NFuMKgeC

1
2
32nd Edition
4STUTTERING & ANXIETY
5SELF-CURES:
6WHAT100+ PWS TAUGHTME
7By
8LEEG. LOVETT
9http://leeglovett.com/about/
10“If Ican say ONE word anywhere, anytime, Ican say ANY word, anywhere, anytime”
11Lee G. Lovett
12Copyright ©Lee G. Lovett 2016, 2017
13All rights reserved.
14No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems,
15without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
16Second Edition
17ISBN: 9781513620732 (Hardback)
18ISBN: 9781545478011 (Paperback)
19ISBN: 9781513620725 (eBook)
20Cover designer: JaxonGlobal.com
21Book interior design & eBook conversion by manuscript2ebook.com
22Table of Contents
23Author’s Confession
24WhyThis 2
25nd Edition
26Dedication
27“Silent Words”(poem)
28Defining Self-Cure
29What PWS Wrote About Lee
30Foreword: Lessons fromStutterers
31Introduction: Stuttering as a Blessing
32Part I Understanding the Problem
331.0 When StutteringBecame MyLife-Crisis
342.0 Identifying the Cause ofStuttering
353.0 The Role ofMind-Control
36Part II The Six Step SELF -Cure
37Overviewof the Self-Cure
384.0 STEPONE: Discuss the Problem
394.1 PreviewofSix Steps
404.2 Need to Discuss the Problem
414.3 Stuttering SeverityChart
424.4 PlanningYour Discussions
434.5 Don’t Avoid Speaking – BUT
444.6 Read This Book Aloud – NOW
455.0 STEPTWO: My Speech “Crutches” What Is a Crutch&Why Use One?
465.0 Summary ofCrutches
475.1 Skipping First Letters/Syllables
485.2 Usea Synonym
495.3 Skip the Word Entirely
505.4 InsertingAlternate Thoughts
515.5 Using Pauses
525.6 Voice Modulation; Be Expressive
535.7 The“Magic”Instant Cure
545.8 Changethe Thought
555.9 Tella Story
565.10 Talk Slower (limited elongation)
575.11 Talk Faster
585.12 Talk Less
595.13 Post Script:Keep It Light
605.14 Conclusion as to Crutches
616.0 STEPTHREE: The Vocabulary-Asset
626.1 Wordsand Causes ofStuttering
636.2 Howto Enhance Your Vocabulary
646.3 Some Word Books
656.4 MemorizingWords
666.5 Implementing Step Three
677.0 STEP FOUR: Get Lost inYourMessage;
687.1 The Power ofthe Messageto Cure
697.2 SevenWays to Max the Message
707.3 Using the Messageto Cure
717.4 Daily Practice:Start Now
728.0 STEP FIVE: Auto Suggestion
738.1 TreatingYourself
748.2 Becoming the Boss ofYour Mind
758.3 HowAuto SuggestionWorks
768.4 The Placebo Effect
778.5 Affirmative Findings re AS
788.6 Your Auto SuggestionTreatments
798.7 DailyTreatments inGeneral
808.8 Your DailyAST’s
818.9 Examples ofAuto Suggestions
828.10 HowMuchTimefor DailyAST’s
838.11 Idle Time or Bonus Treatments
848.12 Automatic Response Treatments
858.13 Summary ofTreatments
868.14 WhyAuto SuggestionWillWork
878.15 RejectingNegatives
888.16 The Think-Visualize-Verbalize-Do
898.17 Conscious v. Subconscious Mind
909.0 STEP SIX: MentalImagery andAuto Conditioning/Self Hypnosis
919.1 AS v. Self-Hypnosis (SH)
929.2 Lessons froma Psychiatrist
939.3 Self-Hypnosisand You
949.4 Learning to Hypnotize Yourself
959.5 Self-Hypnosis (Subconscious) v. Auto Suggestion (Conscious)
969.6 Graduation:Public Speaking
97Part III What 100+ PWS Taught Me
9810. “Speech Is a River”
9911. What 100+ PWS Taught Me
10011.1 Who Are My PWS-Mates?
10111.2 The MainThing PWS Taught Me
10211.3 HowPWS Differ
10311.4 PWS Self-Curing
10411.5 StutteringVariables
10511.6 Stutter Free Zones
10611.7 SayingCursed Names
10711.8 What Helps Most
10811.9 PWS ChasingRainbows
10911.10 WhyReadingAloud Works
11011.11 AS-SH, The Greatest Aids ofAll
11111.12 Crutches Prevent Word-Planning
11212. Jump Starting Your Self-Cure
11312.1 Speak Where YouAre Fluent
11412.2 Read Aloud
11512.3 Reduce Pressured-Speaking
11612.4 Beas Expressiveas Possible
11712.5 Problems with First Words
11812.6 Simulate Pressured Conversations
11912.7 Drills to Stimulate Spontaneity
12012.8 Perfection, Not the Goal
12112.9 PreventingRelapses
12213. The SevenCardinal Sins of PWS
12313.1 Never Say,“I’msorry.”
12413.2 Don’t Repeat Stuttered Words
12513.3 Don’t Try to Hold the Floor
12613.4 Don’t Announce Your Stuttering
12713.5 Don’t Create More SMs Than FMs
12813.6 Never PubliclyWrestlea Block
12913.7 Never Refusea Cure
13014. Mild SpeechAnxiety
13115. Healing the Whole Person
13215.1 More Than SpeechNeeds Help
13315.2 APsychiatrist’s EncouragingWords
13415.3 The“Normality” ofMentalMalaise
13515.4 Acceptance v. Self-Curing
13615.5 Mind Training,a Way ofLife
13715.6 LeavingOur Minds to Chance
13815.7 TakingResponsibility
13915.8 LifeIs What We MakeIt
14015.9 LifeIs Perception
14115.10 LifeIsa Game
14215.11 AHealingBook
14316. Final Thoughts
14416.1 ChartingYour Course
14516.2 RecommendingTherapy
14616.3 CommunicatingwithAuthor
14717. “SpeechAnxiety Anonymous”
148Part IVOther Books and Resources
149Comments onOther HelpfulBooks
150Bibliography and Resources
151About the Author
152Author’s Confession
153I ama stutterer, and I shallsurely die a stutterer, because the Satanic fears ofstuttering stillcome and go – mostly go – but, BUT, dear readers,
154NO ONE can catchmestuttering!
155How can this contradiction be true? The answers are in this book. Other readers of this book (at least those who share their stories withme)
156are beating it, too. They and I are little different than you. Ifwe can beat it, so can you! We do not “control” our speech or try to “force”a cure;
157we teach ourselves to manage our thoughts, and we use methods that facilitate that process. The pernicious speech-carnivore is now
158being turned upon its merciless self. The days of stuttering are finally numbered. As said the revered Roman poet, Virgil, in 30 BC, “It is time
159fora bold newbeginning.”
160Lee G. Lovett
161Why This 2
162nd Edition?
163In the spring of 2015, I released the 1
164st Edition, which basically told the story ofmy war with stuttering and my self-cure. In the year since then,
165almost 2,000 stuttering “Friends” have found me on Facebook and others via email, and I am communicating with 100+ stutterers, via myriad
166mechanisms (email, text messages, Facebook, Messenger, Skype chats, Skype video-calls, Facetime, the archaic Snail Mail on occasion, and
167even the PWS’ nightmare, the landline phone), and I am Skyping with 10-20 PWS weekly, on average, all no charge. Some of these have
168already self-cured using the author’s methods and others are well on the way to similar self-cures. What these PWS have taught me
169demanded that I revise my book ASAP .
170So, what’s NEW in this 2
171nd Edition? Thefollowing have been added :
172Defining SelfCure
173What PWS Wrote About Lee
174Foreword to 2
175nd Edition
176Sect. 10 “Speech Isa River”
177Sect. 11 What 100+ PWS Taught Me
178Sect. 12 Jump StartingYour Self-Cure
179Sect. 13 SevenCardinalSins ofPWS
180Sect. 14 Mild SpeechAnxiety
181Sect. 15 Healthe Whole Person
182Sect. 17 SpeechAnxietyAnonymous
183PLUS
184Improvements inAllSections of 1st Edition
185In sum, the 2
186nd Edition is more likely to lead to self-cures without verbal coaching . I still intend to continue communicating and
187Skypingwith as many PWS as timeallows.Asa major bonus, Iamasking (or lovingly conscripting) my self-cured PWS-Mates to help mecoach
188others in need, they, too, at no charge), as explained in Section 17 Announcing the Formation of “Speech Anxiety Anonymous”, a non-profit
189speech-self-cure organization, but, even ifthat yeoman effort falls short ofexpectations, this 2
190nd Edition should makeself-curingmuch easier forall
191readers. Iask my latefatherand you to forgivethis book’s many imperfections; I simply did not havetimeto do athorough edit.
192Lee Lovett
193P.S. I use many quotations in this book. All emphases inside those quotations (via italics, bold font or underlining) are supplied by me ,
194unless indicated to thecontrary.
195This Book is Dedicated
196To You
197“Most of us go through life
198knowing only half of ourselves…
199So, we use only half of ourabilities…
200Wesuffer –
201because wearestrangers to ourselves.”
202“We havefreechoice:
203to accept or reject thoughts.
204Nothing compels us to think anything
205except our own desires.
206Useyour mental switch
207to dictateyour thoughts…
208Believethat you can improve
209and you will.”
210Frank S. Caprio, M.D .
211Helping Yourself with Psychiatry
212Prentice Hall, 1957 etseq
213(Emphases supplied.)
214Silent Words
215By
216AlanPritchard
217Behind thesmiles, behind thetears,
218Aresilent words that no one hears.
219Conversations wellthought out,
220Butcensored throughmy pain and doubt.
221So much ofwho is reallyme,
222Thatmost will neverchanceto see,
223Fromthoughts to words, there’scompromise,
224And speech becomesan enterprise.
225Stuttering is notmy choice.
226I really havealovely voice.
227But words too often bond with dread,
228And then so much is left unsaid.
229I knowquite wellwhat I would say,
230Though itmay notalways sound that way.
231If you judge me bymy speech alone,
232Theloss you face will be your own.
233Thereis moreto methanmeets theear;
234There’s someonespecialliving here.
235[As posted on Stuttering Community
236duringNationalStutteringWeek, 2016]
237Defining “Self-Cure”
238Socrates wisely taught us thatallserious discourse should beginwith a definition ofthe terms under discussion. In this book, the key termis“selfcure
239”, which, for the purposes ofthis book, theauthor definesas follows:
240Strangers no longer identifythe PWS
241(person who stutters) as a stutterer .
242Thefoundation ofmy self-cureis remapping the brain and training it to do the PWS’ bidding (asa psychiatrist long ago urged meto do).
243There is only one, natural way to avoid stuttering; that is to speak spontaneously, without any planning or otherwise thinking about specific
244words. The easiest way to train oneself to speak spontaneously is to speak INSTANTANEOUSLY. All of the methods in this book are
245designed to further instantaneous, and hence spontaneous, speech. Despite occasional fears, I have suffered ZERO relapses in 40 years. That is
246why I refer to myselfas“98% Stutter-Free Lee”. The 2% morethan covers my randomstutter-fears, and the key point remains:No onecan catch
247mestuttering.
248What PWS Have Written About Lee
249Since some have chastised me for using the word “cure”(as none is putatively possible, according to many PWS, in the Western World anyway),
250Iamconstrained to share some unsolicited comments of my PWS-Mates , which clearly suggest that cures are not only possible but should be
251accomplished in a high percentage ofcases.
252In my now, almost year-long communications with PWS, I havefranklylearned as much or morethan I havetaught , for which I
253here give bountiful thanks, and it is this newknowledgethat gives riseto the 2
254nd Edition ofthis book, which adds roughly 110 pages or over 50%
255moretext.
256With nearly 2,000 “Friends”(scattered across five of the world’s seven continents) who have found me on Facebook in the past year, I have
257communicated with 100+ PWS, and I have received written comments from many sources: email, Skype chats, text messages, Messenger,
258comments on Facebook, book reviews, etc.As this is NOT acommercialenterprisefor me, I do notattempt to keep track ofsame, but, since so
259many PWS’ are such “Doubting Thomas’s” (“Stuttering is incurable”; “I don’t need to be ‘fixed’”, etc.), it seems appropriate to include a
260sampling of gratuitous, written comments by PWS. In no particular order, follow :
261APWS recently told meto download “Messenger”. I had never heard ofMessenger, but I did it. I found 100, 200, I have no idea howmany,
262“messages”from“Friends”, far too many to read or even scroll through. Many were complimentary, a few negative. This one was then near the
263top:
264Copied from Messenger, Feb. 2017: FB: “The book on stuttering was really helpful…. u have opened a new chapter in my life and u have
265usurped with positivity…. I’mgoing to start my life with this new perspective and u r my God …. thanks a lot Mr. Lovett …. u were so kind in
266sharing ur precious techniques withme…. Iadmireand respect that … I would beever gratefulto u” Prathusha Ravi, India
267Then, some posts fromFacebook:
268Johnson Sun to Lee Lovett
269February 13, 2017 at 11:10pm·
270Background: Zhenhua “Johnson” Sun, 32, born and raised in China, a severe stutter (“everyword on bad days”) since age 3, came to the U.S. 2
271years ago to attend grad school, suffered total blockage so severe that hesought help at the nearest hospital . After 150 therapy sessions in
272the U.S., he was little better; heread my book, listened to my audiobook and Skyped withme weekly for severalmonthsand nowbi-weekly. He
273is no longer a detectablestutterer . Asa post-script, Johnson hasagreed to help “coach” other PWS on Skype,and he volunteered to translate
274my book into Chinese, no charge!
275Sun’sexplanation of his self-cureis onmy Facebook page . Excerpts follow:
276“Lee knows every detail of stutter … After reading the [his] book, I felt I was equipped with super weapons to fight with my stuttering… My
277stuttering is 95% cured inChineseand 90% in English. I owe my cureto Lee’s book and Lee’scoaching on Skype. Lee’s methods work, and he
278gives his timefreely and unselfishly…”
279Josh Zello, 23, a resident of Texas, teaches the Christian Bible to several hundred children; he is training to be a minister. He has been a severe
280stutter (“everyword on bad days”) sinceagethree. By his definition and mine, heis no longera detectablestutterer, and heconsiders his job to be
281“professionalspeaker”, as his job requires himto make speeches on closed-circuit TV constantly. Since what he wrote on my Facebook
282pageis fairly short, I’lljust pasteit below.
283Joshua Zello to Lee Lovett
284October 20, 2016 · SanAntonio, TX, United States ·
285Thank you, Lee for all that you’ve done for me and so many others who struggle with stuttering. For those of you who have faced this struggle,
286Lee Lovett is the real deal. I listened to his audio book, read the book on Kindle, and Lee has repeatedly Skyped with me, coaching me at no
287charge. His methods work and he’sa genuineand good man. Get in touchwith himtoday.
288AltafHasen,aresident ofPakistan posted on FB:
289Altaf Hasen fromPakistanLee Lovett deserves that praise! Icouldn’t following his instructions due to personalreasons but I’ve no doubt in his
290methodsatall. God bless him, he’salightat theend ofalong dark tunnelfor the PWS February 13, 2017
291Facebook Post fromAustrailian SherrieAnne on Lee Lovett’s “wall”, October 30, 2016 - Happy birthday to the man who has already set into
292motionmy brand newlife. I hope you haveafantastic day xoxo
293OnFacebook , Feb. 13, 2017:AdamWerth,“May all our stutterablearmor’s becracked by this blessed man”
294Email to Lee fromNewDelhi , March 17, 2017: “For the first time in my life, I was able to read an article to my father without stuttering. It
295brought tears to hiseyes.”
296Emailto LeefromNY, Feb. 17, 2017:“…You are undoubtedly doing a greatserviceto the PWS. Alltheloveiscoming back to youLee!”
297EmailfromTexas Feb. 18,2017:Keep being awesome, you are making a huge differencein people’s lives, I knowit. See you, man.
298EmailfromDelhi Feb. 4, 2017:“yes your method is working for me. I stuttered only 7 times in last 8 days”
299Email fromBeijing (not “Johnson”) Nov. 5, 2016: “You are the living model for me. I have read through your book…excellent book. I am
300looking for talkingwith you on Skype. Iamcurrently inBeijing, China. Thanks”
301Email Jan. 20, 2016:“I appreciate you so much and all that you’ve taught me…I have a whole life of free speech ahead of me, thanks to your
302communication and lifeskills that you’vetaughtme … ”
303EmailFeb. 4, 2017:“I really appreciate what you’re doing for thestuttering community – it’samazing!”
304EmailFeb. 6, 2017 fromMN:“I’mso grateful you are helping so many send Satan Stuttering back to Hellwhere heso richly deserves to be.”
305EmailDec. 24, 2016:“I haven’t had any ‘bad days’. I’mhaving fun speaking…”
306EmailDec. 23, 2016:“Thetimethat you’vespent withme…is making areal difference…you’re morethanwelcometo share my story. I’mhappy
307to help you help as many as Ican.”
308Email:Oct. 11, 2016:“Thanks for theinspiring emailto my son.”
309Email:Feb. 12, 2017:“You arethetopic ofevery [therapy] session for months now. Knowthat weare gratefulforallthat you do.”
310Book Reviews
311Althoughmany kindlywrite meappreciativeemails,veryfew ever write book reviews , sadly. Anyway,afewdo and someexcerpts follow.
312“Lee, your book should be in the pantheon ofthe most helpful‘alternative’stuttering self-help tomes. This book staysaway fromtechnical jargon,
313and goes right into easy-to-use ways to becomefluent. Theauthorevenwill help you on your journey to fluency, for FREE…”
314RichardLamoureux, MN., Feb. 9, 2017
315“I havestuttered mywholelife …Iconsidered myself handicapped with no chance ofever speaking “normal” untilI read this book.Atage 41, I’m
316over joyed to be able to say that I amself-curing, thanks to this book and weekly Skype sessions with him… Mr. Lovett really knows his stuff. Wecall him‘Doctor Lee’at home. Ican’t recommend his book highly enough.”
317JasonEwing. KY, Oct. 12, 2016
318Sincethen, in arecentemail, headded, “I don’t think about stuttering much any more and strangers don’t think I stutter.”
319“I have always stuttered under pressure … I finished the book today and it was fantastic, simple and effective…I also Skyped with himand that
320helped too … He passionatelywants to help stutterers.”
321ManuelGomez, FL, August 20, 2016
322“I stutter mainly when under pressure. The techniques in this book are definitely helping. This book may launch an era of new thinking about
323stuttering.”
