Understanding the Fear of Stuttering

CAN you tell the difference between a speaker who is fluent and one who fears stuttering? ‘Why, of course,’ you may answer. But consider what Peter Louw writes in his Afrikaans book Hhhakkel (Ssstutter): “For every ‘undisguised’ stutterer, there are possibly ten who want to remain as unnoticed as possible and who hide their speech impediment in various ways.” Hide their speech impediment? How is that possible?

Some stutterers manage to hide their impediment by anticipating words that have caused a problem for them in the past. Then, instead of saying that word, they rephrase the sentence or use a different word with a similar meaning. One husband concealed his stuttering for 19 years of marriage. When the truth dawned on his wife, she asked a speech therapist: “Do you think that’s why he has me make the phone calls, and why I always wind up ordering in restaurants, and why he never speaks up at . . . meetings?”

Consider, too, Gerard and Maria, a happily married couple from South Africa.a On a number of occasions, Maria tried to explain to her husband that she held back from commenting at Bible study meetings because of her fear of stuttering. “Nonsense,” he would dogmatically say, “you are not a stutterer.” Gerard based his judgment on his wife’s normally talkative nature. Only certain speaking situations cause her to fear stuttering. For the first time, after five years of marriage, Gerard became aware of this and confessed: “I was ignorant and inconsiderate.” Now, instead of criticizing her, he commends her for the times that she does muster up courage to speak in front of a large audience.

Understandably, many stutterers are plagued by “fear . . . sometimes nagging, often acute,” explains stutterer David Compton in his book Stammering. “At his most vulnerable moment, his most necessary point of contact with his fellow human beings, at his reaching out towards them in speech, be it mundane or intimate, at such times the stammerer may expect to be wounded, made ridiculous . . . Even those who cope most successfully still admit that they have been shaped by their fear, and that it never entirely leaves them.”

Situations That May Arouse Fear

When a stutterer is called upon to answer a question in front of an audience, such as in a school classroom, at a business meeting, or at a religious gathering, it may cause anxiety that results in a severe bout of stuttering. “Are there times when you think it’s just much easier to keep quiet?” a 15-year-old South African stutterer named Rosanne was asked in a radio interview. She replied, “Often, for example, in the classroom situation when I have a nice answer that I know will really earn me marks but I know it’s too much of an effort to actually talk.”

A businessman named Simon was also interviewed on the radio program mentioned above. Like Rosanne, Simon has made improvement with the help of speech therapy. But sometimes he still has a bad episode of stuttering. This can be aggravated by the attitude of his audience. “If you’re in a board meeting where you have to do a fair amount of speaking and you are having a bad time, the people around that table get very, very impatient,” he explains.

The fear that a stutterer has should not be confused with the fear that a shy person might have of speaking to strangers. Consider Lisa, who has been attending meetings of Jehovah’s Witnesses for the past two years. In light conversation with friends, she often manages to speak quite fluently. She also shares zealously in evangelizing work that requires approaching strangers uninvited. But she has a fear common to many stutterers—speaking before a large audience. “At our meetings,” explains Lisa, “I seldom manage to put up my hand and answer a question. If I answer at all, it is at most one word or a short sentence. Although it may be little, it is my best. Often, the answers are in my head and on my lips because I always prepare in advance. But my tongue just refuses to cooperate.”

A worse experience for some stutterers is having to read aloud. This forces them to use words they would normally avoid. “At one of our meetings,” Lisa continues, “we are sometimes asked to take turns reading the Scripture texts under discussion. On such occasions I sit in fear, fidgeting, waiting for my turn, not knowing if I will manage to read the text or not. Sometimes I read but cannot pronounce a certain word. Then I just skip it and continue reading.”

Obviously, careful thought needs to be given before encouraging a stutterer to read aloud. Such “encouragement” could make the stutterer feel worse. Instead, such a person deserves to be warmly commended for doing his or her best.

