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.

Can stuttering be cured?

CAN STUTTERING BE CURED? NO
CAN STUTTERING LEAD TO IMPROVED FLUENCY? ABSOLUTELY, BUT NOTICE I DID NOT SAY TOTAL FLUENCY.

LAST NIGHT, MY SISTER N LAW (WHO IS LIKE A SISTER I NEVER HAD AND MY GOOD FRIEND) ASKED ME WITH GUARDED SKEPTICISM, IF STUTTERING COULD BE CURED? I WAS TALKING NON-STOP TO MY FAMILY THAT I DIDN'T GIVE HER A GREAT ANSWER AND REALIZED THAT MAYBE I HADN'T EDUCATED MY FAMILY THE BEST ON WHAT CAN AND CANNOT BE DONE WITH STUTTERING.

I WANT TO THANK MY SISTER N LAW (LORI-WHO SHARES MY NAME) FOR REMINDING ME HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO EDUCATE PEOPLE ON STUTTERING AND THERAPY.

HERE GOES MY REVIEW FOR MY FAMILY AND THE WORLD:

1. FOR PRESCHOOL CHILDREN, APPROX. 20% OF CHILDREN EXPERIENCE PERIODS OF DEVELOPMENTAL DYSFLUENCIES OR SIMPLY PUT "STUTTERING". THERE ARE CERTAIN CRITERIA USED TO DETERMINE WHICH CHILDREN SHOULD START THERAPY. IT SHOULD BE NOTED THAT 80% OF THESE CHILDREN WILL OUTGROW STUTTERING ON THEIR OWN. HOWEVER, I CAN'T STRESS THIS ENOUGH, THERE IS NO DEFINITIVE WAY OF KNOWING WHO WILL OUTGROW STUTTERING ON THEIR OWN. IS IT WORTH THE RISK OF WAITING, NO!!! I AM A PERSON WHO STUTTERS AND MY CHILDHOOD YEARS WERE DIFFICULT. NO MATTER WHAT YOUR PEDIATRICIAN OR SCHOOL DISTRICT TELLS YOU, DO NOT WAIT. FIND A SPEECH PATHOLOGIST WHO DEALS WITH STUTTERING AND ONE YOU FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH. THE STUTTERING FOUNDATION OF AMERICA HAS A WONDERFUL REFERRAL LIST AND TERRIFIC RESOURCES FOR PEOPLE WHO STUTTER (WWW.STUTTERINGHELP.ORG)

WHAT HELPS PRESCHOOLERS? MODIFYING THE ENVIRONMENT, LIDCOMBE THERAPY (VERY SUCCESSFUL WITH RESEARCH BACKING IT). IN MANY CASES, PRESCHOOL STUTTERING CAN BE ELIMINATED. SO, WHY WAIT? MY WEBSITE HAS GREAT INFORMATION WWW.ALLISLANDSPEECH.COM

2. CAN SCHOOL AGED CHILDREN BE HELPED? YES. WE HAVE TO DETERMINE SEVERAL FACTORS. USUALLY PAST AGE 6, STUTTERING CAN'T BE ELIMINATED BUT CHILDREN CAN BE TAUGHT CORRECT BREATHING, CONTINUOUS SPEAKING AND WAYS NOT TO BE EMBARRASSED BY STUTTERING. IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOT LET SPEAKING FEARS DEVELOP AT THIS AGE.

3. TEENS AND ADULTS-I PREFER INTENSIVE THERAPY AT THIS AGE. I USE A FLUENCY SHAPING APPROACH WITH COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL ASPECTS BUILT IN. I MYSELF HAVE HAD SUCCESS AS I AM MOSTLY FLUENT AND HAVE SUCCESS WITH MANY MANY CLIENTS. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT, OFFER IT AT MY PRACTICE. I HAVE ALSO DONE THIS APPROACH WITH OUT OF STATE AND INTERNATIONAL CLIENTS. (TELETHERAPY). I USE WHAT I TEACH.

ANY QUESTIONS OR IF YOU CAN'T POST, PLEASE E-MAIL ME DIRECTLY AT LORI@ALLISLANDSPEECH.COM

Happy International Stuttering Awareness Day-Oct. 22, 2009

On this day, I want to thank all my clients who open up to me and trust me enough to allow me to help them with their journey towards improving fluency and communication skills.