324Ordedrick Revish, August 5, 2016
325“This book offers the most impactfulmethods to managing stuttering ofany book I have read. Being the boss of your mind, auto suggestion and
326visualizationwillchange howyou speak. Itchanged mine. Thank youLee.
327BrianNolan, June 3, 2016
328Negative Comments
329WhileI believethat I havereceived 100+ positivecommunications, notall ofthemare. Some deride measa“quack”, “charlatan”and “despicable
330liar”. My book and efforts offend them, and my use ofthe word “cure”, protesting that I do not haveformal training in speech therapy, psychology
331or medicine. One has even “reported” me to the National Stuttering Foundation or some such group. (I amnot generally familiar with the many
332organizations in the stutteringworld.) I regret that I have offended anyone, as that is the last thing that I wish to do. As goes the cliché, “No good
333deed goes unpunished.”Iaccept thechastisements, but I mustcontinueto try to help my PWS-Mates.
334What Lee Says about His PWS-Mates
335They are my friends. I fully expectevery single one ofthemto self-cure. I will not rest untileach ofthem(1)achieves fluency, (2) becomes the best
336speaker in her/his group and (3) isableto say as do I,“Stutteringwas the greatest blessing ofmy life.”
337Foreword to 2
338ndEdition
339SELF-Cures AREthe Answer
340Therapy CAN help stuttering; therapy CAN help depression; therapy CAN help many things and your life in general, to be sure . I
341have profited fromtherapy (a psychiatrist), and I hope that my readers will avail themselves of therapy , as it will surely help their speech
342ANDtheir lives, but, but, BUT it is my firmbeliefthat, in theend, the ONLY real and lasting cure of stuttering is a SELF-cure.
343No pills, machines, peculiar breathing, vibrations, abnormalspeech patterns, etc. will do iteither. Stop looking for gimmicky fixes; noneexists.
344Stuttering resides in the mind, and the mind (YOUR mind) must be the engine of the cure; the mind must be assaulted by you, remapped,
345trained and managed, DAILY, FOR LIFE, and onlytheindividual PWS can do it .
346Many of us work so hard on aerobics, weights, diet, our appearance, reading self-help books, etc.; many of us spend hours a day in such
347pursuits, but we ignore, totally ignore, our minds , leaving our minds to be controlled by our environment (family, friends, teachers, the media,
348events, etc.); so, no surprise, we too often lead lives in as much disarray as is our often chaotic and violentenvironment. The result?Allmanner of
349physicalailments, and even speech-issues for some of us. All of our ailments arerelated .All lifeisconnected; lifeisaseamless whole;“All life
350is one,”as wrotetherenowned Harvard paleontologist, Stephen JayGould. So, we must faceit:To “heal” our speech, we must heal ourselves in
351a broader sense, and “normal”speechwillfollow. This is nota 30-minute a day job; it isa 24/7 lifelong job; it is the job of becoming the person
352weare proud to be.
353Helping stutterers (by giving away my book and Skyping, no charge) is my charity, and I literally LOVE doing it, period. I ammaking new
354friends, and so are they. I can be reached via emailat info@leeglovett.com. See also my five-minute video as displayed by theInternational
355Stuttering Association a t http://isad.isastutter.org/isad-2016/papers-presented-by-2016/stories-and-experiences-with-stuttering-by-pws/nomore-stuttering-lee-lovett/
356.
357I have PROVEN that stuttering can be SELF-cured, and I am witnessing a steady stream of others self-cure now. These are not oneoffs;
358they are one after another after another after another, almost domino-like (among worker-bees with minds open to a cure). There is no
359magic here, only logic . It’s not easy, but the odds are that you can do it. It’s not “willing” or “forcing” the mind; it’s mind training and
360management.
361I haveclosely observed others with faltered speech, and I have known enough cases to convince methatcountless (evenmillions) of verymild
362and situational stutterers (very severe speech anxiety ) self-cure constantly – largely by avoiding pressured speech until the stuttering-memories
363fadeand fear subsides. (Reducing stuttering-memories is a key part of my methods .) I mustadd, however, that ignoring stuttering is not likely
364to work for those with more than very mild cases; stuttering is a snowball; it is either gaining momentumor losing it at all times. If yours is not
365shrinking, noticeably and consistently, week-by-week, you should attack itand beat it, as you can do, rather than risk allowing it to expand into an
366ever-greater disability. Lifeis stunningly short. Takeaction now.
367I believethatstutterers have not generally cured, becausethey haverelied on others to curethem, when only the PWS can achieve his/her own
368cure. My conviction in self-cures has attracted scathing rebukes, defaming me variously as a “quack”, “charlatan” or “despicable liar”, but I am
369living proof to thecontrary, and so arethose whom I am helping .
370I was urged to write the 1
371st Edition by the parents ofstuttering-children whomI had helped, mostly in the 1960’s and 1970’s. There was no
372Internet, no Skype nor Facetime, then. Those whomI helped often lived far away, and I worked with themover the phone, which was then very
373expensive and precluded me from observing the stutterers most of the time. I followed these telephone-sessions with often voluminous, written
374suggestionsas sent via SnailMail. Whilesome ofthoseletters formed the nucleus ofsomesections ofthis book, most werelost. When I wrotethis
375book, 1
376st Edition, in 2015 (beforereleasing it in spring 2016), I intentionally did NOT read other texts orconsult other sources untilI had finished
377thefirst draft ofmy book, becauseI wanted to tell“my story” unvarnished, wartsand all,exactly as I had painfully experienced it.
378However, after finishing my first draft and before publishing my 1
379st Edition, I did go online, and I was stunned to discover countless texts,
380articles, therapists,clinics, bloggers,etc. offering help or solaceto stutterers. I was overwhelmed by the vast ocean of vendorsand materials. Being
381one who has tried valiantly to read “a book a week”most ofmy adult life, I purchased aroughly six-foot-tallstack ofstuttering-booksand leaped
382into them8-10-12 hours a day, devouring dozens of books until my eyes burned, along with visits to myriad blogs and other materials. While I
383found many passionate, touching, verywell-intentioned, interesting and helpfulmaterials, most ofthe messages fell into one ofthree categories:(1)
384those written by knowledgeable and well-intentioned speech professionals (speech language pathologists or SLP’s, some with Ph.D’s) but who
385had never stuttere d or (2) the often heart-wrenching stories of those (some with Ph.D.’s in speech therapy) who had waged the stuttering-war
386foralifetime but who had nevercured , or (3) books for“$2.99”(I regret to say by apparentcharlatans), bogus books, that were 20-50 pages
387of insulting platitudes designed to fleece the long-suffering and innocent-PWS’ of their much needed 299 pennies. Even so, in (1) and (2), I DID
388find some very helpful ideas, and I did plagiarize some and added themto my book – however, with attribution in each instance, using quotation
389marks and listing theminmy Bibliography – BUT these books did not precipitate significant changes to “my story” or my methodolog y.
390My methods were/are what they were/are; so, my book remained a faithfully chronicled account of my 25-year journey through the ineffably
391excruciatingminefieldsand mentaland socialcrucibles ofstuttering. Mystory was mytruth, and Icouldn’t changeit .
392Since I published my 1
393st Edition in 2016, I have been in communication with stutterers fromall over the world, and my stuttering emailers,
394Messengers, texters, Facetimers and Skypees HAVE taught me a great deal , and they have pointed me to some much more helpful
395texts , which Iamadding to this 2
396nd Edition and its Bibliography. Some of thoseverylegitimate books may well be precisely what you need ,
397as each of us is so different, and what willextinguish Satan Stuttering for one of us may not be the best answer for others – althoughmymethods
398are nowproving effectivefora wide variety of PWS. Beforeleaving thesubject of other materials, I hereconfess that Icould not begin to do more
399than samplethe vast labyrinth of books and speech-gurus on point, but I commend themto you. Having wonmy battle with Satan Stuttering, the
400constraints of time confine my efforts to trying to help others understand and apply the methods that I used and use to this day to beat Satan
401Stuttering and to keep that DraconianDemon in his infernalHell:buried as deep inDante’s flaming Inferno as Ican cast him.
402In the tenmonths since I published the 1
403st Edition, after going on Facebook, I have attracted PWS fromall over the world: Europe, the Far
404East, Middle East, Africa, Russia, Turkey, Greece, Indonesia, Australia, NewZealand, UK, Canadaand throughout the U.S.
405As I type these words, IamnowSkypingwith 10-20 stutterers weekly, for one or more hours each . Today, I Skyped with PWS in Beijing,
406Doha,Australia, and the UK.Yesterday, inDelhi, Pakistan and Mumbai. Dueto varied timezones, I do this seven daysa week and atall hours of
407the day. These Skyping-stutterersare ofallages, ethnicities, religions, sexes, educations, economicstrata, and cultures – and, most important, they
408have WIDELYvarying degrees ofspeech problems, butall have onething in common:Satan Stuttering.
409The first thing that people who stutter (“PWS”) have taught me is this:No SINGLE method is going to help all PWS’s. That is, there is
410likely no “perfect” UNIVERSAL solution. This does not make one method “bad” and another “good”. I believe that my
411MULTIPLE methods (used in part or in whole) will work in most cases, and that they arecompatible with most others. Unfortunately,
412some PWS are quick to dismiss my or any new methods that vary from what they have been doing. They miss a bet by not trying the new,
413especiallywhen it is workingwellfor most who try itand when theirexistingmethodsare not working so well.
414Forease of discussion, Iclassify PWS into three groups:
4151-3 Very Mild,
4164-6 Mild ,
4177-10 Severe .
418At therisk of oversimplification, I break theaboveinto threetypes:
419Hesitators
420Stutterers/stammerers
421Blockers
422Some do combinations OR all of the above and even switch back-and-forth among themfromsentence-to-sentence. The best methods for
423one group would not necessarily bethe best methods for other groups. Evenwithmymethods, PWS seemto respond better to different methods.
424I used ALL of them, over the years to self-cure. Today, to prevent relapses, I use only my Crutches (Step Two), which have been greatly
425expanded inmy 2
426nd Edition.
427Online, of late, there seems to be considerable discussion about “controlled” and “uncontrolled” methods . Labels often compound
428more problems than they solve, especially when they are defined dif erently . How are these words to be defined? By “controlled method”
429(“CM”), I mean any method that asks the stutterer to think about his words, breathing and/or imposes various techniques such as breathing,
430vibrating thethroat muscles, elongating syllables, etc.) By “uncontrolled method”(“UM”), I mean anymethod wherethestutterer isasked NOT to
431imposeany techniques or“tricks”(as that termis sweepingly and disparagingly used) to manipulate his speech.
432My methods are uncontrolled but with a “twist”. I use some tools (“Crutches”) which do NOT plan or manipulate speech; my Crutches
433are methods of spontaneously and instantaneously leapfrogging imminent stutters . They don’t do unnatural things; they skirt verbal
434potholes/stutters. ACrutch keeps us fromwalking on a broken leg while it is healing, but it doesn’t control the leg; it keeps us OFF the leg. My
435Crutches thus FIGHTCONTROLLS and enable meto do two things:(1) Begin reducing stuttered-words onmyworst stuttering-days (PhaseI of
436my cure) and (2) avoid the infrequent stutter-threats that occurred – after I was effectively cured which could cause relapses. Simply put, my
437Crutchesenabled meto jump-startmy self-cure(by reducing oreliminating creation of bad stutter-memories)and, now, still prevent relapses.
438In my humble view, stuttering will never be cured until the PWS’ Fluency Memories (FM’s) are substantially greater than his Stuttering
439Memories (SM’s). A PWS who stutterers on most words, creates far too many stuttering memories (SM’s) daily to have a prayer to
440defeat stuttering unless they find a way to reduce stuttering initially . While reading aloud and largely stutter-free talking (to children, pets,
441etc.) will build FM’s, some method of dodging stutters, initially, must be found or the SM”s willcontinue to overpower the FM’s. My Crutches
442enablethe PWS to create more FM’s than SM’s. It worked for me,and it’s working for others.
443Skillful use ofmy Crutches is dependent upon the work ethic of the PWS. Again, both PWS’and their cures willalways be unique in some
444respects.) As I explain in new Section 12, Jump Starting Your Self-Cure, I use a number of drills to bridge the chasm between Severe/Very
445Severeand Mild/VeryMild PWS’s. Theseverity ofstuttering dictates the bridgeand the drills.
446As I have other books to write and much else that I wish to do in what remains of my fast-fleeting life, this 2
447nd Edition is only going to add
448these newSections:
44910.“Speech Isa River”
45011. What 100+ PWS Taught Me
45112. Jump StartingYour Self-Cure
45213. SevenCardinalSins ofPWS
45314. Healing the Whole Person
45415. Mild SpeechAnxiety
45517. SpeechAnxietyAnonymous
456Ialso tweaked theentirefirst 1
457st Edition, hereand there, to remove glaring contradictions between the 1
458st and 2
459nd Editions.
460Again, all of the foregoing changes are the direct result of one-on-one dealings with 100+ stutterers, their questions, comments, criticisms and
461suggestions. My goal remains: To do all in my limited power to help as many PWS as possible kill the life-sucking Satan Stuttering. With a
462guesstimated 70 million people hanging by their speech-fingernails and many times that number suffering severe speech anxiety, we have much to
463do. Iamreinvigorated and inspired by thisconviction, which has sustained meand kept mefromabandoning the quest for my own self-cure. Here
464is myLifetime Mantra:
465If Ican say ONE word, anywhere, anytime,
466Ican say ANY word, anywhere, anytime.
467Think about it. IT IS PURE LOGIC – and, to date, not one PWS has ever disagreed with that statement . I know that many naysayers
468disagree, but not those with whomI amworking. Millions once thought the world is flat, but we learned differently. The FACT is that stuttering
469IS curable!!!I amproof of the veracity of that statement; and I amwitnessing others prove it everymonth. It’s time to start smelling the roses. I
470shall dietrying to help others proveit,and importuningmy self-cured Mates to help me help others (no charge) to find their way to fluency – and to
471the mental peace which they haveevery reason and ability to enjoy. Join us!
472Lee G. Lovett
473Introduction
474Viewing Stuttering as a Blessing
475“Stuttering is your opportunity to learn to control your mind.
476If youwill do so, stutteringwill become your greatest blessing.”
477Lee G. Lovett
478Stuttering, as most agree, is largely a mentaland physicalmystery, both its causes and its cures. The author respectfully disagrees and offers this
479book in support. After waging a roughly 25 year battle with it, the author of this book was able to cure himself. In the process, he developed
480techniques and methods that worked, not simply for a month or year, but forever. In the process of discovering methods to self-cure, he found
481ways to improve his life immeasurably. Stuttering became a great blessing in disguise . His story, techniques and methods are described in
482this book.
483This book is written for stutterers by an ex-stutterer. If you don’t consider yourself to be a stutterer (or at least one who suf ers severe
484anxiety attacks, especially related to speaking ), or one who mentors stutterers, this book may not interest you. Most problems present
485opportunities for growth and great victories, and the moresevere the problem, the greater the opportunity for growth . So, readers one and
486all, stop frowning and startsmiling right now, becausethis book is going to help you a great deal.
487Psychiatrists tell us that every human being stutters, on occasion. The degrees ofstuttering range frominfrequent and verymild (a few words
488hereand there, which isextremely common) to total blockage(stuttering on everyword with an occasional inability to say anything, which is rare).
489Most stutterers fall in between those extremes. Stuttering tends to gain a foothold in one’s earlier years, when he/she (“he”) feels more insecure
490about himself, the stability of his family, his friendships or lack thereof, his ability to survive in life’s tumultuous seas, to sustain a “normal”life, etc.
491Once a person becomes more accepting of himself, his anxieties tend to wane gradually, and stuttering often proportionately decreases. For
492stutterers, this gradual acceptance of self and life doesn’t come quickly enough, and stuttering gradually takes over his life , until, for
493some, stuttering incredibly consumes his mind 24/7, literally. Thiscan destroy one’s life,and all possiblesteps must betaken to arrest it.
494The author began stuttering in his teens, and his stuttering peaked in his mid-twenties with situational-heavy stuttering and even sporadic total
495blockage. He obtained psychiatric help (but only six, one-hour sessions), in which he was steered into self-hypnosis (sometimes called auto
496conditioning), and, at his doctor’s suggestion, began to treat himself. Theauthor’s gradualself-cures (which he breaks into six, easy-to-understand
497steps) were achieved by his mid-to late thirties. It took the author that long to find techniques and methods that worked. The author’s cures
498aren’t dif icult, and you can learn them, if you’ll follow thesteps and do the practicing, religiously.
499Whether your stuttering is mild or plagues you on everyword and even results in desultory total blockage, the author created and lives by this
500lifelongmotto, which iscompellingly repeated in this book:
501If Ican say ONE word anywhere, anytime,
502Ican say ANY word anywhere, anytime.
503How? What’s the key? The key, the author reveals, is your Mind’s Memory and Image Bank (or “MMIB”). When it is preponderantly full
504ofstuttering-memoriesand mental images of yourselfstuttering,you will stutter and likelycontinueto increaseyour stuttering untilyou begin
505to reduce the preponderance of stuttering memories and images in your MMIB . As the preponderance of your MMIB becomes less
506weighted with stuttering, your stutteringwill proportionately decrease. This theauthor guarantees.
507But how can you do that? By practicing the techniques and methods described herein, by yourself, alone, and, then, using those techniques,
508one-by-one, in your daily conversations (and anywhere else), and by NOT avoiding talking (as a rule), and by training your mind to RELISH
509talking – and you CAN DO THAT. (Even if you practice, such as by speaking or reading, alone, in a closet, where no one can hear you, as the
510author once did, you arestillre-building your Mind’s Memory and Image Bank or MMIB.) The more that you talk fluently, whetheralone, to one
511person, or to a group,anywhere, the more positive your MMIBbecomes, until, in time, it is preponderantly positive.
512As you practice and keep talking to one and all, your stuttering will go into an accelerated decline, until you reach The Goal: when your
513stuttering is not detectable by others, at which point you will be free of The Stuttering Curse, as the author calls it. (If your practicing
514doesn’t seemto be working, and you still keep having problems publicly, more private practicing and visual imagery is needed until the tide begins
515to turn in your favor. Each of us is different. We must overwhelm our MMIB’s with good memories and images . It may take some time. You
516didn’t start stuttering full throttle either; it took time to reach your stuttering peak; so, don’texpect to erase all that overnight.) So, you ask, “How
517do I practice; howdo you talk atallwithoutstuttering?”Theanswersare here.
