency can be achieved, how much depends on several factors. I will list what I feel they are here: (Please feel free to e-mail me at Lori@allislandspeech.com if you know additional reasons why and I will add them on)

1. How much practice you are willing to put into it.
2. How invested you are in speech therapy, both economically and emotionally.
3. How effected you are cognitively by your stuttering? (and this can be worked on as well)
4. How much you are willing to be open minded and realize that many people who stutter have achieved a much greater level of fluency and effective communication skills.
5. How much you can let go of the anger of failed therapy and wasted money.
6. How much you let go of the fact that 100% fluency is not a realistic goal.
7. How much you can accept the fact you stutter and then move on towards becoming more fluent.

I have done all of this. Not easily, but using strength from the bottom of my soul, from parents who never gave up and told me to accept, from a dear friend Lisa Anderson who is a SLP and PWS. She taught me courage, unconditional friendship and strength beyond words (they failed her three times in public speaking in college because she stuttered and she never stopped trying).

All I can say is that I can help you too. Please Please don't give up if you haven't achieved this and don't beat yourself up for not doing it. We all have challenging things in our life to work on. Stuttering is difficult because we wear it on our sleeves and ignorant people judge us. For ex: I am still battling losing weight. If you are a person who stutters who has decided to use only stuttering modification strategies, then you have my respect. BUT if you are like me and have always wanted to talk with as little stuttering as possible, then I can only say I understand.

Kids never Cease to Amaze me

Yesterday I was in a speech session with a very bright teenage male who stutters. I asked him if he would compare how his stuttering affected him now as opposed to when he began therapy three months ago. He gave me such a wonderful answer. He said when he first started therapy his stuttering was like breaking an ankle and being in pain. Now it is like a slight scratch on his hand. "It's like nothing", he said. It was so wonderful hearing this and he had a big grin on his face.

Also, as some of you may know, my dream is to one day have an institute on Long Island for people who stutter and their families. I want to be able to offer assistance to those who can't afford speech therapy and offer more intensive therapy workshops. My goal is to provide hands on training for graduate students and post graduate training for speech pathologists to learn more about stuttering. Today two very bright SLPs came to interview me as a person who stutters. I think I have an interesting story to tell with bumps along the way, but alot of successes. I hope I was able to help them. I will be speaking to a local school district in January and hope to be visiting more to tell my own personal story and various therapy options.