Announcing 'Stammering Research' - Stammering Research - UCL

Stammering Research. Vol. 1.
Question: Do you see your stammer as an issue for life?
Answer: My stammer is part of me - and I have accepted that it will be there forever. I have adjusted
to it and alter my life to cope with its problems. Although often tempted to escape public or group
speaking, I seldom take avoiding action by getting others to do what I should do myself. In my present
job it has been more a matter of being stereotyped by colleagues as unsuitable for front-of-house work
and, therefore, not given the opportunities that might have come my way. I refrain from pushing
myself into a situation where somebody else could be more effective. You might argue that the net
result has been to foster the idea that I am not really promotable, since the next post upwards would
definitely require more presentational work.
It is fair to say that my stammer has seriously interfered with my job. Talking to large groups of
people is difficult. I make sure I avoid situations, which put pressure on my speech. However, it is
amazing what you can do if you have to, such as acclimatizing oneself to the telephone! I have a life
where I do not have to meet new people all the time. If I had to do so it would produce intolerable
stress as first impressions are so important and I worry that I might let myself down as well as others.
Question Paul, how do you think about your stammer?
Answer I think about it as feeble and cowardly as it makes you opt out of things. A stammer puts one
at a huge disadvantage and produces great dissatisfaction with situations that involve others. You can
never be comfortable and relax in case it strikes and causes havoc. Writers depict people who stammer
as very unattractive creatures with cringe-making qualities.
How others think about you can be quite oppressive. When I was young my mother was constantly
concerned about my dysfluent speech, whilst father thought I might grow out of it. This produced two
different types of pressure on me. My family has always been supportive, but I feel very awkward
when I do stammer in front of them. It is a very negative experience for everybody and sets up a
barrier in relationships.
Question Paul, how has your stammer affected you most?
Answer Socially, it has held me back a great deal. I am constantly worried by the possibility of
blocks in speech and long silences in front of other people. The stammer hits you on the head when you
are least expecting it as I can be fluent for ten minutes and then have an awful block in speaking. This
has made me very insecure. Basically, I am a sociable person and enjoy the company of others. I feel I
am being robbed of the pleasure of conversation.
As regards my career, the stammer has prevented me choosing my favoured path, which would have
been an academic one. In university life, one is constantly on show to others and a reputation is made
on the basis of skills with spoken as well as written words. I have the academic knowledge but not the
performance ability.
Question Paul, what made you seek help for your stammer?
Answer My mother thought that this was necessary. I had informal counselling with my uncle, when
I was about ten. When this did not result in any improvement in speaking I went to a Saturday clinic at
Guys hospital and did work with a voice specialist. I felt this was a complete waste of time. Then I got
referred to a research project at St. George’s hospital, Knightsbridge. We were played records of story
reading and had to shadow this process. It was useless! By this time I was feeling quite angry and
bolshee!
I stumbled on throughout my teenage years until I arrived at Oxford and was referred to Dr.
Seymour Spencer, at the Warneford hospital, for depression. He became interested in speech therapy,
partly because he felt my sessions with him would make faster progress if I could speak more fluently.
Dr. Spencer suggested I join a research project which was starting up in 1964. I declined the first offer
of a place at the Warneford, but in 1967 I had another chance on Gerda’s third course. She had just
taken over the research project. I joined an intensive group course that was organised at the hospital,
although I was cautious and apprehensive due to my previous experiences of speech therapy. At this
stage my rating on assessment suggested I was stammering on more than 30 words in a sample of 100.
This was very high.
Question Paul, can you tell me how the Apple House course has helped you?
Answer From day one of the course I became a great deal more fluent. However, I was very tense,
lacked confidence and was quite obsessive about the techniques. In one way this was an advantage in
the initial stages of treatment when I had to concentrate hard in order to master new ways of talking. I
may have been helped by a musician’s sense of metre as well as rhythm. Later on obsession became
more of a minus I suppose.
The course introduced me to some behaviour modification methods that were aimed at breaking
down bad talking habits by introducing syllable-timed speech. In English, we are used to using stresstimed
speech so I needed tremendous effort to control what I was doing. The technique was useful, as I
was able to exert control over speaking and this was a wonderful feeling. I could speak fluently
without anxiety. However, I suffered bad relapses and had to take two further courses at the Warneford
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