518Thefirst instances ofstuttering, for most of us, are caused by situations (such as when forced to speak before a group in a schoolclassroom
519or a family group, etc.) or by the need to speak to specific people (an intimidating parent, teacher, stranger or friend). Once embarrassed and
520humiliated by stuttering thefirst time, the memory lingers and becomes self-perpetuating . If left unchecked, stuttering can escalate quickly
521and become a severe, life-long curse, but this need not be the case, and it can be arrested and reversed in much the same manner as it
522evolved . Clearly, thelongerand the more you havestuttered, thelongeracure will take, butacureshould beachieved within severalmonths to a
523year.
524This book is not theoretical; it is practical . It focuses on one thing: Steps that the reader can take to steadily diminish the incidents
525of embarrassing stuttering, and, over time, to correspondingly reduce the memories and images of stuttering that exist in his/her (his)
526Mind’s Memory and Image Bank . Yes, after ten years of becoming an increasingly worse stutterer, it did take the author roughly fifteen more
527agonizing years to unearth the techniques and methods described herein, but the author believes that, if he had been given the tools in this book
528when his stuttering was at its peak (with sporadic complete blockage), he could and would have cured himself in less than one year, and very
529possibly in afewmonths – and remained cured for therest of his life, which heachieved, but it needn’t havetaken so long.
530It has now been decades since anyone detected the author stuttering. The author tells us that, whatever your degree of stuttering today, you
531can be sure that it is becoming better or worse virtually daily. The good news is that you can change its direction to diminishing and keep
532diminishing it untilthestuttering is gone.
533Although the fear of stuttering may always pop-up now and then (as it still does, infrequently, for the author), you will have the
534tools/Crutches from this book to crush it and to continueto speak with no detectableevidence of stuttering, as has and does the author .
535The author repeatedly admits that he is still a “stutterer”, but he defines his stuttering as “not detectable” . If you are listening to the
536audibleversion of this book,you will be hearing the author read these words, and thisentire book, to you – and you will not be able
537to detect anystuttering .
538The anti-stuttering tools, techniques and methods described in this book overlap and are rephrased and repeated throughout, because all of
539them can be used individually and/or together and are aimed at harnessing and destroying what the author characterizes as the Demon
540Fear ofstuttering that literally consumeseverywakingminute ofa many stutterers’ thoughts.
541To either eliminate stuttering entirely or diminish it to the point that the stuttering is no longer detectable, however, you can’t simply read this
542book; youmust master its methodology. Youmustmakeit your own;study its principlesand, then, put those principles into action,via your own,
543long-term assiduous daily, hourly and even minute-by-minute practice of the self-cures outlined herein . If you’re not willing to do that, this
544book will not do much for you. If you’re willing to master this book, you’re going to accomplish much more than just beating stuttering;
545you’re going to elevateyour lifeto levelsyou never dreamed were possible.
546As you do this,you can, should and will makestuttering, and your journeyto overcomeit, one of the biggest blessings ofyour life
547. Theauthor did it. Now, it’s your turn. It’s timeto begin.
548The Publisher
549P
550a
551r
552t
553I
554Unde
555rs
556t
557a
558nding
559t
560he
561Pro
562bl
563e
564m
565Section 1
566When Stuttering Became My Life-Crisis
567“The measure ofa man is what he does when he’s down .”
568KevinCostner (Actor, filmdirector, 1955-)
569Before I describe when and how stuttering first became a 25-year-curse and what I did to gain control (and mastery of it), let me first flatly
570state: I ama stutterer, and, although I consider myself 98% cured (and have not been detectable as a stutterer for four decades), I willsurely die
571with alingering thought ofstuttering, but no one knows it, unless I tell them. (Thelast 2% represents thaterrant, sporadicfear ofstuttering, which I
572still must combat, now and then, with the techniques (my “Crutches”) as described Step Two. Indeed, as I made the audible recording of this
573book, I willstill usethosesametechniques to avoid occasional, detectablestuttering as I read to you.Yes, when needed, I still usethesix Steps
574described herein ,and, when that Demon Stuttering tries to seize me, I whip it on thespot .)
575As withmost problems, admission ofthe Stuttering-Problemis the first step on The Road to Stuttering-Cure. This does not mean telling every
576stranger that you stutter. It is talking about stuttering to spouses and trusted confidants that helps mitigate the stutterer’s angst. Somehow, when
577we openly discussand verbally dissectany problem, it no longer seemsas daunting.
578To learn to master one negative thought (e.g., the fear of stuttering) is to learn to master many other negative thought s. The seeds
579ofsuccess are born in failure, and in identifying the problems that caused failure, and, then, in solving those problems – all ofwhich this stutterer’s
580story proves.
581To the best ofmy knowledge, no one is born a stutterer. Some event triggers the first, embarrassing instance, and it snowballs fromthere. In
582my case, in my early teens, stuttering began to become a serious problemfor me. I remember vividly the moment when it exploded in my life. It
583was in English class, when I was asked to read a passage aloud froma novel. Oddly, I stuttered on a word, and the class laughed; shocked, I
584flushed and stumbled on the next word, evoking evenmore laughter; my head began pounding, and I then collapsed into a paroxysmofstuttering,
585until I couldn’t continue; the class kept laughing. Finally, the professor intervened and asked someone else to read. Fromthat day to this, fear of
586stuttering at some level has lurked (and lurks) in my mind, a loathed Mephistopheles ever threatening to silence and humiliate me. When not
587“forced”to speak, and especially to say a specific, assigned word (affordingme no options to mitigate the problemby choosing alternate words),
588mystuttering grew and grew ANDGREWforyears, making it impossibleto avoid and mask .
589What made this explosion ofstutteringmore inexplicable is the fact that, prior to that first, very public outburst ofstuttering, I had achieved at
590my prep school, for the prior five years, the highest grades in the class – for publicspeaking, whichwas a required part of the English curriculum
591(and comprised 20% of the grade in each English course). I had faithfully rehearsed my speeches to perfection, with the help of my father.
592Speaking had become very important to me,every syllable had to be perfect. Indeed, years later,a psychiatrist told me,
593“Perfectionismisa primary cause ofstuttering.”
594When striving to speak “perfectly”, my first, debilitating stuttering day came, when I made one mistake, revealing that I was far from a
595“perfect”speaker; indeed, in one instant, I became a verbalcripple. No one could understand it, least ofall, I, but it wouldn’t go away; it became
596progressivelyworse.
597However, as explained in detail in this book, I have cured 98% of the problem, and I define this arcane percentage this way: If you lived me
598with, 24/7 for the next year, at the end of it, you would say, “Lee, you’re not a stutterer,”and the reason that you would say that is this: I have
599eliminated 98% of thefear of stuttering, and I have discovered methods of avoiding any stuttering incident that the 2% residual-fear
600might engender .
601When IamIcloseto stuttering, I simply knowa variety ofways to avoid it. I KNOWthat Ican avoid it; so, I no longerconsciously fear
602it . Stuttering is locked-up, nowusually buried out-of-sight in my psyche, and, today, no one, but no one (who did not know me in my obvious
603StutteringDays) knows I was, much lessam,astutterer (i.e., stillsubject to thelatent fear). Many have heard me give mespeeches, read poetry to
604groups, win public speaking contests, coach public speaking, present awards and eulogies, and, most important, engage in routine, minute-byminuteconversation,
605and, throughoutall oftheforegoing, my techniques have madeit virtually impossibleto detectany evidence ofstuttering. How
606did Iachievethis? That’s what this book reveals.
607Ofcourse, stuttering is something that most stutterers want to hide; so, except in remedial or clinical situations, stutterers rarely discuss their
608stuttering, becauseit isembarrassing and talking about itadmits it, affirms itand seems to reinforcethe problem, rendering itall the more difficult to
609control. I do not favor announcing stuttering to strangers, because it reinforces the problemto me and tends to make listeners want to avoid me.
610Conversely, talking about the problemto intimatescan launch acure ofstuttering.
611Inmy case, as the years passed, my stuttering grewworse. Even though Icould mask my stuttering inmany situations, I had to wrestle with
612it every hour ofevery day. As realstutterers know, stuttering, left unchecked, takes full possession of the stutterers mind and controls
613it and can literally destroy a stutterer’s life. I know; I was there – for decades before discovering the cures that are described in this book.
614Now, I shallshare with you the mostembarrassing stuttering-moment ofmy life. It remainsas vivid as yesterday’sevents.
615Fast forward a decade plus frommy first instance ofstuttering in school, to when I had just passed the Bar Exam. I had been assigned a “pro
616bono”case, an appeal by an incarcerated felon ofa robbery conviction, which appealwas based on a very narrow (and long shot) technicality. It
617was my first court-case. On a scalding summer day (before air conditioning became common) in a courtroomin Federal Court in the District of
618Columbia Circuit, I was waiting for my assigned-client’s case to be called. I wasn’t thinking about my client or the case at all; I was racking my
619brain for ways to avoid stuttering; I feltas though I wasawaitingmy own execution:Howcould Iavoid stuttering; howcould I makethecase; how
620could I even utter one word? In my vested, three-piece suit (the style of the times), the sweat was running frommy armpits down my sides and
621beading up heavily onmy back and chest and inmy scalp, trickling sweat-beads downmy face. My heart was pumping triple time, and my head
622was throbbing violently. I was terrified – terrified atappearing in court for thefirst timeinmy lifein any capacity and being thereto actually arguea
623caseand, most ofall, oftrying to do what then seemed impossible:Mask my chronicstuttering.
624Havingwrestled with stuttering for many years by that time, I had developed afewhelpful“tricks” or techniques, any orall ofwhich sometimes
625mitigated the problemsufficiently to save me fromtoo much embarrassment, BUT these couldn’t help much in court, as court was an unforgiving
626environment, and I knewthat I had no way ofavoiding stuttering over specific words that I had to say, words for which there were no options (or
627synonyms or other forms ofalternates), such as my client’s name or my own name. Indeed, one of my biggest fears was simply saying my own
628name: Lee Lovett. How pathetic is that? If, dear reader, you are not a stutterer, you are probably laughing right now, because that is what nonstutterers
629do to stutterers, laugh. How else could I make a fool ofmyself faster than not being able to say my own name? On this blackest ofall
630black days, my worst fearscame upon me. My case wascalled; I took my seatat Counsel’s table, and the presiding Judgeasked meto begin. I
631roseand gushed,
632“Good morning, your Honor, my nameis…[Silenceensued.]”
633I stared hopelessly at the judge. Words beginningwith “L’s”, “R’s”and “W’s”were the most difficult for me, especiallywhen under pressure
634and where no word could be substituted. Mymouth froze; I could feel the pupils ofmy eyes roll into my forehead; I then repeated, “My name is …”I paused and stared frantically; thesweatexploded onmy forehead and gushed downmy cheeks; Icontinued haplessly:
635“l…l…l…leh…l…l…l…ee…l…l…loh…lov…leh…loh… l…l…eeov…”
636Icouldn’t finishmy name. Mercifully, thejudgecameto my rescue by saying, “Mr. Lovett, please begin your presentation.” I had never been
637so embarrassed in my life!!! To compound my malaise, my father (a well renowned attorney) was present. I was then drenched, head-to-toe,
638but I did continue, but my stuttering could not be concealed. I avoided it on many words by choosing synonyms (which was then my first line of
639defense against stuttering), but there were words that I had to say which I could not avoid, and the judge continued to help me, as needed, but it
640was unbelievably embarrassing. By the time I finished, I collapsed into the chair, drenched as if stepping from a shower, totally exhausted,
641unbelievably humiliated, devastated, defeated, resigned to everlasting failure – and theseeming end to alegalcareer that had not yet begun.
642I lost the case, ofcourse, as the facts had doomed it anyway (as my client had been caught in the robbery-act). As I returned by cab to my
643office with my father (who said not one word about it, as those close to me pretended that I didn’t stutter), I was still trembling and suffering a
644splitting headache, and my head was spinning. ThereI was, age 25, married with two infant-sons, brokeand facing acareer that I seemingly could
645not pursue. (My father was notarichman,and I had to make my ownway financially.)
646What had I done to myself? What was to become ofa “lawyer” who could not even say his own name under pressure? I had worked for
647years, in college and law school, while holdingmany side jobs (waiting tables, driving a cab, pumping gas, working on a commercial fishing boat,
648as a laborer in a steel plant, on CapitolHillas a doorman, cloakroomattendant, etc.), all just to get through school. Finally, finished with school, I
649had to face the cold fact that my legalcareer seemed to be doomed to abject failure before it began. I had one saving grace:As English had been
650my best subject throughout school, I was considered to be an excellent writer, but those writing legal documents make a fraction of those who
651presentcases verbally.
652Stuttering had become a serious problem in my teens, and it persisted in college and law school. Ironically, the problem was inconsistent:
653Beginning at age 12, I sang publicly constantly, and stuttering never interfered. In day-to-day, minute-by-minute conversations, stuttering became
654most noticeable when I was under pressure, for example, when introducing people and trying to say their names. In most of my casual
655conversations, I wasableto usesynonyms; I often concealed the problemmost ofthetime. So, Iexpected to find acure, but I hadn’t.
656BythetimeI graduated from Law School, it had become a crisis offrightening proportions. WhileI didn’t stutterall ofthetime, I stuttered
657in every situation that I deemed critically important. The bottomline was that my stutteringwas out ofcontrol. Then facing the prospect ofacareer
658that mandated speaking in allmanner of forums, my stuttering seemed to explode. The more pressure that I felt to speak, the more I stuttered. It
659was on my mind 24/7. No matter how many times I turned it over in mind, my stuttering seemed to doomme to a lifetime ofstuttering – and to
660failure. Atage 25, with two children and no financiallifeboat or net, I became desperate.
661As I began to discover, and use, the methods discussed in this book, as summarized in Sections 4-9, my stuttering disasters became less
662devastating, as I gradually learned how to mitigate them in various ways, but they were still problems. For example, I recall an organizational
663meeting ofa cable TV group. I was then about 35. There were 30 or so of us, seated at a long table. The Chairman (who later became my law
664partner)asked each of us to introduce ourselves. I was seated about fivefromthelast.Aseach person stated his/her name, I grewmoretenseand
665fearful of re-enacting my courtroomscene of years prior – and not being able to say my name. So, before it came my turn to speak, I rose and
666went to the bathroom, thus avoiding the saying my name altogether. Upon my return, the Chairman introduced me. This, ofcourse, was not any
667formof“cure”; it was simply evading thecrisisand embarrassmentand postponing its resolution – mostany harbor in astormis better than none –
668but, sometimes, this technique helped with thecure, as itavoided a publicrelapse, and publicrelapsesalwaysexacerbated the problem, takingme
669backwards,and reinforcing failureas my lot,and, thus, warrantextremeand creative methods to avert them.
670Not long after that, I developed other techniques that enabled me to never avoid speaking again. I simply developed so many methods of
671speaking through, under, over and around myfears; I no longer needed to fleethesceneto avert embarrassment . Let’s turn nowto the
672progressive discovery ofmy self-cures.
673So, yes, afterexperiencingworsening stuttering for nearly ten years, I began to create new ways to mitigate the problem; thus,each year, for
674another ten years (fifteen years to avoid any publictrace of it), I discovered and taught myself more, new techniques , and I stuttered less
675and less, and I began speaking publicly more and more. I remember, after ten years of grappling with stuttering, in one year, I gave 48 formal
676speeches to trade and professionalassociations; not one person in any of those audiences ever heard me stutter; I did stutter, sometimes, but
677they never heard it . (How?I’ll tell you, step-by-step, what I did.) Over the years, I was“live” on some 70 radio programsand halfa dozen TV
678shows (talking about the businesses which I was then involved and the evolution of various technologies). Over time, I co-founded something on
679the order of 100 businesses (most sold to public companies eventually and all still operating as best I know), mostly related to electronic
680communications (radio, cable TV, long distance telephone and cellular telephone). I slowly grew to love public speaking , despite still battling
681stuttering in every speech, and, similarly, my every day conversations (which were sporadically, but still serious, chronic problems) became
682progressively easierand moreenjoyable,allasaresult ofthetechniques that I describe herein.
683Eventually, as a hobby and labor of love, I became (and still am) a word-of-mouth-requested pro bono speech-coach and a lay-speech
684therapist, helping stutterersand non-stutterers, studentsand adults (including some professional politicians) with thetechniques of publicspeaking –
685all no charge. Ienjoy doing this, asa kindness to fellow-stutterers. (Some ofmy publicspeaking tipsare given in Sections 9.6 and 9.7.) While, to
686this very day, a latent fear of stuttering still exists, I have many ways of extinguishing those fears, all as presented herein; so, others
687never hear an actual stutter by me, not for decades .
688This still seems ironic, and marvelous, to me. It says so much for self-discipline and mind-control, the hand maidens of successful
689speech – and of a rewarding life. To this day, I leap at opportunities to speak in public, to givelectures inmy field, to address youth-groups, to
690preside at all manner of meetings, to present awards or eulogies. Being long in the tooth now, my parents, siblings and many of my childhood
691friends are deceased. My surviving family and friends didn’t even know me when I wrestled Demon Stuttering, and, when I tell people that I
692battled stuttering relentlessly for decades, they can’t believeit. Even some ofmy ex-lawpartners never knewthat I struggled with stuttering.
693The only psychiatrist who ever treated me for stuttering (or for anything) once said, “You probably won’t eliminate all of your stuttering, but
694you can eliminate most ofit.”He was right, but, as I long ago made my stuttering undetectable, I took it farther than heenvisioned. Forall practical
695purposes (that is, as faras the outside world is concerned), I had a 100% self-cure. People who have knownme for decades are stunned when I
696tellthemthat I was/amastutterer. They can’t tellwhen I usea“Crutch”(Step 2) to avoid astutter.
697Similarly, stutterers, who apply the principles herein, can and willexperience“cures”, cures sufficient to removethemfromthe group known as
698“stutterers”and to enablethemto relax and enjoy conversationaland formalspeaking.
699It is important to note that I wrote this book based entirely on my own School of Hard Knocks-experiences as a stutterer. I did not
700consult or use any other book BEFORE I wrote my life-battle with stuttering and defined exactly what I did to overcome it. So, I
701developed my “cures”fully in this book before considering and inserting the advice of others. Then, for the 2
702nd Edition, I added what 100+ PWS
703havetaught me; that is, all of usare different, and I needed to adjust the methods that worked so wellfor meto suit the various levelsand types of
704stutterers. No one book can be perfect fit for everyone, but I want to make my methods work for as many as I can. It gains me nothing to take
705themto my grave, unshared.
