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Listen to these kids

I know a lot of children who stutter. Here they tell what they think about stuttering. Perhaps their stories are a bit like your own. Here is what Anne, nine years old, wrote down:

"I don't like to stutter. That is why I want to write about it. Every time I go to see my grandma and granddad, or my uncles and aunts, I stutter when I start to say something. And then I stutter a lot. When I have a fight with kids at school, they call me 'stuttermouth' and I hate that. I don't like stuttering. I think it is embarrassing, and I don't like it. This is the story of Anne."

Sebastian is 13 now. He can explain very clearly what he thinks about stuttering:

"How should I stutter? Some time ago I learned how to stutter more easily and for several years all went well. Now I am older and my stuttering is quite bad again. I have come back for therapy, and I am already making progress. I like the therapy sessions, and that's a good thing, because if you don't like to go, you will probably not profit much from it.

"I would like to get rid of my stuttering. What makes stuttering so hard for me? When I stutter, I usually get stuck. There is a lot of tension in my mouth that keeps growing, and then I am stuck. Stuttering is no joke. But then I say to myself, 'Stuttering isn't against the law, so why shouldn't I stutter a bit?' And that helps.

"Only when I am with people I don't know and they ask me something, do I try very hard not to stutter. And then I stutter a lot more. When I want to say something very quickly, I get stuck, too. Then people start guessing what I wanted to say. They mean well, but I don't like it at all because I want to say it myself. I used to talk very quickly, but I don't anymore. I have learned to say to myself

If you don't want to worry,
Don't talk in a hurry.

"I want to work at my stuttering. I hope to be able to talk more easily someday."

Matthew isn't happy with "all that stuttering." He is 11 now and will go to middle school next year. He comes to see me with another boy. Each week we do all sorts of things together to make talking easier, and we have a good time. Having a good time makes talking easier too. Matthew has written his story here:

"I do not like the stuttering I do, but it won't kill me. I know that now. When I have to read out loud in class I tell myself I won't allow any stuttering. But I stutter anyway and that is what I hate about it. I hope I learn a lot and that it will make me happier. I do not know what more to write. I hope this is enough."

© Copyright 1999 by Stuttering Foundation of America

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