When Trying to Help

Stuttering is a very complex disorder. What works for one may not work for another. In fact, many stutterers who experience a period of being “cured” suffer a relapse later. More research has been done on stuttering than on just about any other speech disorder. Yet, experts have not found a specific cause. In fact, most agree that many factors may contribute to stuttering. One theory, according to recent studies, is that it has to do with the irregular organization of brain cells early in the life of the stutterer. According to Drs. Theodore J. Peters and Barry Guitar, in their textbook Stuttering—An Integrated Approach to Its Nature and Treatment, current views about the causes “will be outdated as more studies fill in the huge gaps in our knowledge about stuttering.”

Since man knows so little about stuttering, there is a need for caution when suggesting one of the numerous therapies for those plagued with this disorder. “Most severe stutterers,” the above textbook adds, “will make only a partial recovery. They will learn to speak more slowly or to stutter more easily, and to be less bothered by it. . . . For reasons we don’t understand, a few stutterers just don’t change significantly in treatment.”b

When treatment fails to work, some therapists have blamed the stutterer for not trying hard enough. One asserted: “The only likelihood of failure lies in a half-hearted attitude on the part of the stammerer.” Regarding such claims, author David Compton said: “I have no words to express the anger this kind of comment can make stammerers feel. First, because it’s manifestly untrue. No one therapy will ever be right for all stammerers, and even the right one for a particular stammerer will be far from infallible. Second, because stammerers live with failure . . . Anything that increases [their failure] needlessly, unjustly, is a crime.”

Easing Their Burden

Stutterers usually do not want to be pitied. However, there is much that can be done to ease their burden. When they stutter, do not look away in embarrassment. Rather than looking at their mouth, look them in the eye. They are usually sensitive to the body language of their listeners. If you appear to be relaxed, it will help to lessen their fears. “Show the person that you are prepared to hear him out as you would be prepared to hear anyone out,” said a speech therapist.

Teachers who have a stutterer among their students can do much to ease that one’s fears. In the South African educational journal Die Unie, the following advice was given to teachers: “Most stutterers stutter much less when they know that the one listening does not expect fluency.”

According to the above journal, it is also important for a teacher to get to know the student’s feelings. Instead of avoiding such students out of embarrassment, teachers are advised to talk to them and to encourage them to express their feelings about the problem. In this way the teacher can find out what speaking situations the student fears most. “His speech fluency depends 80 percent on you,” the journal reports. His fluency will improve if he knows that he is accepted in spite of the problem. The journal further explains: “A relaxed, learning-oriented atmosphere in the classroom will benefit not only the stutterer but also the rest of the class.”

Surely, these suggestions can be adapted successfully in teaching situations involving adults.

Our Creator Understands

Our Creator, Jehovah God, fully understands human imperfection. He commissioned Moses to be his spokesman in leading the Israelites out of Egypt. He did this in the full knowledge that Moses had a speech defect that made it difficult for him to communicate. God also knew that Moses’ brother, Aaron, was, by contrast, a fluent speaker. “I do know that he can really speak,” God said. (Exodus 4:14) However, Moses had other far more important qualities, such as loyalty, kindness, faith, and mildness of temper. (Numbers 12:3; Hebrews 11:24, 25) In spite of Moses’ objections, God stuck to his choice of Moses as leader of His people. At the same time, God made allowance for Moses’ fears by appointing Aaron as Moses’ spokesman.—Exodus 4:10-17.

We can imitate God by showing understanding. Treat stutterers with dignity, and do not allow a speech defect to blind you to the person’s true worth. Illustrating this is the experience of a little girl and her stuttering father. The father learned a method of reading more fluently. One night he tried it out on his six-year-old daughter by reading her a story, and he felt so proud of his fluency.

“Speak properly, Daddy,” she said when her father had finished.

“I am speaking very properly,” he replied with indignation.

“No,” she insisted, “speak like you always do.”

Yes, this little girl loved her father for who he was, even with his speech defect. So next time you have dealings with someone who stutters, remember that the person may have precious thoughts and desirable qualities. He certainly has feelings. Be patient and show him understanding.

[Footnotes]

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A stutterer may be afraid to speak up in public

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Be patient if a stutterer is having difficulty talking to you

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Stutterers generally fear the telephone