Blogs | Stuttering Foundation: A Nonprofit Organization Helping Those Who Stutter

April 28, 2014

Dr. Sheehan’s Stuttering Iceberg Analogy

Dr. Joseph Sheehan’s iceberg analogy was recently featured on the Stuttering Foundation’s Facebook page with a massive response from the public. As I prepare to facilitate a weeklong intensive course for teenagers who stutter, it is timely to discuss the significant contribution of the stuttering iceberg. Sheehan’s main message was “Don’t avoid, don’t’ hide, don’t deny your stuttering."

March 3, 2014

The Other Half – Supporting Partners and Spouses of People Who Stutter

Often under-acknowledged and under-used, partners and spouses of people who stutter play an important role in the “recovery process” of adults who stutter. Recently, I experienced this when my adult client, Joe brought his fiancée to a therapy session with him. It was courageous moment for Joe, to be able to show a different side of him to the person he was going to get married and openness to vulnerability that many would shy away from.

December 19, 2013

The Gift of Empathy

It’s the holiday season and I thought I would finish my last post for 2013 by discussing the "gift of empathy."

November 25, 2013

Foundation Thanks 'Tonight Show'

With Jimmy Fallon set to take over the reins of The Tonight Show in late February, The Stuttering Foundation would like to express thanks.

October 22, 2013

Tips on Picking a Speech-Language Pathologist: What to Look Out For

This year’s International Stuttering Awareness Day theme (People Who Stutter Supporting Each Other) inspired me to read numerous articles by those who stutter and to listen to some classic podcasts on StutterTalk which has lead to this post on how to pick a SLP who understands stuttering.

August 28, 2013

Encouraging Parents to Seek Help For Stuttering – Going With Your Gut

When I read headlines that say “One in Ten Children Stutter, But It’s No Big Deal” or “Study: Preschoolers’ Stuttering Not Harmful,” I tend to think of the implications they have for the time constrained parent or doctor.

July 30, 2013

Visiting the Michael Palin Centre

Greetings from London! Over the last two weeks I have been busy observing eight remarkable young people aged between 15 and 19 work immensely hard so that stuttering had less of an impact on their lives.

June 20, 2013

Harrison Craig wins The Voice – Australia!

Two months ago, Harrison Craig wowed us with his rendition of Broken Vow at the blind auditions of the second season of The Voice – Australia. Fast forward ahead to the June 17 and he was crowned the winner of the second season of The Voice.

May 2, 2013

The ‘Lazaro Effect’

It’s been almost a month since Lazaro left American Idol, and since then I’ve met people (old and young) say “Oh you must work with people like that guy on Idol." The "Lazaro Effect" has truly taken a life of its own when recently an 8-year-old boy who stuttered said to me, “I haven’t met anyone else who stutters, but I have seen that guy on Idol." It was also positive to hear that having a stutter wasn’t a big deal for this child.

March 11, 2013

My Top 5 Inspiring Songs

Lazaro Arbos progresses to the Top 10 in American Idol and what better way to celebrate than to share a list of my Top 5 list that inspires me (and put me in a good mood)? We’ve all had moments where things don’t seem to work out and everything seems to be wrong with our lives. Music plays a big part in my life and I’m always on the lookout for new songs for my playlists.

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CELEBRITY FOCUS

Ken Venturi

As much of the nation watches the U.S. Open Golf Championship, it is impossible not to think about our late friend Ken Venturi. Ken overcame many challenges to win the Open at Congressional in 1964 and go on to become the voice of golf for more than three decades.

However, Ken faced no bigger obstacle than stuttering. Ken Venturi was a champion to those who stutter, going out of his way to share his personal experience when consulted by a colleague, friend, or child who stutters.

Byron Pitts

Byron Pitts has brought much attention to stuttering with his memoir, Step Out on Nothing: How Faith and Family Helped Me Conquer Life’s Challenges, released in September, 2009. The book not only details his speech difficulties, but also his illiteracy until age 12 and his unstable family life. Pitts overcame the odds to become the chief national correspondent with ABC News.

Bruce Willis

While the world knows Bruce Willis as an A-list actor, few know that he struggled with stuttering throughout his first 20 years.

Walter Bruce Willis was born in 1955 in West Germany to his German mother, Marlene, and his American GI father, David Willis. The family settled in David’s hometown of Penns Grove, New Jersey in 1957, and the couple has three other children.

Bill Walton

From BillWalton.com

Thank you for your interest in my life long problem with my speech and communication skills. I was a very shy and reserved young man who could not speak at all without severely stuttering until I was 28 years old. Always a success in the classroom and on the basketball court, I took refuge in the things that I did well as a youngster. A straight A student, my athletic abilities covered the deficiencies that limited my overall growth and development. The game of basketball was my religion, the gym my church. It was a convenient way of avoiding my responsibilities of developing my human relation skills.

When I was 28, a chance encounter at a social event with Hall of Fame broadcaster Marty Glickman completely changed my life in so many ways that things have never been the same since, nor have they ever been better. That day, in a very brief, private conversation (one way, mind you, since I literally could not speak at the time) Marty explained, patiently and concisely, that talking, communicating was a skill not a gift or a birthright and that like any skill, whether it be sports, music, business or whatever, needed to be developed over a lifetime of hard work, discipline, organization and practice. Marty gave me some simple tips that day and then encouraged me to take those keys and apply them to methods of learning that I had received from the special teachers that I had come across in my life, particularly the 6 Hall of Fame basketball coaches that I had played for throughout my career. The beginning of my whole new life was as simple as that. No gimmicks, tricks or shortcuts. Just the realization that with some help, guidance and a lot of hard work that I too could do what seemed so easy, simple and natural to everyone else, yet seemed impossibly out of my reach and comprehension.

Dave Taylor

Dave Taylor has been on the Stuttering Foundation's list of Famous People Who Stutter for many years, but probably few people know all of the unique accomplishments of this former hockey great who was born on December 4, 1955, in Levack, Ontario.