706AFTER I finished writing my story about stuttering and had fully defined my personal, unfettered curing-techniques, then, I researched online
707and purchased and reviewed most of the books that I could now find about stuttering – several dozen (some of which are listed in the
708Bibliography). Only one of them existed when I began my battle with stuttering, but I never heard of it until now. There is usually more than
709oneroad to Valhalla, and many ofthese other booksare helpfuland may help you immensely, but I did not find anything in themthat replicated my
710self-cures, but, ofcourse, theymight do muchmore for you. Mostare short, and you could likely read themall in a month or two. I have inserted
711references inmy book to these other books, wherever they seemed pertinentand efficacious; I havealso inserted my comments on themin Part III
712of this book, and I have listed these and other books in the Bibliography at the end of this book. While all of them can help at some level, I
713respectfully submit that diligentapplication ofthe techniques in this book willsuffice for most, and, frankly, I was unable to find any cure, in any
714other book , that would have materially expedited the self-cures that I created and delineate herein. (In this 2
715nd Edition, I include a new Section
71610, “Speech Is a River”, a commentary upon Ruth Meade’s excellent book by that name, with comments on a few other books as well, all
717recommended to me bymy PWS-Mates.
718My self-taught-techniques should enable you to cureyour stuttering, not in decades , but in less than one year (and my PWS-Skypees
719seemto be self-curing 75% or more within 90 days of our first Skype), IF you will apply yourself and master these techniques, while
720refusing to accept stuttering as your fate in life. Stuttering need not be your life-sentence, your destiny. It can be your biggest victory, as it
721became mine. As with so many things in life, your perseverance, dedication and self-discipline will determine the speed and degree to which
722you cureyour stuttering .
723My cures are NOT given in the order in which I learned them, as career-necessity-crises forced me to learn many of themsimultaneously,
724more or less; norarethey given in an order ofimportance,asallare helpful butsome willsuit you better than others.
725Clearly, the points related to mind-control are the sine qua non (the condition precedent or foundation) of my cure, but, without the other
726techniques, mymind-controlefforts would not have been aseffective, or, for some, might not have worked.
727As such, my methods or “techniques” are presented in an order which should prove easiest for the reader to grasp them and put
728themto work .
729Some ofmy cures willseemsimple, but don’t discount them. Each is, at minimum, a valuable tool orcrutchwhichmay, by itself, save the day
730on someimportant occasion, thusavoiding a damaging relapse which compounds your stuttering. Thekeyto overcoming fear of stuttering is to
731minimize current and future incidents of embarrassing stuttering and to implant positive incidents in your Mind’s Memory and Image Bank
732(MMIB),and that is preciselywhatmany ofmymethodsenabled meto do.
733The word “techniques”sounds a bit like “tricks” or “gimmicks”, and, in that sense, it is misleading. I now use the term“Crutches”. We use a
734crutch to allowa broken leg to heal. Similarly, we use Crutches to give us timeto heal our mindsand train themto allowus to speak spontaneously
735and INSTANTANEOUSLY, without planning or pre-thinking any words at all. (For most PWS, the less time they allow to lapse before they
736speak, theless they stutter.
737This book offers no tricks or short cuts to anything. Quite to the contrary, this book urges a new way of thinking, and methods of jumpstarting
738and perpetuating such thinking, which should lead to a new way of life , a life in which you take control of your mind , and
739hence your thoughts, your body and your karma.Yes, if you followthesix Steps provide herein, itcan and should lead to acure of your stuttering,
740and, in the bargain, offer muchmore:a better lifeinways far transcending your speech.
741Thecondition precedent to my self-cures is to identify and understand thecause ofstuttering. Let’saddress that now.
742Section 2
743Identifying the Cause of Stuttering
744“Common senseis uncommon.”
745Voltaire(French philosopher, 1694-1778)
746Stuttering seems to attack the young, often between the ages ofthree and five, while some may startas late as college, where mild speech anxiety
747can convert into stuttering. Its first instance is usually when speaking to a group or to someone who intimidates the stutterer. Stuttering has no
748organic cause, such as a forked tongue, mal-formed mouth, larynx or the like. It is clearly a psychosomatic (mental) problem, and the various
749stuttering-books which I read seemed to conclude that the mental-cause of stuttering remains a mystery. Regardless, once commenced, like any
750malignant disease, it feeds upon itself, reproducing and spreading, sometimes with alarming speed, but why?
751Stuttering is an ef ect, not a cause. Oncethecause ofanything is identified, theeffectcan bealtered oreliminated by altering oreliminating
752the cause. Curiously, medically speaking, weseem to stutter as a matter of sub consciouschoice, but why do we make that choice and do so
753overand overagain?
754The cause of my stuttering is not a mystery to me. One embarrassing incident disturbed me so much that I thought about it constantly; my
755fear of it caused a second incident and a third, ad infinitum. This stutter-snowball was driven by fear , but what caused the fear? One thing
756caused my fear: memories and mental images of myself stuttering , what I refer to as my Mind’s Memory and Image Bank (MMIB). I am
757convinced that the mind remembers everything that it experiences (whether you can recall it on command or not) and it retains images/pictures to
758match. A stutterer’s mind becomes dominated by stuttering memories with images to match . After a while, the stutterer can think of little
759else,except his/her fear ofstuttering the next word. Atsomelevels, thiscan tragically becomealost life.
760Somehow, we need an automatic mental responsesystem that expeditiously rejects the fears (which make us choose to stutter) . Such
761an automatic mental-response system would block the fears and expunge the stuttering-weeds each time they try emerge; and we would
762simultaneously (and automatically in time) plant good seeds in lieu of those fears: such as, the conviction, conscious and subconscious, that we
763choose not to stutter. Every good seed pushes outa bad weed. We must keep planting good seeds until no weeds survive. Sound impossible? It
764isn’t. By usingmy Steps 1-4 (in Sections 4-7), wecan quickly begin to win “little” victories over stuttering, and, whenwe useall 4 ofthose Steps,
765we will winmany little victories, and these victories will become cumulative, each slowly building a stuttering-free MMIB. Then, when we add
766Steps 5 and 6, to Steps 1-4, we willcreate a tsunami of good memories and images in our MMIB, effectively drowning the long-standing bad
767memoriesand images.
768While Steps 1-4 givethestutterer tools to avoid allmanner ofstuttering, Steps 5 and 6 givethestutterer methods ofremoving the Frankenstein
769Fear that keepscreating stutteringwars to fight. Put moresimply, Steps 1-4 givethestutterer rightand left jabsand defensive moves that keep the
770stuttering-opponent at a safe distance (perhaps even sufficiently to render stuttering as non-detectable), while Steps 5 and 6 will uproot the fears
771and knockout thestuttering.
772My renowned psychiatrist, thelate Dr. Frank S. Caprio,confirmed:
773“Stuttering has no organic or physical cause.”
774W. H. Perkins, Ph.D., wrote, in Stuttering Therapy, Stuttering Foundation Publication 0012, p. 71:
775“Speech is disturbed because he[thestutterer] holds back on himself.”
776“Most…stuttering behavior has been learned [self-taught]… It has a reinforcement history…The average stutterer is caught in a selfreinforcement
777pattern or viciouscircle…”(Id at p. 83)
778“The classical or Pavlovian kind of conditioning covers fear or anxiety, guilt and shame…Attitudes and feelings are mostly acquired
779through this kind ofconditioning…”(Id at p. 85)
780The “problem”, then, is between our ears, and we put it there, and, therefore, only we can remove it . This is THE most frustrating
781thing about stuttering:It’s nota physical impediment; it’s psychosomatic; wecreateit, foster it, fester it, feed it, and inflict it on ourselves, overand
782over again every day, and we know it, but we don’t seem to able to do anything to cure it. I knew this intuitively when I was at my stuttering
783worst, but Icouldn’tstop it:
784Sincethe problem is between ourears,
785thesolution is between ourears ,
786(as it is with most of our problems).
787You are surely screaming, “I KNOW THAT,” but let’s think about it: Controlling our minds should be easy but, as to stuttering, itseems
788impossible. It isn’t. With planning and vigilantly applied determination, it can be done. Indeed, any psychiatrist will tell us, we are “the bosses” of
789our minds. (See Mind Related Books listed inBibliography.) As psychiatrist-Caprio said and psychiatrists generally agree:
790“We havefreechoice:
791to accept or reject thoughts.
792Nothing compels us to think anything .”
793When negative desires or ideas rear their ugly heads, we must use our mentalswitch, and reject them. One ofmy grandsons, a quite brightand
794already successful twenty-something lad, argued that wecan’tcontrol our thoughts, but I believethat (in addition to proving this fact inmy own life
795inmyriad ways), I proved the point in an earlier book ofmine(Happiness in Seven Steps”, which is available onAmazon-Kindle) and in various
796essays (“Observations”, as I prefer to dub them), which can be found on my website, http://www.leeglovett.com/observations . We can, and
797must, control our minds . Throughout this stuttering-book, I’mgoing to add further support to this point, as mind-control is the most important
798tool to curestuttering .
799An eloquentmetaphysician, MaryBaker Eddy (1821-1910), once wrote, in irrefutablelogic:
800“Evilcannotentera mind already full.”
801Full means FULL. This simple truth says it all! A mind that is packed full of positive thoughts will not have room for negative thoughts.
802Negative thoughts cannot enter, much less thrive in such an environment. The reverse is also true. When we fill our minds with negative thoughts,
803positive thoughts cannot enter. Depending where you fit ofmy Stuttering Severity Chart (in Section 4.4), your mind may be significantly to totally
804FULL offears ofstuttering atmost times. We’re going to changethat.
805If the stutterer would only concentrate 100% on the message, he/she will never stutter, but that takes practice. It is a gradual process, but
806there are ways to do it, minute-by-minute, hour-by-hour, and day-by-day, until, presto, the stutterer’s mind begins to allow many non -stuttering
807thoughts to dominate;as that occurs, stuttering proportionately decreases. That process is whatmy six Stepsare designed to accomplish.
808Self-discipline is the key to all self-control and is a cornerstone of happiness . Just as you can control what and how much you eat,
809exercise, work, read and play, you can react to (and thus accept, reject and modify) every thought that enters your mind, IF you really
810want to becomethe boss of your mind .
811You arethe gatekeeper of your mind.
812However, you must exercise that prerogative. It requires constant, 24/7 mental vigilance, but it is the best possible thing that you can do for
813yourself, your loved ones, all others, and for your life. All of us have bad thoughts, endlessly. Proverbs , in the Old Testament of the Christian
814Bible(and in the Hebrews’ Tanuch ), warns us,
815“Asa man thinketh in his heart, so is he.”(Proverbs 23:7.)
816Proverbs presumes that thoughts lead to actions , as logic (and any psychiatrist) willassure you that they do. What we allow ourselves to
817think determines who weareand are becoming.
818Negative thoughts are not evil by themselves ; however, unchecked, they grow and multiply, and hatch into negative actions; so, we should
819removethemexpeditiously. Ifwe REJECT negativethoughtsand insert positive ones, likechanging the TVor radio station, wetakecontrol of our
820own thought processes. Weare notspineless, helplesscreatures; weare homo sapiens, thinking beings.
821Our first duty to ourselvesand to allis to
822think,and thatmeans to control what wethink.
823The most important use of our logicis to takefirmcontrol of our thought processesand begin demanding positivethoughts.Yes, again, this isa
82424/7, evenminute-by-minute, process, BUT, the morethat we fight this battle, the easier it becomes to win it . As we embrace constructive
825activities (which help us become self-reliant and able to help others), we will be too busy to harbor distracting negative thoughts, much less to
826implement them. So,as we keep our minds busywith (and full of) positives, negativethoughts will be blocked out.
827As the author of three, No. 1 NYTimes Best Sellers (“Looking Out for Number One,”“Winning through Intimidation,”and “Restoring the
828AmericanDream” plusan intriguingly informative website, www.robertringer.com), RobertJ. Ringer, observed:
829“Welive within our minds.
830It’s notevents thatshape our world.
831It’s our thoughts.”
832------
833And who controls our thoughts? We do.
834In sum, sinceit isa medicalfact that stuttering has no physicalcause, stuttering is a choicethat we make, a choice driven byfear (which is
835driven by our Memory Bank); the stuttering problem cannot exist or continue unless we sanction its very existence and constantly
836reinforceit by dwelling on our memories and images of it .
837As we take control of our minds, however, and load our minds full of positive thoughts and diligently remove negative ones of all stripes,
838stutteringwillsubside progressively, until it largely disappears fromour thoughts. The methods described hereinwillenable you to reducestuttering
839and the fear that creates it in a user-friendly, step-by-step process. First, however, we need to delve further into the process of taking control of
840our minds.
841Section 3
842The Role of Mind-Control
843“The only thing that is realis the mind.”
844Hegel(German philosopher, 1770-1831)
845Directly and indirectly, most ofthis book relates to mind-control(Mind Control).
846The preceding Chapteremphasizes the pivotal, ifmaddening fact (that we stutter because our minds retain and advance memories and images
847of past stuttering, which, in effect, cause us to subconsciously chooseto stutter), but itadds thefact that mind-control offersa method ofreversing
848ourchoiceto stutter, butall ofthis was known to some,and still begs the decisional question,“HOWdo wecontrol our minds?” Steps 5 and 6 (in
849Sections 8 and 9) provide definitive methods of accomplishing this (and Steps 2-4 will help you make Steps 5 and 6 work), but, first, it is
850important that you accept thelogic behind those Steps. So, let’sconsider some medical dataand logic on point.
851The psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, professor and author, Norman Doidge, M.D., in his 2007 book (The Brain That Changes Itself , aka The
852Brain ) insists that we CAN control our minds . If there were ever any doubt that our thoughts shape our lives (and even remake our bodies),
853The Brain dispels the doubt, and, in so doing, enables us to live better lives. The Brain recounts scientific proof of man’s ability not only to
854control thoughts but to changethe brain,even physically. As The New York Times said,
855“The power of positivethinking finally gains scientificcredibility … and straddles the gap between scienceand self-help.”
856The brain’s now medically-accepted “plasticity”(i.e., the ability to change itself) shows that the brain can be “rewired” or taught to think
857and program the body’s organs in new ways , and, in so doing, affectand reshape our body’s performance. Doidgeasserts that wecan change
858the way our bodies function, even fixing some organic problems – which is more difficult than repairing purelymental ailments, such as is
859stuttering. Directing our thoughts, blocking certain thoughts, inserting others, “bossing our minds”as I put it, is much easier than causing organic
860changes to our bodies. (Don’t you enjoy being the“boss” ofthings?It’s fun, and it’s such aspecial treat when used to harness something that is, at
861once, so “mysterious”, ludicrousand life-destroying as is stuttering.)
862I have learned two ways to accomplish this, which are detailed in in Sections 8 and 9 , Steps 5 and 6. They are grounded in practical
863ways for the average guy to gain control of his/her mind and offer an exciting and vast new area ofmedicine that seems destined to revolutionize
864the way people think and direct their lives and mitigate, and even cure, some organic ailments. In another 100 years, mind controlseems destined
865to supplant many medicines. This book invites you to join this evolving mind-control movement and “get your feet wet” by tackling mindcontrol
866(MC) and learning to use it to cure your stuttering, for openers. In the greater scheme of illnesses, froma medical viewpoint, stuttering is
867likely the easiest ofall life-destroying “diseases”to cure! It’s time that you joined me and used MC to reduce your stuttering to a level that others
868can’t detect it!
869According to the renowned, late paleontologist, Rhodes Scholar and Harvard-Professor, author of the fascinating history of evolution,
870Wonderful Life, tells us,
871“Thinking can changethe behavior of genes .”
872Imaginethat! One of hisexamples is that males, who think moreabout sex, growheavier beards. (Guys, you nowknowwhy your beard is so
873heavy!) Thoughts rule all. Your task is to learn to take control of your mental steering wheel . Most of us just drift, like ships without
874navigators or rudders; we allow the current to take us/our minds wherever the drift then is – in the direction of some inane programon TV, or
875ribald movie, or feckless printed material, or we head wheresome misguided acquaintancesuggests that we go. Or weinsertearphonesand fill our
876brains with music, thus mitigating, postponing or obliterating thought. Although I love music and once sung on all manner of stages in my youth,
877“There is a time for all things under the sun,”and, when our lives are being literally ruined by 24/7-hourly-minute-by-minute thoughts ofstuttering,
878we don’t havetimeto spare; we need to spend our“spare”moments working onMC! Once we’veshoved stuttering into the deepest recesses of
879our dimmestmemoriesand, thus,are no longer detectable-stutterers, wecan return to iTunes for our idleenjoyment. I did.
880Why do we abandon, forfeitcontrol of, and even hide from, our minds? We allowthemto be filled with tripe, and we fail to provide guidance
881to the one thing that rules our lives and determines our health, our peace ofmind, our karma and our futures: our minds. Do we abandon control
882ourautomobiles, ourcomputers, our phones, ourchildren, our pets? Why, then, do we abdicateresponsibilityfor our thoughts? By default,
883we allow our minds to chart their own course – or, worse, to be charted by hapless or errant third persons or chaotic events. How
884imprudent, recklessand imbeciliccanwe be? Whatcanweexpect, whenweforgo mind-controland predictably fallinto bad thoughts, bad habits,
885bad actions – and even into an endless, reversible and even ludicrous habit ofstuttering? Whenever shallwe take responsibility for our mindsand,
886hence, our lives? Stuttering is a good reason to reversethis odiouscourse of non-thinking, and to put our lives on a much better path .
887Dr. Doidge’s research goes much farther. Hiscase histories, of using the mind to cure physical infirmities, include:
888• Stroke patientscured;
889• Awomanwith halfa brain that rewired itselfto work as would a whole brain;
890• IQ’s raised;
891• Learning disorders overcome;and
892• Aging brains rejuvenated.”
893Compared to the above, stuttering is a mild problem . Shouldn’t you and all of us be availing ourselves of the fruits of such medicallyproven
894cures? This new science (“neuroplasticity ” as medical doctors call it, or mind-remapping or mind-control in more user-friendly
895terms), maintains that the brain, like plastic,can changeitself with exercise and understanding .
896The fact remains that, according to Doidge and his medical peers (as their documented case histories attest), our brains are like plastic, and
897you and I CAN controlthemand guidethemwhere we wish themto go – and wecan certainly eradicateany baseless, self-manufactured fears ,
898including thosethatcause us to chooseto stutter.
