Happy New Year! It is time to get rid of FOPO. FOPO stands for Fear Other People's Opinion. FOPO leads to so much anxiety and avoidance, doesn't it. Listen to podcasts by Michael Gervais to start your year. Watch or re-watch The King's Speech and When I Stutter. Check me out on Insta and TikTok at stutteringsolutionsatl

SPEAK UP IN 2025! Your voice matters.

In the last 33 years of being an SLP I have lost track of how many people say "my stuttering is a burden!" It may be worded as "I will hold up the meeting" or "the partners in my presentation will resent my stuttering" or "the waiter is busy and I have to speak fast or he'll be upset."

Because I integrate CBT into therapy, I help people find these cognitive distortions and toxic beliefs. These negative patterns of thinking create social anxiety/state anxiety and lead to blocking. YOUR STUTTERING IS NOT A BURDEN. We want to hear you share your ideas and contributions.

A fresh twist to my podcasts! Bhav Jain, a Stanford Medical student, interviews me. After listening to my podcasts, Bhav sent me an email with several questions intended to help him with his stuttering. Stuttering is a complex challenge and Bhav seeks the same insight as most adults who stutter do. Listen as he reads the questions to me.

To see high quality video demonstration, check out https://stutteringadvice.com/

The Successful Stuttering Management Program (SSMP), started in 1962 by Dorv Breitenfeldt, PhD and Dee Lorenz, is powerful and relevant in today's stuttering therapy! Tim Mackesey, Joe Klein, Kim Krieger, Tom Gurrister, and Robbie Jackson are all SLPs who participated in this discussion recognizing Dorv Breitenfeldt's contributions to training clinicians and helping pws.

I encourage graduate clinicians to consider attending the SSMP. You will learn about stuttering from the inside out!

If you stutter, look into this life changing experience.

To learn more about the SSMP open this link:

https://www.ewu.edu/chsph/communication-sciences-disorders/ssmp/

If you stutter, you know that talking is like a road with speed humps. In your car, you approach speed humps be slowing down and easing over the hump. You'd never back up, right? When talking you will feel a stutter coming, maintain eye contact, slow down, loosen your speech muscles and ease the word out. Emotionally, you will hit humps of frustration or embarrassment. Investigate to find out what you were thinking or feeling at the moment of stuttering and "reframe" your thinking. Listen to previous podcasts: Look and Let it Out, Eye Contact, Rate of Speech, and the Top Ten Forms of Twisted Thinking.

For 32+ years I have seen pws stutter on the word stutter and tell me they fear the word! I used to stutter on the word stutter nearly 100% of the time. The bottom line is that we attach a strong negative meaning to stuttering on stutter- shame and embarrassment. Many people who stutter refer to it as "my speech" or a "speech impediment." Ironically, "speech" is a different /s/ blend word! But, we take stuttering on "speech" less personally than "stutter." Some pws are reluctant to disclose that they stutter because they fear stuttering on "stutter." Listen in.

Tomorrow, next week, or 60 days from now how will I know to fear or avoid very specific words, sounds, or situations? Did I download an App to my brain that controls me? Experiences on my timeline create these fears and avoidance habits. Pschologists talk about "one trial learning" when a phobia is created. We who stutter can create a fear of stuttering and then this "App" runs in the background of our communication system. Listen and learn.

I hear from people who stutter on a regular basis that it is hard to talk in noisy environments. Speaking when there is ambient noise, with multiple listeners competing to be heard, or "chaotic" moments was hard for me. I get it. We have to examine what we are thinking and feeling in those moments. We can have what Joe Sheehan called the "approach/avoidance conflict." We also want to learn to project our voice from the diaphragm and not strain at the larynx.

Tyler is a college senior who is earning a degree in psychology and a minor in Spanish. Listen and you will hear his speech pattern two years ago. He stuttered and cluttered 24 months ago.

He has enjoyed his new speech pattern for 6 months now. Tyler will explain what he learned to make both English and Spanish so much more fluid. Tyler plans to get a master's degree and serve our community in both languages!

This powerful quote is attributed to Sufism and it's philospophy of spiritual awakening. Stuttering is not an external thing that we are a victim to. Listen to explore how a pws can "peel the layers back" and investigate their stuttering. How can we breakthrough the grind of avoiding and anxety? How can I grow and improve my verbal skills and my confidence?