Background to stammering and stuttering
What is stammering?
Well those of us who stammer or stutter know what it is - we just cannot get the words out. But for those who don’t stutter or stammer and many people at some stage fall over words or have problems with particular letters here is an answer.
Stammering or stuttering is “characterised by stoppages and disruptions in fluency which interrupt the smooth flow and timing of speech. These stoppages may take the form of repetitions of sounds, syllables or words, or of prolongations of sounds so that words seem to be stretched out, and can involve silent blocking of the airflow of speech when no sound is heard”
This is the definition by a Mr Enderby who wrote a book on the subject in 1996.
Speech can sound forced, tense or jerky although I would say that applies to a lot of people who would not be usually described as stammers. As stammers know, they try to avoid certain words or situations which they know will cause them difficulty, for example consonants such as ‘Bs’ and ‘Js’ and ‘Ss’ can provide dangerous traps!
Some stammerers avoid and substitute words to such an extent that people in their lives may not realise they have a stammer and indeed are considered to extremely fluent in their use of language. This has been described as “covert stammering” and I certainly fall into this category sometimes
So what causes stammering?
No one seems to know precisely what causes stammering but research seems to suggest that a combination of factors is involved.
Genetics can be relevant at least in some cases and when I finally was sent off to a speech therapist, this line was pursued but with no great result. I had an Uncle who spoke extremely fast, indeed to such an extent that it was often difficulty to understand what it was he was saying. However this line of enquiry came to deadend. Personally I don’t agree with the view that someone with stammering in the family seems more likely to develop a stammer themselves.If that was the case we would have families of stammerers
It is alleged that brain imaging studies have shown significant differences between the brain activity of people stammering as compared with fluent speakers. But what is a fluent speaker and what the statistical validity of the claim?
How does stammering affect people?
Since this is a web site set up by someone who stammers some of the time for people who stammer, we should all know the answer but it will of course vary according to the severity of the stammer, the gender of the individual concerned, their age, occupation etc.
So stammering affects people in different ways and will vary according to the situation in which the person finds themselves: to whom the person is talking; how they are feeling about themselves and their speech; and what they want to say. Stammering will vary from adult to adult and child to child in its manner, frequency and severity.
Depending upon the level of the stammering it may not be just a speech difficulty but can be a very serious communication problem. It can undermine confidence and self-esteem and impact upon their interactions with others as well as their education and employment prospects.
A variety of factors affect the ease or difficulty with which people who may be prone to stammering can speak. These can include:
Environmental factors:
When under some kind of real or imagined stress, the child or adult who stammers can become less fluent when increased demands are made of the person in particular kinds of speaking situations. So when the person has high expectations of him or herself in certain circumstances and with certain people say when speaking on the telephone, at an interview or when a specific response is needed for example saying one’s name, address or phone number, having to use particular words). But in some people this stress actually increases fluency so I usually lose any signs of my stammer when lecturing, running a seminar or generally speaking in public. Probably because I’m conscious of the need to speak with plenty of air in my lungs, breathing properly and consciously or unconsciously being calm and relaxed (see the section on relaxing - when available )