899There are countless, medical-related books that confirm our ability to control our minds and use them to change our performance in many
900ways. Onerecentexampleis The 4 Day Diet” by IanK. Smith, M.D.At pages 70 et seq, hesays, “Visualizethethin you…”, and hecitesalong
901list ofathletes who have used “visualization”to become greatchampions. He quotes Jack Nicklaus fromthelatter’s book, Golf My Way:“I never
902hitashot, noteven in practice, without having a very sharp, in-focus picture ofit inmy head…I seethe ballwhereI want it to finish…I seethe ball
903going there, its path, trajectory, shape, even its behavior in landing…the next scene shows me making the kind ofswing that will turn the previous
904images into reality.” Dr. Smith continues, “Visualization is commonly used in sports. It’s the art of creating a mental model or image of an
905event or situation before it actually happens . It’s not just seeing the image but actually feeling the experience that makes the difference.
906Experts in the field of visualization believe that there is an actual physiological response with the body when someone correctly
907visualizes . Thoughts and images can establish neurological patterns, and these patterns can cause muscular reactions that lead to the desired
908response.”(Emphasis supplied.) Dr. Smith concludes,
909“I believe that visualization can be equally effective outside of the sports world…Seeing and feeling yourself already achieving your
910goal can make your brain believe that actually attaining that goal is possible…Vivid and detailed visualization can create a
911powerful ef ect on the body.”
912These werealmost psychiatrist-Dr. Caprio’sexact words to mesome 50 yearsago.
913Yes, dear reader, we CAN control our thoughts – and that includesYOU. No onesaid that it waseasy, but, on thescale or relativity, it’s not
914that hard either; it simply takes a plan and effort; you can do it. Yes, for a while, it requires a 24/7, minute-by-minute battle until we replace the
915negativethoughts in our Mind’s Memory and Image Bank (MMIB) with positive ones. ElisabethVersteegh-Vermelwrote, in Stuttering Therapy,
916Stuttering Foundation Publication 0019,at p. 72:
917“…[C]ourageand self-confidence…cannot betaught…but haveto beencouraged to develop by positiveexperiences.”
918Creating “positive experiences” is the immediate goal of Steps 1-4. Verbalizing and visualizing positive experiences will provide “positive
919experiences”and memories to help build our “courage and self-confidence”to overcome stuttering. This doesn’t have to be a painful process. I
920prefer to viewitasa“game”, which is the waymuch oflifecan (and, I submit, should) be viewed,and who among us doesn’tenjoy games?
921The degree of our vigilance will determine the level of our success on point, and it willcontrol our happiness – and even our stuttering, the
922monstrous problem that we have allowed our unguided minds to create. We may make lots of money, or not, or become learned, or not, or
923become physicalAdonis’s, or not, but, UNLESS WE TAKE CONTROLOF OUR MINDS MOST OF THE TIME, WE WILLNEVER
924CONTROL STUTTERING – orachieve happiness overa prolonged period.
925For example, consider Google’s list of literally hundreds of famous persons who had “everything” but still committed suicide, including
926Cleopatra, Mark Anthony, Brutus, Vincent Van Gogh, Hemingway, Charles Boyer, George Sanders, Judy Garland, Virginia Wolf, Capuchine,
927Marilyn Monroe, Freddie Prinze, and our beloved comic, Robin Williams. Countless other “rich and famous” have lived their lives in the most
928destructive ways imaginable and indirectly committed suicide, via drugs, alcohol and ludicrously dangerous pastimes. As the sage philosopher,
929Voltaire, so succinctly put it, “Most men lead lives of quiet desperation.” But there are those, who live in the same circumstances, who live joyous
930lives, as that is how they choose to perceive their lives. The bottomline is that neither money nor fame will buy peace of mind, calmjoy, or a
931relatively pain-freelife. No psychiatrist, speech therapist orcliniccanwavea magic wand and do it for useither.
932To accomplish thoserarefied feats, we need to takecontrol of our minds, or, as I prefer to couch it, we need to becomethe bosses of
933our minds . By “control” or“bosses”, Iamnot suggesting total dominion; I mean substantialcontrolmost ofthe time. All of us fall off our wagons
934nowand again, but the winners remountand keep going. Othersare doing it; you can, too.
935Remapping the brain, ofcourse, can have negative effects; e.g., males (who spend extensive time on porn web sites) become obsessed with
936bizarresexualactsand alter their sexual tastesand become progressivelymore hard core, and, to theextent that they ceasethis, they becomeless
937so. Like a drug, porn tends to demand increasingly extreme levels to sustain interest, making some impotent or sexually dysfunctional to normal
938sexualstimuli, which can lead to conduct which those not obsessed view as disgusting and dangerous. However, it is a medically-proven fact that
939those who stop going to porn web sites willeventually lose their interest in it, as the brain will unlearn, as well as learn – which ties nicely
940back into thecomparatively“minor” problemofstuttering.
941The mind is in afluid orever-changing state; justas isany garden, it demandsconstant, daily vigilant oversight.You can chooseto viewthisas
942work or as a fascinating challenge or even as a game, as do I. Why not view your war with stuttering as a game? The game/challenge is to
943keep feeding positive sustenance to our minds, to focus 100% on our message and not on specific words, and do this non-stop? If you’re not
944willing to change your ways and work hard on new solutions, you may just not want to cure your stuttering; after all, you and I did bring it on
945ourselvesand many of us reinforceit virtuallyminute byminute, however inadvertently.
946As the mind is a garden, its “soil” will grow whatever we plant (or permit) in it. Idle winds, ofcourse, blow many seeds into it, and many are
947destructive; wearethe gardeners; we must pullthe weeds, lest they take over.Again, I quote:“Asa man thinketh in his heart, so is he.”(Proverbs
94823:7.) We must overtly plan, monitor and direct our thoughts. This can be nowhere more true than with the process of curing stuttering, a
949psychosomatic diseaseifthereever were one.
950As assorted brain-related books agree, when we stop exercising, mapping and re-mapping our mental skills, we don’t just forget them; our
951brain-map-space for those skills is turned over to the skills that we practice. Brain resources are allocated according to the hackneyed
952apothegm “Use it or lose it.” When a person is motivated to learn, the brain responds plastically to expedite the learning process. Our neglect
953of learning as we age leads the brain’s plasticity (ability to learn new things) to atrophy and waste away like wilted plants . To keep the
954brain fit,as the consensus goes and as the reader surely knows, we must learn new things :a language, a musical instrument, a career, doing
955puzzles, and anything that requires highly focused attention (i.e., “cognitive training or remapping”) will help the brain retain its skills and
956compensate for faded ones. In support, a group ofseniors, aged 60-80, did one hour a day, five days a week, ofsuch cognitive training for one
957year, and turned back their memory clocks by 25-35%, or from10 to 25 years! Combatting and overcoming stuttering can be “cognitive
958training and remapping” to expand and rejuvenate our brains as well.
959Similarly, many doctors agree that simply going barefoot allows your foot to retrain the portion of the brain’s map that deals with balance.
960Also, not looking down as you walk, forces your sensory map to communicate with your feet. Hold onto the railing but don’t look down, and
961you’ll keep your balance sharper. Crutches, like canes and walkers and wheel chairs, hasten the decline of age ; they train the brain (and,
962thus, the body) to rely on themand to need them. Resistsuch artificialsupportas long as possible.
963V. S. Ramacharnaran,a Hindu neurologist,advises,
964“Pain is the brain’s opinion ofan organism’s health…Pain is an illusion …The mind isa virtualrealitymachine.”
965In Dr. R’s tests, having the mind visualize and feel no pain for 15 minutes a day, three times a day, dramatically reduced chronic
966pains . I have done, and continue to do similar experiments, with 10-20 minute “treatments”which I give myself before going to sleep and before
967arising in the morning and/or when on stationary aerobicequipmentand do bonus treatments during idletimes. I describethesetreatments in detail
968Section 9. These treatments will push many incipient ailments a good 20 years away. It was learning to self-cure stuttering that led me onto this
969rewarding path ofthinking, literally convertingmy stuttering into a blessing.
970To achieve “plastic change” of our brains, to which Dr. Doidge refers, we must devote our fullattention to a subject. Education minimizes
971mental decline . Exercise and mental activity generate and sustain more brain cells and reduce the likelihood that we will contract
972Alzheimer’s disease or even the much more common and allegedly inevitable dementia. While Alzheimer’s may or may not be preventable, it
973surely can be postponed and mitigated . Moreover, small, age-related memory loss is much more prevalent and is almost certainly
974reversible with the right mentalexercises (e.g., new languages, new careers, exercise, highly focused, creative work, etc.). Physicalactivity helps
975as well,as itcreates newneuronsand gets oxygen to the brain. The point is that the mind can be molded or“remapped”, including its propensity to
976producestuttering.
977In sum, Dr. Doidge’s principles of brain-plasticity and remapping are:
978Useit or loseit …
979Keep training your brain to do
980what it has always done
981and to do new things …
982Think it,as thinkingmakes itso …
983Visualizeit to dramatically improve performance …
984Verbalize your thoughts, to lead to action…
985Repeat and REPEAT to reinforceall oftheabove.
986All of this is prologue to my anti-stuttering, self -treatment methods, as described in Sections 4-9 and in 8 and 9 in particular. Dr. Doidge
987continues,
988“A ctivity (mentaland physical) slows decline on allfronts. Wecan change our brain’sanatomy simply by using our imagination …The
989faster that you can imagine doing something, thefasteryou can do it .”
990Imagining is visualizing. Byinjecting thoughts into your mind , justas youwould injecta medicine into your body to cure a disease or seeds
991into your vegetable garden,you willshapeyour mind into thethought-garden of yourchoice: growing positivethoughtsand extinguishing negative
992thoughts, every day, every hour and even everyminute. There is absolutely no excuse for not doing this. You simply need a plan, a program, a
993dailyregimen and theself-discipline and determinatio n to implement it,and I offer minein Sections 8 and 9.
994As Dr. Doidgealso observes, lab studies, which clinically measure changes in brain cells, neurons, etc., (by implanting electrodes in subject’s
995brains), have proved this time and time again. Everything that we do and think shapes our “Play-Doh” like minds , to use Doidge’s term.
996Taking affirmativecontrol of our thoughts, then, is the key. As The Bard said,
997“Thereis nothing good or bad,
998but thinkingmakes itso.” WilliamShakespeare
999Think about that:You decide how to view everything – as good, or bad, or neutral. What if you choseto change your opinion? Abad day
1000becomes good, a problem is seen and used as an opportunity; an insult becomes the genesis of improved conduct. Your stuttering is your
1001opportunity to begin taking the steering wheel in your mind and start driving your mind, your body and your life – for selfenhancement,
1002maturation, growth, peace of mind, happiness, including, of course, a stuttering-free life . Don’t waste valuable time worrying
1003about what others think of you (orabout your stuttering)and concentrate on improving your stuttering and yourself.
1004NormanVincent Peale, in hisclassic(The Power of Positive Thinking ) told us:
1005“Change your thoughts
1006and you change your world.”
1007The power of positivethinking and the value ofreinforcement viarelaxed meditation, yogaand/or self-hypnosiscan no longer be denied. There
1008are many helpful books on the topic ofmind-control, far too many to list, much less read. Doidge’s best-selling book is a capstone in this field. If
1009you still don’t believethat you can takecontrol of your thoughtsand mind, and turn your lifearound in the process, read the books (as listed in the
1010Bibliography) by Doidge, Amen, Borysenko, Packard, Peale and Bettger. Each contains references to many more corroborative sources and
1011demonstrativelifeexperiences.
1012Aself-generated avalanche of positive thinking prevails, because, as noted throughout this book, stuttering is not an organic problem, caused
1013by physical impairment; so it can, without doubt, be reversed by the same mental processes that created it. Stuttering is the ideal “physical”
1014problem to cure via mind control . As further proof, while some severe stutterers stutter over most words, most stutterers don’t stutter over
1015every word nor even in every sentence; and some stutterer only in specific situations or when speaking to certain people. Stuttering is often
1016desultory butchronic, but itseems to occur in the mostembarrassing situations,and, if not battled, it becomes progressivelyworse. Yet, ifI, orany
1017stutterer, can say even one word, we can say allwords, if onlywe’llaccept this truth and permit ourselves to speak fluently. It IS as easy as that,
1018but just knowing it doesn’t help; we need to reconstruct our Mind’s Memory and Image Bank and usethetools and Crutches in this book to
1019fill it with positive words and images .
1020As I increasingly succeeded in using the techniques described in this book, I was re-training or re-mapping my brain into a non-stuttering
1021mode, and stuttering became more sporadic and, hence, less pernicious. Sometimes, I stillstuttered much, muchmore than at others. The greater
1022the pressure to speak, the more that I stuttered; conversely, of course, the less pressure to speak, the more words that I could say without
1023stuttering. At times, if I got off to a good start, I seemed to eliminate any evidence of The Stuttering Beast. My self-cures progressed slowly but
1024they kept progressing.
1025Oddly, as noted elsewhere, throughout my life I had been a singer. At age 12, I had been chosen as a soloist in a Boys’ Choir. We gave
1026performances live on localradio and for groups throughout the Washington, D.C. area. I continued to do that throughout my school years, wining
1027amateur shows yodeling, whistling and singing, and, then, later singing in duets, trios, quartets, performing at almost everymajor social function at
1028my college for two years, singing a bit in a bar in the summer, soling in church, etc., all throughmy stuttering years, and never once did I stutter
1029while singing or performing . Why? When performing, my mind seemed to accept me as someone else, a normal/fluent person . (How
1030self-deprecating is that? I had to (mentally) “become someone else” to avoid stuttering.) The sheer pleasure of singing obliterated any fear of
1031stuttering; when singing, honestly, stuttering never entered mymind. This is common among stutterers. There have beenmany stutterers who sang
1032and sing beautifully without any trace of their habitualstuttering. Many stutterers can avoid stuttering by speaking in an accent, but don’t wish to
1033appearaffected.
1034Singing and speaking in accents without stuttering are further proof of the mental- non -physical nature of stuttering and reveals how close
1035many stutterers are to curing their problem. If they can sing without stuttering, they can speak without stuttering . When stutterers are
1036engaged in an activity, in which they can lose themselves, such as singing, giving an emergency announcement or a sermon, stuttering is generally
1037not a problem. This fact makes no sense, but it is true. Its truth makes stuttering all the more ludicrous; it is as if we stutter because,
1038subconsciously, we not only choose to stutter, we want to stutter. Of course, this is not so; but, regardless, it illustrates the need for a welldesigned
1039plan, a method, a dailyregimen to help us kick thestuttering habit into the dust bins of history, whereit belongs.
1040Inmy twenties, when I had mymostsevere battles with stuttering, I learned ofan evangelicalMinister, who was revered bymany. When at the
1041podium, he gave flawless, passionate sermons, on radio, TV and everywhere else, BUT, when he stepped away from the podium, he was a
1042chronic stutterer who could barely say his own name. This was a well-known fact, but no one cared, as his sermons were so inspirational. Why?
1043How could someone give world-class sermons but be incapable of engaging in routine conversation without feckless stuttering? It isn’t God’s
1044“sentence”; thestutterer sentences himself.
1045The recurrent, confounding question is, “Why?” Once someone begins to stutter, the fear of it perpetuates it. As Franklin Delano Roosevelt
1046aptly said,
1047“We have nothing to fear but fear itself.”
1048No one proves this moreconvincingly than doesastutterer.
1049So, I had learned threethings:
1050(1) Thecause ofstuttering is 100%mental.
1051(2) Fear ofstuttering is thethought-process that perpetuates it,and fear iscreated by our Mind’s Memory and Image Bank , which is
1052overloaded with excruciatingly painfulmemoriesand images ofstuttering.
1053(3) Wecan control and remap our minds to think what wechoose. (This is the viewofinnumerable psychiatrists, neurologistsand other
1054students ofthe mind,and,atminimumas to stuttering, I later proved it.)
1055I needed to find theshortest path to gaining control ofmymind.
1056I accomplished the above via a series of Six Steps, which I detail in Sections 4 through 9. This book isn’t about talk. It’s about action, the
1057actions that YOUare going to take,and keep taking,as long as you are detectableasastutterer.
1058It’s timeto set forth Step 1 ofmy six-Step self-cure.
1059P
1060a
1061r
1062t
1063I
1064I
1065The
1066S
1067ix
1068S
1069t
1070e
1071p
1072SEL
1073F
1074-
1075C
1076ure
1077Overviewof Self-Cure
1078The Six Steps of the self-cure are presented herein in the order in which they should be easiest to learn. In sum, the methods described herein
1079suggestaself-curethat is based on thefollowing:
1080(1) Methods to replacestutter memories (SMs) with fluencymemories (FMs).
1081(2) Methods to minimizecreation of new, damaging SMs, 24/7.
1082(3) Methods to remap the brain to createautomatically positiveresponses to speaking situationsand,asa bonus, to programyour mind fora
1083better life.
1084The above, three objectives are accomplished, in brief, by (1) reading aloud (only if without stuttering), to create FMs and train the mind to
1085concentrate on the message(not wordsand mechanics ofsayingwords); (2) mind training viaauto suggestion and/or self-hypnosis techniques, and
1086(3) the mastery and temporary use of “Crutches”, which enable the PWS to greatly minimize the creation of new SMs, thus facilitating and
1087expediting thecure,and,also,enabling the PWS to avoid relapses. Therest ofthis book willamplify theforegoing overview.
1088Section 4
1089StepOne:
1090Discuss the Problem
1091“To play itsafeis not to play.”
1092Robert Altman
1093Filmdirector-producer, 1925-2006
1094The stutterer’s first instinct is to avoid speaking to the maximumextent possible. This, ofcourse, is the antipode ofcuring the problem. Few great
1095victoriesare won by playing itsafe.
10964.1 Preview of the Six Steps
1097Beforeleaping into Step 1, let’s reviewthesix Steps in brief.
1098Steps 1-3 dealwith theef ects ofstuttering, and, as such, they aren’tacure per se; but, without the Crutches (Step 2), Icould not havecured
1099or avoided relapses. These steps include using (1) discussions as therapy and (2) twelve “voice tools” or “Crutches”to go around or leap-frog
1100over feared words to avoid stuttering. Without some way ofavoiding stuttering, on a one-by-one basis, stuttering will be much more difficult to
1101cure. It would have to be done entirely through mind-control; while that is definitely possible, it would be much more difficult than achieving with
1102some method(s) ofavoiding stutters on a one-by-one basis.
1103As such, Steps 2-3 should give any stutterer a significant degree ofimmediate relief, and, as all stutterers willagree, any and all degrees of
1104reliefare most welcome. Each Step can stand on its own,and, together, they pack aseries of decisive punches.
1105Steps 4-6 include(1) techniques for developing a habit of getting lost in the messageto a degreethat overcomes feared words, (2) methods of
1106usingAuto Suggestion to remap the brain to erase stuttering-thoughts and memories and to replace themwith positive ones and (3) ways to use
1107Self-Hypnosis to do thesame,all ofwhich attacks thecause or roots ofstuttering and, therefore, do morethanmanagethe problem; they became
1108the knock-out blows ofmy ultimatecure,and,asa bonus, they can do so verymuch to elevateanyone’s karmaand life.
1109All of these Steps require practice, daily , until they become so imbedded as to be automatic responses and, over time, combine to lock
1110stuttering down to the level desired by the stutterer. In my case, I wanted total victory – not perfection (as it does not exist) but to make my
1111stuttering become such that strangers did not identify me as a PWS; so, I kept at it until my stuttering could not be detected. I still give myself
1112“Daily Treatments” (as defined in Section 8), and I still use a Crutch (Step Two) however rarely, but I now aimmy Daily Treatments at other
1113problems:memory loss, pain-management, anger-control, being loving, a positive karma, and manymore. Therecan never bean end to efforts for
1114self-improvement throughmind-training, mind controland dictating one’s thoughts.
11154.2 The Need to Discuss the Problem
1116All of us need an outlet to share our problems. Unfortunately, many PWS go into deep coverand become diffident, taciturn and reclusive. This will
1117not solve the problem, and it leads to other issues (boredom, depression and worse). So, talking about the stuttering-problemis essential. The
1118question is,“To whomand howoften?”
1119After I finished writing the 1
1120st Edition, which laid bare my battle with stuttering, I read many books about stuttering, and I learned that the
1121current consensus among speech gurus is that discussing the stuttering problem is considered wise. I believe that is correct in many ways and
1122incorrect in others. Consider thefollowing observations.
1123First, it seems most unwiseto attempt to hidethestuttering problem, and thus pretend to others that it does notexist. Hiding it is living in denial
1124of reality and makes no sense. However, this is not to say that the PWS should broadcast the problem, routinely and endlessly announcing it,
1125because (1) most listeners do notcare and do not wish to waste their valuable time discussing your stuttering (or mostany other problemthat you
1126may have) and (2) announcing stuttering serves to reinforce and compound the problemfor the PWS. In most situations, it seems better to let
1127your speech speak for itself; it is what it is.“Never statethe obvious,” goes theaphorism.
1128Second, discussing the problemwith sympathetic intimates can be very helpful, as it can give relief to “air”any problem, and a loving listener
1129willcertainly provide such verbalcomfortas he/she can, but, in brutal truth, few such intimatescan help solve the problem, and, after listening to it
1130atime or two, there may belittle profit foreither party to discuss it repeatedly.
1131Third, this really leaves professional help as the best, long termalternative. By professional help, I mean anM.D., Ph.D., Speech Pathologist or
1132other person trained to help with speech issues. Unfortunately, some PWS havetried such therapywithoutsufficientsuccessand/orcan’tafford it.
1133Fourth, there isanother, emerging option: Discuss the problem with another PWS who has self-cured (PWSC) . I amsuch a person, and I
1134amnowforming acharitable organizationwithmultipleself-cured PWSC’s (people who self-cured), who haveagreed to help “coach” other PWS
1135to help themapply the methods that are detailed in this book. If you finish reading this book and like mymethods, this optionmay work well for
1136you. That organization offering this FREE coaching is SpeechAnxietyAnonymous (SAA). SAAwill offer help to as many PWS as it can; I can’t
1137guarantee that it will have enough PWSC-Coaches to serve all-comers, but it will try. If available to you, PWSC’s offer an excellent option
1138(despite not having speech training), as they have lived with the problemand thus understand the problemfromthe inside out. See Section 17 for
1139details. You can also emailmeat info@leeglovett.com.
1140Fifth, in my own case, I never really discussed my stuttering problem with anyone (except for my six, extremely helpful sessions with a
1141psychiatrist). Why didn’t I discuss it with others? First, I was raised in areligion that did not believeinmedicine; I was never in doctor’s office until
1142my twenties. My family denied my stuttering, and it was not discussed. So, whatever benefits might have come fromdiscussingmy stuttering with
1143family, I did not enjoy. Except for six sessions with my psychiatrist – and he conceded that he knew no cure anyway, beyond self-hypnosis as it
1144“should help” – I was flying blind.
1145Seventh, I would never have discussed my stuttering with strangers, as it was too embarrassing. Also, announcing that I stuttered never
1146occurred to me, because my speech “spoke for itself”; so, what’s the point of stating the obvious? Further, when I didn’t stutter enough to be
1147identified asastutterer, I was delighted,and I would never haverained on such a positive parade.
1148Eighth, apart fromthe comfort that may be derived fromdiscussing the problemwith one’s intimates or with speech therapists, or now with
1149PWSCs, asa general practice, I doubt that discussing stuttering with non -stutterers will help , and I fear that it may more likely re-enforce
1150and expand the problem . (Iamreminded ofthe child, ofaverage or better intelligence, who is told all his youth that he is“stupid”, and, surprise,
1151he developsa below-averageI.Q. Thereversealso occurs. See NormanDoidge, M.D.’s The Brain That Changes Itself and related books. The
1152humanmind is VERYreceptiveto suggestion. As such,constantly announcing and reinforcing,“I stutter,”is not the best long termpolicy.
1153Ninth, therecan beconsiderablesocial benefit in joining onlinestuttering communities (websites, blogs, Facebook posts, like Facebook’s
1154StutteringCommunity, StutteringHangout, Pamela Mertz’s“Make Way for Stutterers”, etc.)and sharing informationwith them. Clearly, stutterers
1155enjoy banteringwith each other about stuttering and lots of unrelated topics. As it is a problemthat is of no interest to most non -stutterers, these
1156stuttering communities may offer the only real bonding experience that is available to many stutterers, and this is clearly a blessing. This can offer
1157considerable reliefand a much-needed, much-needed acceptance by others, and a social outlet for PWS, who sometimes feel like outsiders in
1158social gatherings of non-stutterers. So, it’sa major win-win. Curing stuttering isa“healthe whole person” project. See Section 14. AsallPWS are
1159unique, I now work with some who find that their stuttering increases after each lengthy visit to online stuttering websites. So, each PWS must
1160assess the way thatsuch activitiesaffect himor her.
1161In sum, for the purpose of this Step One, the point is this: Stutterers can help themselves by openly discussing the problem with trusted
1162confidants . So, talk about it with your intimatefamily or friends; discuss your then current methods ofcuring the problem– but not with others, as
1163they may hold it against, or even mock, you. With strangers, let your speech speak for itself, for better or worse. This includes during job
1164interviews.
1165Discussions with intimates should inspire some self-analysis by you. Can you place your level ofstuttering on the Chart below. The Chart has
1166no medicalsignificance; it is simplymy ownway oflooking atmy own stuttering, in therear viewmirror.
11674.3 Stuttering Severity Chart
1168Stuttering- Thoughts Level ofSeverity Freq. ofStuttering
11690 Minutes Non-Stutterer Almost never
11701-10 Minutes 2:VeryMild Mild pressure
117110-30 Minutes 3:Mild Constant but light
117230-45 Minutes 4. Light Severe Most words &blocks
117345-59 Minutes 5. Severe Nearly allwords
1174So, which levelare YOU? Many PWS change categories depending upon the situation and/or daily, monthly or periodically. I did. For the
1175purpose ofthisanalysis, select your worstcategory. To me, the amount of time that the PWS spends thinking about stuttering is the best
1176test of the severity of his/her problem . (Recently, one of my PWS, who has Skyped with me a dozen or so times, said, “You know, Lee, I
1177don’t think about stuttering much anymore.”I wanted to kiss him! That’s it; for me, he’s “done” or very close to it. He added that he had only
1178stuttered “two to three wordsADAYfor the past two weeks.” We’llstill keep Skyping to make sure that no relapses occur, but he is self-cured
1179right now.)
1180If I had known the methods described in this book, I would never has escalated to a 4 or temporary 5); and, if I were even as much as a 5
1181beforeI had this book, I believethat I stillcould have unwound myMind’s Memory and Image Bank and becomean undetectablestutterer in less
1182than one year – but Iaman indefatigable worker. Ialmost never give up on any goal. For those PWS who are Skypingweeklywithme, they are
1183substantially self-curing in 60-90 days, i.e., after 10-12 Skypes, but, after a Skype or two, some quit. I probably didn’t do as good a job as I
1184could have.
1185As noted in Section 9.2, my psychiatrist made painfully clear:If you think that you can’t self-cure, you can’t ; if you think that you might,
1186youmight; if you think that you can and will, you very wellmay. (My psychiatrist never stuttered and that was many decades before evidence of
1187self-curing began to appear.) To self-cure, you’ll need to Becomethe Boss ofYour Mind, as was thesub-titleto the 1
1188st Edition of this book. For
1189the 2
1190nd Edition, I changed the sub-title to “What 100+ PWS Taught Me.” That new sub-title in no way lessens my conviction that self-curing
1191stuttering requires oneto “becomethe boss your mind”at somelevel, and, as my PWS are proving, this is NOT that hard, ifthe PWS is open to a
1192cure and will WORK at it. Think what youwill, YOU, dear-reader, are not that different fromthis authorand his PWS-Skypees. Ifwe can do it,
1193YOUCAN DO IT!
11944.4 Planning YourDiscussions
1195Each discussionmay take as little as 15 minutes each (as the patience of others can wear thin fast); just talk about your feelings and the problem;
1196later, practice reading aloud to your listener(s), if you can do so without stuttering. The discussions are not a substitute for the other five Steps
1197described herein,and the percentage of youravailabletime(and your listeners’) will determinethefrequency and length of your discussions.
1198Discussions tackle Satan Stuttering in plain view. Everyone willrespect youmoreforadmitting itand for working 24/7 to whip The Beast.
11994.5 Don’t Avoid Speaking – BUT
1200Many books on stuttering urge PWS NOT to avoid speaking, and, long term, I agree, but communicating with so many PWS in the past year, I
1201have realized that, TEMPORARILY, it is generally helpful to minimizetalking in pressuresituations (to minimize creating new stuttering
1202memories at the very time when you are massively reading aloud to lay down fluencymemories to obliterate old stutteringmemories. See Section
120312.3 for more.) In this first phase ofa self-cure, the use of Crutches (Step Two) will decrease stutters, hence fears, and, thus, increase fluency
1204much faster than you imagine. So, picking one’s spots to speak is important.
1205In the Stuttering Foundation’s PublicationNo. 0021,at p. 71, Charles VanRiper, Ph.D.,a much revered stutterer, put it this way:
1206“I’vestuttered allmy days. I guess I’mone ofthoseincurablestutterers…IfI feared stuttering I talked anyway…I learned to stuttereasily …[Successful stutterers] have onething in common…they didn’t let their stuttering prevent themfromtalking .”(Emphases
1207supplied in thisand all quotes in this book.)
1208MalcolmFraser, Founder ofthe Stuttering Foundation ofAmerica,also astutterer, wrote:
1209“Whiletemporarily affording relief, avoidances will actuallyincrease your fears and cause you more trouble in the long run .” SelfTherapyfor
1210the Stutter , Stuttering Foundation Publication 0012, p. 86
1211Long term, I wholeheartedly agree. Short term, I don’t. A majorelement of myself-cure was decreasing the number of new stutteringincidents
1212that I laid down in my mind. To minimize those incidents, I avoided NEAR CERTAIN DISASTERS, which would have massively
1213compounded stuttering-memories and future fears. I still did a lot of talking (reading aloud, that is), but, until my self-cure was well along, I
1214minimized under-pressure-situation talking.
1215IfI knewthat I had to saymy namein front ofalarge groupANDI simultaneously knewthat I was going to stutter badly doing it, I did one of
1216two things:
1217(1) Left theareaand avoided sayingmy name OR
1218(2) used one ofmyCrutches (Step Two) to say it.
1219Example, “My nameis ‘Eeee Ovett’; ORI put words in front ofmy name or madeastory out ofmy name:“My name? Funny that you should
1220ask. It’s Scottish; you know, ‘Lovett”it is, ‘Lee Lovet’.”Once I was on a roll talking, I could sayANYTHING. (If youwere on Skype withme
1221right now, I’d give you a bunch ofexamples.) So, I made sayingmy name an event, giving a story BEFORE I tried to saymy name, and I smiled,
1222laughed and/or gesticulated as I did it. MYPOINT HERE is that creating terrible, new embarrassing stuttering memories compounds the
1223speech problem .
1224So, yes, we must speak, BUT we need to use some judgment as we do it, and, one way or another, we must create more fluency
1225memories (FMs), daily, than stuttering memories (SMs), and the bigger the margin (2-1, 5-1, 10-1) thefaster ourcure . Most PWS fail
1226to cure, because, no matter what they do, they keep creatingmore SMs than FMsevery day.As long as that negativeratio persists, I knowof no
1227way to cure.
1228So, while we don’t want to avoid speaking as a way of life, we do want to avoid creating debilitating stuttering-memories. This is a fine line
1229that may be dif icult to walk – but we must try. Inmy worst stuttering-days, I read aloud a GREAT dealmore than I talked under pressure.
1230Cancers need to beremoved, notcoddled. Don’tcoddle your stuttering; overwhelmit by speaking, whileapplying allthe Steps propounded in this
1231book. Creating positive fluency-memories, such as by reading aloud and talking in NON-pressure situations without stuttering, is
1232essential .
1233Again, the purpose of discussions with intimates is to become comfortable and unashamed to talk about your problem. When you
1234becometoo comfortabletalking to onelistener,changelisteners and repeat the process . You should continuethe discussions until they
1235no longer makeyou nervous (or do not seem to be helping) .
1236As you work on your cure, try not to take yourselfso seriously; we’re all dead in the end anyway. As Larry Shay wrote in his classic song,
1237“WhenYou’re Smilin’”:
1238“Laugh,and the world laughs with you.
1239Cry,and you cry alone.”
1240Start laughing, and enjoy it as others laughwith you. Discussions will begin to flow a bit more smoothly. In this book, you are developing a
1241plan, a regime to conquer your stuttering – if you’llallowit, if you’ll use it, if you’ll practice it, if you’ll keep an openmind, if you’llstop thinking “I
1242can’t”, if you’ll be“The Little Engine That Could”and just keep chugging until you reach thetop ofthe hilland begin coasting, stuttering-free, down
1243the other side. You can, if only youwill.
12444.6 Read This Book Aloud – NOW
1245Before we go any further, Iask you to read this book aloud, fromhereforward, all of it . Why?
1246As I note repeatedly throughout this book, IF you can read aloud WITHOUT stuttering, do as much reading aloud as you possibly can – one
1247hour, two or more, daily. So, start now by reading this entire book ALOUD, and put some feeling, emotion and passion in your reading. Why?
1248The morefeeling you invest in reading or speaking, thelessyou will stutter .Your mind can’t think two thingsat once:Either it focuses on
1249the message or stuttering. You can alternate your full voice, half voice to even the faintest whisper; it won’t matter; your mind will record every
1250word and “give you fluency-credits”foreveryword.
1251This willaccomplish two things:(1) replace some stuttering-memories (SMs) with fluency-memories (FMs) and (2) help you teach yourselfto
1252focus onTHOUGHTS/THEMESSAGE and NOT onWORDS.
1253Fluent speakers do NOT think words first; they simply speak their thoughts as they occur and they do so spontaneously and instantaneously.
1254So, STARTREADINGTHIS TEXTALOUDRIGHTNOW, just do itand do it with feeling.
1255Section 5
1256StepTwo:
1257My Speech “Crutches”: 12 Creative Fluency Techniques
1258“Failureis not in falling down; it is in staying down.”
1259Mary Pickford (Actress, 1892-1979)
1260What Is a Crutch andWhy Use One?
1261After every loss, a wonderful baseballcoach ofmine, the late, Paul“Whitey” Schubert, used to remind us resolutely, “ Quitters don’t win, and
1262winners don’t quit. ” That well-worn admonition (now a cliché) has become a life-motto of mine, and nowhere did I need it more than in my
1263personalwaragainststuttering. In time, I learned that thefastest way to arisefromastuttering-knockdownwas/is to outsmart the problemby using
1264what Icalled “Voice Tools”in the 1
1265st Editionwhich I now call“Crutches”in the 2
1266nd Edition, as that termhas been better-received bymy PWSMates.
1267Ifwe havea broken leg, we don’t walk on it; we useacrutch (or two) to allowtimefor theleg to heal. Similarly, whenwe havea mind that is
1268full to overflowingwith vivid memories of gross stuttering (Stutter-Memories or SMs) in 3-D with surround sound, some ofwhich include laughter
1269and mocking by listeners, we will never overcomestuttering. We need to begin adding less such plaguing memories daily and also to erase
1270or replace as many of those SM’s ,as wecan, with positive Fluency-Memories (FMs) .
1271In Phase I ofa self-cure, this is THE biggest problem: How can we stop stuttering long enough to mitigate the addition of fresh, ugly stuttermemories?
1272I have only discovered one wayto stop stuttering in its tracks: Use a Crutch .
1273What do I mean by “Crutch”:any technique thatenables the PWS to DODGE a soon-to-be stuttered/blocked word. Icould NEVER have
1274self-cured without using Crutches. (Some PWS run fromme and mymethods as soon as they learn that I want themto use Crutches, as they
1275see Crutches as “managing speech”, which is not correct. Crutches do NOT “manage speech”; they train the mind to automatically leapfrog
1276would-be stutters. Simply said, I doubt that most of those who reject Crutches willever cure their stuttering, because they won’t be able to stop
1277stuttering long enough to filltheir minds with FluencyMemories (FMs)and thusexpungetheirabundant,ever-growing Stutter-Memories (SMs).
1278When we master a body of Crutches, like the 12 presented in this book, and can grab one automatically, we willstart avoidingmost stutters
1279virtually overnight. We willstill be obsessed with stutter-fearsand anxieties, but the fears will begin to subside immediately, and the curing process
1280will be underway.
1281Do not use any one Crutch word-after-word. Some make the mistake of over-using ONE Crutch, and this willmake their speech “sound
1282funny”, but, ifwe do not over-useanyCrutch, but, rather, movesmoothly back-and-forth among several ofCrutches, our speechwillsound totally
1283normal, like mineand thespeech ofmy self-curing PWS Mates.
1284So, please, do yourselfafavor:Do not be dismissive ofCrutches, because you fear that“they sound funny”, becausethey don’t.
1285While mind control – as discussed in Steps 5 and 6 (Sections 8 and 9) – is the most potent method of defeating stuttering , to gain
1286significant, immediaterelief from stuttering, Crutches savethe day beforethe mind can be fully re-mapped to reject stutter-fears. While
1287Crutches aren’t cures, they are methods of out-faking your mind when it threatens a stutter, and thus avoids creating another bad stuttering
1288memory and substitutes a positive onein your Mind Memory and Image Bank (MMIB) .
1289The initial goal of the Crutches is to avoid just one immediate stutter – and then another and another and then a string – but, as I used these
1290Crutches (which I developed one-by-one), I found they accomplished something evenmore important. Not only did theysingle-handedly avoid
1291stutters right and left, they began to replace my SMs and graphic images of stuttering with positive FMs , a huge win-win. Then, no
1292surprise, my fears of stuttering fell in direct proportion to the reduction of my new stuttering incidents and SMs and the addition of
1293gratifying fluency memories .
1294“Necessity remains the Mother ofInvention,”as goes the aphorism, and my job demanded that I speak. I began to literally “play games”with
1295words. When I feltmyselfabout to freezeand startstuttering, it wasalwayscaused by a word orafewspecific words that frightened me.
1296My Crutches were born, one-by-one, and each proved to be life-savers. Yes, I could avoid stutters, one-by-one. As I realized this, I knew
1297that,as I becameadeptat usingCrutches smoothly, I was going to defeat Satan Stuttering.
12985.0 Summary of Crutches
1299As noted above, using thesame Crutchword-after-word willsound unnatural, but, if we movesmoothly back-and-forth among the Crutches,
1300the PWS will be quitefluent. If you listen to meand my self-cured PWS-Mates, youwill hear proof ofthat fact.
1301My Crutches are a combination of methods and ways of thinking. Keep in mind that it ONLY TAKES ONE CRUTCH TO BEAT A
1302WOULD-BE STUTTERED WORD. So, you don’t need to like or useall ofthese. Herearethe ones that I useand that have been best received
1303bymy PWS-Mates. As it’scomforting to have options, memorizethefollowing; then, keep acopy in your pocket:
13041) Skip first letter or syllable,
13052) Useasynonym, similar word or phrase,
13063) Skip the word entirely,
13074) InsertingAlternate Thoughts
13085) Use Pauses
13096) Voice Modulation; beexpressive
13107) The Magic, Instant Cure
13118) Changethethought
13129) Tellastory about the word
131310) Talk slower (limited elongation)
131411) Talk fasterand immediately
131512) Talk less
1316Bonus Crutch: When you speak, SMILE. Smilingwillchange yourattitudeabout your speech and your life.
1317Each oftheaboveare described below. The goal is:DODGE EACHSTUTTERusingwhichever Crutch iseasiest. Crutches do not keep you
1318from speaking spontaneously; they force you to be more creative with your spontaneity. After you have used them for a while, your mind will
1319automatically grab one when needed. Oncethat occurs, your stuttering daysare over.
1320So, I urge you to:Memorizethe Crutches;keep a list of them in your pocket with thelist of your auto suggestions (Steps 5 and 6), and
1321practiceyour Crutches whilereading aloud on random words, until they’reeasyto use. Then, begin using themin lowpressuresituations.
1322Suddenly,you’re going to find yourself speaking largely fluently by simply using the Crutches ! HOWEVER, the Crutches are not a
1323self-cure by themselves ; they are ONE of the roads to get you to spontaneous and instantaneous speech (which guarantees fluency). If you
1324want to eliminate 99% of your stutter-fears and become an undetectable stutterer, it will be easier if you use all of the methods in this
1325book . They are NOT hard to learn and it shouldn’t take you long (afewmonths or less for most) to whip most ofthe problem. To whip itall, you
1326need to drive StutteringMemories to nearzero,and that takes time, but, while you are doing it, most won’t viewyou asastutterer.
1327Finally, remember thateachCrutch offersanOPTION to astuttering-incident. Inmostcases, most oreven all ofthese options willwork well,
1328but, ofcourse, some will work better than others, and it takes some time to learn which Crutch will be easiest to avoid the then current feared
1329word. This is not “managing” a would-be stutter-word, it is simply deciding to go around it. Why fight, if you don’t have to do so? As you
1330circumventmoreand morestutter-threats, your mind willslowly simply forget to fear words. Then, stuttering stops. Youwin.
1331Once you have memorized the Crutches and have practiced using them, like any good carpenter, your mind will instantly know which to use,
1332SPONTANEOUSLYAND INSTANTANEOUSLY, without slowing your speech or otherwise planning the words you will say. Fluency is
1333dependent upon spontaneity, and the Crutches must be spontaneous, too . Only practice will make themso. I never plan my words (or my
1334Crutches) in advance, and I don’t want you to do so either. Planning words iscertain to causestuttering;you must STOP it completely
1335. The Crutches,combined with Steps 5 and 6, willenable you to do that.
13365.1 Skipping First Letters and First Syllables
1337This Crutch 1 is so incredibly effective that I must write expansively about it. Also, Crutch 1 is by far the easiest to combine with other Crutches,
1338and, further, Crutch 1 attacks THE biggest single problem for most PWS: the first letter or syllable of the next feared word . “Feared
1339First Letter”is hereinaftercalled “FFL”.
1340If only you/I/we could handle the next FFL, we can beat stuttering without doing anything else!!!In addition to FFL’s, the words
1341that most PWS fear the most are (1) our own names, (2) other people’s names and (3) any word for which there is no substitute or alternative
1342(names,again).
1343So, I stumbled upon a great technique to saymy name or any name: omit the first letter or syllable (FFL) . This embarrassingly simple
1344method gave me enormous, immediate relief – and I still use it when I need, which isn’t often , as my Stuttering Fear Meter has long been
134598-99% dormant, but, like any sleeping tiger, I remain alert for signs ofmovement, which I quellwith a sedative (a Crutch, like dropping the first
1346syllable).
1347By omitting those first letters or syllables ofa feared word or words, the rest of the word generally seemed easy to say; it got me on a roll;
1348once I said the “hard”word(s) (albeit minus the first letter or syllable), I relaxed quite a bitand, withmomentumhelping, I would then roll through
1349the rest ofmy thought (using yet other tools and techniques if needed) without stuttering, and, when the fear returned, I repeated the process:first
1350letter/syllable (FFL) would be scratched, skipped. Most of the time, everyone understood me and I became so proficient at this (often dropping
1351myvoice a bit to further mask the omission ) that listeners rarely noticed myselective omissions , making ita grand slamhomerun.
1352If you stutter, you know that, when a stutterer avoids a difficult letter or word and completes an entire thought without stuttering, it gives
1353him/her a huge boost, and it reduces the level of fear in the next verbalcommunication, a double win. So, as simple as this technique is, don’t
1354sell it short . It does morethan avoid a present crisis; it mitigates thefear level in theensuing “crises” . Likeanything else, it takes a bit
1355of practiceto do it smoothly, but it’s not dif icult ,and it will begin the process of reducing your fear of “the next word”, and that’s what
1356triggers allstuttering .
1357Agood place to start is with your own name: Lee Lovett became “EEE OVETT”. Oddly, once I said “Eee”, I could often say “Lovett”, with
1358thefirst letter, just fine, or, ifI said thelast namefirst“Ovett”, Icould then say, “Lee Lovett”just fine. Go figure.After sayingmy name without the
1359first letters once, then I could say “Lee Lovett”all day long with no problem. Most ofmy PWS-Mates can do that, too. All of this works. Don’t
1360ask me to explain it medically; no one can, but it works. Medics can’t explain this, but, then, I’ve never met a medic who had stuttered and then
1361cured his/her stuttering.
1362MyCrutches, likethis one, shake up my brain and fake out thestutter-trigger-planner. I sometimescombineskipping the FFLand then speak
1363faster (Crutch 11) thanmy Stutter-Trigger-Plannercan plan the next stutter – and, to keep it wobbling, I“eee-lon-ng-gate”(elongate)a word now
1364and then (Crutch 10) as a bonus. Get your mind into this Crutch-game; mix them up; have fun with them; you ARE going to beat The
1365Mephistopheles-Monster in the end! Once YOU start winning with Crutches, you will know and accept the fact that youARE going to beat it.
1366Once you realize this, using allmymethods gets easier and easier and easier. The Stutter-Snowballmelts, and the Fluency-Snowballstarts rolling
1367for you.
1368So, TO STOP FEARING STUTTERING, WE NEEDTOSTOP THE VERYNEXT INSTANCE of stuttering , and, then the next, and the
1369one after that, thus,conquer stuttering by avoiding ONE instance at a time, and then string a few of these fluency-instances together. Each
1370“win”lowers the Stutter Fear Meterand raises the Fluency Confidence Meter. HOWEVER, if you allow yourselfto fall back into stutter-gigs (by
1371not using your Crutches, including shutting your trap now and then, as a last resort, Crutch 12), you won’t make much, if any, progress.
1372Regrettably, I have met some PWS who have tried so many therapies and have still stuttered so long that they consider themselves experts on
1373curing,although they stillstutter; regardless, they knowtoo much to give mymethodsatry for morethan afewminutes.
1374As Confucius said, “The longest journey begins with the first step.” Dropping first letters or syllables is such a first step. The best time to
1375begin using this fine Tool/Crutch is right now, the next timethat you speak and astutter-fearappears.
1376Don’t just read this book and try to remember it; youwon’t, not unlessyou start using EACHstep asyou read them. You are (or should
1377be) reading this book aloud by now, ofcourse; so, practice dropping first letters or syllables of some words as you read right now . This
1378book requires “on thejob” training, active participation; useit or loseit; start winning NOW.
1379You say, “Ican’t skip the first letter or first syllable of EVERYword I speak.”“It sounds funny.”BUT you don’t stutter on everyword either
1380and you can switch back-and-forth using different Crutches. YouCAN practiceskipping thefirst letter or syllable ofeveryword,even though you
1381won’t ever do that. This helps, because you will soon see which words lend themselves to this Crutch and which words don’t. So, practice it
1382NOW, on the next sentence, paragraph, and page, until it’s easy for you to do. As you read aloud right now, in the next paragraph, skip as many
1383first lettersas you can.
1384Other times, when Icombined Crutches. I dropped a letter or syllable, and then I increased the speed ofmy speech a bit (Crutch 11), talking
1385fast (as do many, especially the young). The less time that I allowed between words, the less time I gave my mind to PLAN a stutter . So, I
1386dodged the stuttered-word by dropping the first letter/syllable and then talked more rapidly. I was INSTANTANEOUSLY, spontaneously
1387fluent for that spate of words. (So, now you know:You can’t possibly skip the first letter ofevery word; it doesn’t work with some words, like
1388“add”, BUT youwill never need or try to skip thefirst letter ofEVERYword; it’s only the FIRST Feared Word thatconcerns you.
1389As each successful instance adds to one’s Mind’s Memory and Image Bank (MMIB), a spate of such successes (however brief) can do
1390wonders forany stutterer. So, initially, my/your goal was/is: AVOID THE NEXT INSTANCE of stuttering .As you succeed with this word
1391and that, try to concentrate on your message and not the next word , as discussed in Section 7; combining this with Crutch 6 (voice
1392modulation, being expressive) will help you concentrate on the message, and, when you concentrate on your message,you cannot stutter, period
1393.You aren’t planning anywordseither. In other words, onceyou leapfrog the problem word, immediatelychangeyour focus to the message
1394and keep talking untilyou havecompleted your thought . Don’t try to hold thefloor for long periods. (Less words receive moreattention than
1395more words even among the most fluent speakers.) Suddenly, you will be speaking spontaneously and instantaneously, and thus freely. Let’s
1396consider someexamples offinessing feared first lettersand firstsyllables (FFLs).
1397So, when fear of the first or next syllable seized my brain, I simply dropped that syllable. “Christmas” became “istmas”; “William” became
1398“illiam”;“Thomas” became“omas”. By doing this, I tricked my mind into skipping over thethen problem: thefirst syllable. Why I didn’t
1399discover this jewel-of-a-idea earlier, I have no idea. It came to me severalmonths after my early-described public, Courtroomhumiliation, which
1400was the worst ofmy life!!! The discovery occurred something likethis:
1401The occasion was a formal dinner, an Optimist Club gathering, I had been asked to introduce the speaker, whose name was “Richard
1402Richardson”, and “R’s” were my biggest, single obstacle. Names were a problemin general, as I couldn’t substitute any word for same. I was
1403terrified at the prospect, but there was no escape. I couldn’t eat my food or even converse with those around me. I left the table several times
1404during the mealand went to the restroomto talk to myselfand to dry the sweat fromhead and armpits and to try to stop shivering. I considered
1405feigning illnessand leaving theevent, but I became determined to makethis introduction, to say his horrid name, ifI had to do it. SinceI was still in
1406my Pre-Crutch Era, I had limited options. So, I might haveto grit my teeth and spit it out or screamit or whisper it or jump up and down as I said
1407it, but I was going to say “Rich ard Rich ardson”.
1408The momentcameto make the introduction. Spontaneously, I decided to drop the first syllable of his name and any other words that
1409frightened me . Interestingly, the more words that I spoke (even without their first syllables, the words were generally understood) and,
1410progressively, I had less fear, and wasableto saymoreand more words, evenwith their first syllables, and mysuccess snowballed on thespot ,
1411justas sometimes had stuttering snowballed into atotal block. My announcement went something likethis (and the brackets [ ] indicate omitted
1412letters ):
1413“[M]ister Chairman, [m]embers and guests, we are honored to [h]ave with us [t]oday, a [p]rominent …”and I continued, thusly, until
1414reached my ultimatefear: his name, which I overcame by saying:“I nowgive you [R] ICH–ard [R] ICH-errd-son.”
1415I did itas mightaring announcerata boxing or wrestlingmatch, elongating thesyllablesand increasing or decreasingmy voicelevels to “play”
1416with thesoundsand the name, adding importanceto his name and a sense of theater to the occasion . The crowd LOVED it, and applauded
1417wildly before RR spoke, and he took pains to thank me for the “colorfuland entertaining introduction”. I had not stuttered and had made myselfa
1418star! It wasa beginning!)
1419I promise you that, as best Icould determine, no oneseemed to even notice my omission of so many first syllables – as were needed to
1420enable me to complete that introduction, but I made it without publicly stuttering ! That was all that then mattered to me. This triumph was
1421deeplyengrained in my mind. Icould do it . With this trick alone, by dropping first letters or syllables, Icould “trick” the audienceinto
1422thinking that I did not stutter!I had proven it. Now, I simply needed to practiceand practiceand practiceand keep on doing this.
1423Since stuttering is a threat to many (and likely to most) PWS almost every minute ofevery hour, 24/7, the next embarrassing stutteringinstanceis
1424always only one word away. Incredibly, and unmercifully, this fear lives like a cancer, dead center in the stutterer’s thoughts, minuteby-minute,all
1425day and all night. (Seethe Stuttering SeverityChart, Section 4.4.)
1426For example, right on the heels onmy above triumphant introduction, I sat down, and was faced with routine conversation. While this came a
1427little bit easier, it was stilla challenge. So, I began employing the “Drop the First Letter or Syllable”technique immediately. Gradually, dropping
1428first letters or syllables when needed made my casual conversations less daunting and, predictably, my fear of stuttering, and hence my
1429stuttering, was already in a Diminishing Trend Line . I was beginning to beat it. I was NOT planning my speech or words; I was doing the
1430opposite: I was split-second improvising to DODGE stutter-bullets as they whizzed all-around me like hornets at a bee hive. It even seemed like
1431fun, in astrange way.
1432By swallowing/omitting “R’s”, “W’s”and other letters and sounds that frightened me, my speech grew less halting. What an incredible relief
1433this was!!! It was like “magic”(to borrow a word used by RuthMeade to describe parts of her self-cure). Inmywords, it was as if“an ominous
1434black cloud was lifting”. I began to delight in my ongoing successes. You, too, can do this. It’s really not hard; it just takes practice. I made a
1435game of swallowing, burying, and simply skipping first letters or syllables , when needed, and/or I sometimes ran words together for further
1436masking. (Although I frown on such slurred speech for non -stutterers, it is often mandated for stutterers.) So I attacked much-feared names as
1437belowand the brackes [ ] showtheletters that I omitted.
1438“[W] illiam[B] rown”
1439“[R] obert [St]eevens”
1440“[J]er-ryAdams”
1441“[Ge] orge-[W]ashington”
1442“[J]eesus [C] rist”
1443“[B] uddha
1444“[M] oh-ham-ed”
1445Listeners might think that I spoketoo fast or dropped too many endings or slurred mywords, but most ofthemdidn’teven notice, and, when
1446I used this technique, they did NOT view me as a stutterer , and that’s all that then mattered to me.
1447Names had been a continuing disaster for me, but I had found Speech Heaven:I had found a way to finesse my name and all names .
1448For thefirst timesinceI began stuttering, I was ableto begin to forget myfear of tough names, literallyforget it. I began re-mapping my
1449brain to accept the fact that I didn’t have a problem saying anyone’s name – best ofall, my own:“eee ovett”, which I could not say to the
1450Judge when trying my first case in court. I might even cough a bit as I said it, even rather coughing it out or I simply laughed at my own speech.
1451Others laughed, too,and thought no more ofit. Crisesavoided! Victory. MyFear Meter was falling, falling, falling .
1452PROBLEM: After a while, my Stutter Planner decided to attack second syllables of some words where I dropped the first letter or
1453syllable. This didn’t happen frequently, because, immediately after I used a Crutch, I spoke too fast to give my mind a chance to plan to stutter,
1454but, yes, to beatsecond syllables or wordsafter the FFL, I needed morethan one Crutch .
1455When I did NOT use this Crutch, or some later-developed, Crutch, I generally stuttered and this often began the negative stuttersnowball
1456moving against me. However, my trial-and-error methods kept me vacillating fromfluency to stuttering to fluency and back and forth
1457for years. This negative, pendulumcycle was not necessary. PWS’, depending on severity and work ethic(willingness to practice), can and should
1458substantially self-curein 60-90 days, with ararecaserequiring twicethat long.
1459Eventually, over and over again, each time I used this Crutch (dropping the first syllable or letter), I avoided a stuttering embarrassment; I did
1460not create another bad memory to overcome; I did the reverse; I began to build a large Fluency Memory Bank (FMB) of successful
1461speaking , and, as it improved steadily, my Stuttering Memory Bank (SMB) grew smaller and smaller and smaller . There were setbacks, of
1462course, but, over time, my successes began to outnumber my failures. Progress was beingmade. My sublime FluencyMemory Bank (FMB) was
1463beginning to dominate my evilStutteringMemoryBank (SMB). Satan Stuttering-Fear was growing atad insipid. I was on a SpeechRock ‘nRoll.
1464Evenwhen using the hated telephone, where I often suffered mymost obvious stutters, I was doingmuch, much better. (During lawschool,
1465for several years, I worked in the U.S. Senate; I operated a phone-switchboard in the Republican Cloakroom(when I wasn’t manning a door).
1466Can you imagine the horror ofa PWS operating a switch board? I was panic stricken. I had to do something – and fast; I could not allowmyself
1467to block and create long pauses, as Senators, their staffand callers, waited for me. So, Crutches became my First Line of Defense . It was
1468sink or swim. So, I jumped inwith both feet,answering phonecallsand paging Senators.
1469Here are some examples; I created many variations of these: “[M]orning, [S]enate [Ree]publican [Cl]oakroom… Cloakroom… Senate…
1470U.S. Senate Room…Phone Room…[S]enate Switchboard…” Then, once I had announced where I was (sort of), I had to say something like:
1471“[M]ay I [h] elp y ou? … Or just “Help you?”… Or “[H]old on, [pl] ease… Or “[H] old”. Then, I had to page a Senator or buzzfor a Senate
1472Page:“[P]aging [S]enator [J] ohnson; [c]all on 1 …Or just“[Sen]ator [J] onson on 1”. In short, reader, I was in Stutterer’s Hell . That was my
1473job. Did I need a quick solution or what?(Remember, I was married, had two kids, went to lawschoolat nightand had afull timejob in the U.S.
1474Senateand was broke. Panic.)
1475Getting past the First Feared Letter (FFL) was key, which I followed by fast-talking. As I learned to talk faster, I made it sound like a kid
1476(which I was, 22-26) slurring his speech, jamming words together and dropping word endings. The faster that I talked (Crutch 11), the less
1477time my mind had to plan a stutter . The positivefluency-snowballwas gainingmomentum. It worked.And the morethat it worked, theeasier it
1478became. My Crutches actuallyexpedited thespontaneity of myspeech . (Many PWS can’t understand that, until they prove it to themselves
1479with me on Skype.) My Stuttering Fear Meter was in free-fall. The better I became at employing my Crutches, the less I stuttered in ALL
1480situations ., as I becameless and less and less afraid of stuttering.
1481Whilesaying unavoidable names was stillmy biggestsingle use ofthis Crutch 1, I found that dropping thefirst syllable helped immensely
1482and immediately with routine conversations , too. That is, when I was conversing about anything and suddenly my mind injected fear of
1483stuttering and triggered stuttering, a dropped letter or syllable here and there enabled me to continue speaking with no visible sign of
1484stuttering ! Presto, my speech was beginning to flow. I was “fooling”most everyone a good bit of the time! Often, even with using only this first
1485Crutch, many didn’teven knowthat Leestuttered! Victory!
1486For the first time since my first instance ofstuttering, my stuttering stopped getting worse and began to get better. As I discovered and used
1487them, myCrutches becamethe best method in PhaseI of myself-cure, and theylater becamethe best method in the post-cure phase – as
1488my best method of avoiding relapses . Iamso good at usingCrutches, as no onecan even tellwhen I’musing themand when I’mnot. As long
1489as I have my Crutches, I know that no onecan evercatch me(or my PWS-Mates) stuttering . Some PWS reject my Crutches (and, thus,
1490my book and me) at first blush and return to their breathing exercises, elongating their words, vibrating theirAdam’s apple or whatever, and they
1491stillstutter. It’s sad, because myCrutches work.
1492My self-cure had begun in earnest . (Having read the above, carefully I hope, you will ofcourse begin your self-cure right now. If you can
1493read aloud without stuttering, I hopethat you arereading this book aloud RIGHTNOW, all ofit;assuming so, practice dropping afewfirst letters
1494here and there. It’s easy to master . I can now do it as spontaneously as I speak . Learning to do such easy things automatically will not
1495interfere with your increasingly normal-spontaneous speech. Dropping first letters offeared words will lead to fluency. Makea game ofit; havefun
1496teaching yourself howto avoid stuttering.
1497Once you’re used to doing this, you’ll see how easy, and effective, it is. Don’t think, “I can’t”; just do it. Examples: [Y]ou can [d]oo it; so,
1498[j]ust [d]oo it. Sound a bit like “baby talk”? So what! It beats humiliating silence, blocking or repeating “s-s-s-s”, and most won’t notice anyway,
1499as slurring words is “the new English”(as my grandkids have proven), and, the more that you do it, the less that you’ll need to do it! (Stop
1500reading aloud and takea breather.)
15015.2 Use a Synonym, SimilarWord or Phrase
1502Using synonyms permits flawless fluency. If you don’t know an exact synonym, a similar word will do. If you can’t recall a similar word
1503either, use a short phrase that describes the feared word . Synonyms or similar words for “Book” might include: “volume”, “tome”,
1504“omnibus”, “manual”, “publication”, “primer”, “folio”, “paperback”, “hardcopy”, “Kindle”, “novel”, “story”, “treatise”, “notebook”, “notepad”,
1505“pad”, “workbook”, “ledger”, “title”, “reading material”, “pamphlet”, “chapbook”, “text”, “lexicon”, “information source”, “records”, “accounts”,
1506“verse”,etc.
1507If no synonymor similar words comes to mind, simply grab a phrase to insert; most anything will do. Example:You want to say the word
1508“book”to a sales clerk in the store:“I’mlooking for something to read … What fiction do you have by … I love to read; can you help me …
1509Who’s your favoriteauthor … I need something to read …”
1510However, it is important that you do NOT delay saying the phrase that you are using in lieu of the Feared Word (thus giving your trained,
1511stutter-planningmind a chance to inject fear on a different word). Speak the split second that the thought occurs to you, and then talk fast (Crutch
151211) to complete your thought. Jammed words defy Stutter Planning. (Youwon’t haveto do any ofthis for long; I didn’t. Once you and your mind
1513accept thefact that you can avoid any stutter, or 95%ofthem, the Stutter Fear Metercrashes,and you’relargely homefree.)
1514Theidea is to avoid your next instance of stuttering ; so, give yourselfa break. Do not publicly wrestle with your words by repeating
1515a letter or, worse, blocking silently while squinting, bobbing your head, etc.; ABANDON THAT WORD and use another word . See
1516Section 13.6. When you create an embarrassing stuttering-memory, it hangs with you a long time and perpetuates repeats. You can’tafford to do
1517it, period. This is NOT “planning”speech; it is the opposite: it’s a split-second unplanned switch of words . The stutter-fear part of your mind
1518cannot impose newstutter-fearsas fastas you can change words or thoughts. I proveitevery day.
1519As you learn to usesynonyms, similar words orafewwords that say thesamething, a habit, this Crutch 2, also becomesasometimes perfect
1520OPTION. (In Steps 5 and 6, youwill learnmethods ofreinforcing the good memories viaauto suggestion and/or self-hypnosis.) Stutter Memories
1521and Fear Meter falling, falling, falling.
15225.3 Skip the Word Entirely
1523This is so easy, and it works in so many situations. Ican’t tell you howmany times I havesimply omitted afeared word, kept right on talking and
1524no one, but no one, ever knewthe difference. Fluent speakers do itall ofthetime, by accident. I simply did (and do) it on purpose. It worked and
1525stillworks.
1526When you FORCE and FIGHT to get words out, you put yourselfway, way, WAYbackwards – and youmakelisteners very uncomfortable.
1527This is onereasonwhy some PWS hang outmainlywith other PWS. You can’tafford to wrestle publiclywithwords, EVER– and you don’t need
1528to do it. That’s why you need CRUTCHES that you can grab INSTANTANEOUSLYwithout planning in advance! (If you have a better way
1529thanmyCrutches, you aren’t likely reading this book, but, if you think you havea better way, for heaven’s sakeemailme(info@leeglovett.com),
1530and I’llshareit with allmy PWS-Mates!!!)
1531Ifthe omitted word distorts your message;express theentirethoughta dif erent way. Getcreative; get loose;make your speech an adventure.
1532It willmake youmoreinteresting in the bargain. So, Iadded skipping the word entirely to my skipping first letters/syllablesand synonymCrutches.
1533Stutter Memoriesand Fear Meter falling, falling, falling, falling. FluencyMemoryMeter rising, rising, rising. Leesmiling, smiling, smiling.
15345.4 Inserting Alternate Thoughts
1535This Crutch 4 is a much milder version of Crutch 8 (Change the Entire Thought). As you know, most Stutterers can say any word without
1536stuttering, IF they don’t have time to fear it, and, once they get past “the first feared word”, they get on a rolland can talk stutter-free for quite a
1537while, especially if it’s not a high pressure situation (such as a large group or a stranger, or the telephone – a much feared instruments among
1538PWS). You also know this: Stutterers typically take a second or two to think about a word before fear kicks-in and that delay leads to a stutter. We must stop delaying; just speak, begin speaking very quickly, no plan, even rush it a bit. Answer quickly, off the top of your head. ( Once
1539you buryyour Stutter Memories,you won’t need any of these Crutchesexcept rarely.)
1540Some therapies teach “talking slower”(Crutch 10), including breathing maneuvers and elongating words. This can work, but too much of it
1541sounds “funny”. So, in small doses, yes, it’s good. Opposites attract. “Talking faster”(my Crutch 11) has always helped me MUCH more than
1542talking slower. Once I get past “the next feared word”, if I keep my words close together, I talk stutter-free for quite a while, until I have to
1543leapfrog another feared word. Anyway, Inserting anAlternate Thoughtasa preface(Crutch 4) helped me get pastmany “next feared words”.
1544When you speak quickly, 99% of the time your answer will be just as good as one that you planned for ten minutes. Stutterers think too
1545much beforespeaking; stop it! Don’t sell your brain short; it’s incredibly fastand good. Rely on it. Talk and talk faster – for a while, until your
1546fluency memories start dominating your conscious mind and fear fades; then, you’re basically home free, cured by your own hand, and you will
1547speak as fluently as if you had never stuttered.
1548Over time, I discovered that I could avoid a First-Syllable-Problemby ways other than dropping a letter or syllable. I could simply insert a
1549spontaneous Last Minute or Alternate Thought to get mestarted , after which I rolled right over thefeared word(s) .
1550It is important to “insert thoughts , not insert words ,” becausethoughts find their own words before the stutterer can fear them ,
1551whilethinking words is the primarycause of stuttering. This isafine distinction, but it iscriticalto thecure.
1552So, do NOT think words; just grab an alternate thought and start talking . Your mind will find words , and you can speak them,
1553before you have time to fear and stutter them. (You can say any word in some circumstances; therefore, you can learn to say any word in other
1554circumstances. For now, we’re going to trick the mind by skipping part ofthe word ORby inserting aspontaneously different thoughtand juststart
1555talking, and mostany thought will do, for this stop-gap, short-termcrutch. You can change your thought faster than your mind can plan to
1556stutter ; that’s fact; I prove it all day, every day. This is difficult to write but easy to demonstrate on Skype. Remember our First Goal: Fill your
1557Mind’s Memory Bank with more Fluency Memories than stuttering ones.) Each Crutch gives you another option to avoid creating a new
1558Stutter-Memory. If you don’t do this, youwill not likely self-cure.
1559AnAlternate Thought may besimply a preface, a parenthetical opening , in front offeared words, to give yourself the momentumto roll
1560right over a feared word (and, if it doesn’t beat the fear, drop the first letter.) I call these parenthetical insertions “Last Minute Thoughts” or
1561“Jump starting fluency openers”. Here are a few examples. Insertions like these often beat my stuttering-fear to the punch and/or blew
1562right through it :“Do you know…Oh, by the way… Excuse me…Can you tellme…Say, do you know…Incidentally…I was wondering …”I
1563did thisalot withmy name, too:“Oh, I’mglad you asked…Actually, I’ma Scot…Well, I’ve been called everything, but the name’s Lee(Eee)…”
1564You shouldn’t practice or pre-plan the exact words for these parenthetical insertions or you may stutter them; TO BEAT FEAR, WE
1565NEED TO SURPRISE IT , i.e. by being spontaneous. So, do not think words; think change, a dif erent thought, and immediatelystart
1566talking. The keyis immediatelystart talking . Yourexact words are basicallyirrelevant ; once, you’retalking, on aroll, you can saymost
1567anything, especially if you keep your words close together; also, remember: people don’t care; they aren’t paying attention, and they don’t
1568remember. Just shoot a phrase fromthe hip (i.e., without planning it). Once you get launched, you will often barrel right through the first syllables
1569withouteven thinking aboutany ofthemand, oncetalking, the words will often just flowas they do for non-stutterers. It works; that is, you dodge
1570thestutter,and no one knows the difference,except you.
1571Just last night, I was Skyping with a lovely Brazilian lady, and we did a drill. I read a short paragraph, but I spontaneously changed a third or
1572so of the words in every sentence. Then, I asked her to do the same thing. She did it brilliantly, no stutters, no sweat! Later in that Skype, she
1573talked stutter-free while applying various Crutches without telling me . Then she asked me if I had noticed her Crutches. I said, “What
1574Crutches?”I hadn’t noticed a one. We both laughed. She is using the Crutchesand she’s going to win. After the Crutches beatenough of Satan’s
1575Feared Next Words, Satan gives up; the mind simply forgets to stutter. I buried Satan six feet undereonsago.
1576These victories may not seemlike much to a non-stutterer, but, to one who stutters on 10% or more of his words, constantly, or vacillates
1577from zero to full blockage situationally, these little victories are HUGE. Adding this technique, I was “on a roll” in more ways than one. My
1578Fluency-MemoryMeter was steadily climbing, while my atrophying Stutter MemoryMeter was in freefall. I was killingLucifer Lockjaw.
1579To outmaneuver Sadistic Stuttering, it took creativethinking, practice and determination, and making a game of it (theYou vs. YouGame
1580that is the realand greatest sport of life, as discussed in Section 14), but I had stopped the worsening trend ; my stuttering was no longer
1581growing worse by the day; it was plateauing and decreasing . It had become the Number One Goaland game in my life. It had to be. My
1582career (and sanity) depended upon it. I simply couldn’t livethinking about stuttering everyminute, every day, forever, and then botchingmy speech
1583here and there; I just couldn’t keep doing that. However much work and planning it took to beat it, I was willing to do, and I did it. So, I added
1584“inserting alternate thoughts” to my skipping first letters/syllables, synonyms and skipping the word entirely Crutches. My Stutter-Fear Memory
1585Meter was falling, falling, falling. My FluencyMemoryMeter was rising, rising, rising.
15865.5 Using Pauses
1587Ironically, Crutchescan be opposites. Forexample, using pausesand/or slowing and articulatingwords/speech versus talking faster.Allcanwork.
1588Talking fasters sounds more natural and will move one much faster toward a cure, but, here and there, speaking slowly and articulating or
1589enunciating syllables very deliberately can get a PWS over some rough spots, but it can’t be used as “a way ofspeaking”, because it sounds too
1590odd and takes too long. The use of pauses isacousin ofslowing speech.
1591One of my English teachers maintained that accomplished speakers, when concerned that they were losing the attention of their audience,
1592would simply stop talking. As silence reigned in the room, the audience noticed it instantly; they stopped talking, reading or sleeping, and alleyes
1593and attention returned to the speaker. It occurred to me that I could use pauses in reverse: that is, as a method of buying time to gather my
1594thoughts, rephrase them, find synonyms, inject or change throw-away-starter parentheticals, and the like – provided that I did not allow my brain
1595to plan specific wordsand, hence, causeastutter. Ican plan all ofthe Crutches that I want, as long as I do notattempt to plan theexact words to
1596use.
1597So, when speaking, ifa wave of insurmountable fear ofstuttering overcame me, I began inserting pauses; I simply stopped talking, and, as I
1598paused, I constructed another new way to express my thought – one in which my brain had not had time to “fear” – and then began again,
1599dropping the first syllable if needed and continuing. Sometimes, I even changed my thought-scheme several times in rapid succession and
1600started talking as I madethechanges, giving my mind ZEROtimeto plan to stutter. Or, sometimes, I switched and asked the other person a
1601question about anything. What my brain feared were the words that I had planned to say . Unplanned words surprised my brain . I said
1602the word before the Fear Monster seized me, and, voila, I was home free. Using pauses proved to be an excellent supplement to my omittedletters/syllables,
1603synonyms and word-skipping and inserting alternate thoughts Crutches. Stutter Memory Meter falling, falling, falling. Fluency
1604MemoryMeter rising, rising, rising. I then stumbled upon voice modulation.
16055.6 Voice Modulation; Be Expressive
1606One does not need to speak with aflat voicetone, in an undesirable monotone(althoughmany do). Modulating your voice(raising or lowering the
1607voice, speaking softer or louder, syllable by syllable) gives emphasis to important syllables and words; it provides animation and interest to one’s
1608speech. Modulation also providesanother usefulCrutch to beatstuttering.
1609To change your voice modulation, you must THINK – about modulation (and being expressive), not about your fear ofany first syllable. A
1610substantial part ofself-curing stuttering is simply to force your mind to think about something, anything, other than planning the next word,
1611because your mind can’t think two thoughts at once . So, if youwill keep it busywith other thoughts, your mind won’t have time to trot out
1612Mr. Stutter-Fear. Thinking about voice modulation is one, perfectly good option. It forces you to speak as if you were singing, and most PWS
1613never stutter when singing. Modulating your voice is the first cousin ofsinging, and both of which are cousins of“Getting Lost inYour Message”
1614(Step 4):
1615“Now,” you think, “let me see; how do I want to modulate my voice on this phrase; what shall I emphasize; where shall my voice be
1616higher, or lower, or slower, or faster, and shall I end withmy voice up, as I might for a question, or down, as I might for a conclusion?
1617How might my favorite actor make it sound? Yes, that’s it,” and of you go, speaking, so busy contemplating and planning
1618MODULATION, not words, that fear doesn’t enter the picture.
1619It works, readers. Try it now. If you REALLY THINK about modulating syllables/words as you speak, you will NOT stutter. Your mind
1620simply does not think TWO thingsat once.
1621So, read this text: Start speaking but THINK MODULATION for every word. Modulate. When you modulate, think SELLING,
1622ENTERTAINING, BEINGAN INTERESTINGSPEAKER.Youwant to SELLthethoughts that the wordsconvey; modulation givesemphasis
1623and sells the message better. When you really concentrate onmodulating and selling, you don’t have time (or reason) to fearanyword. Practice it
1624a bit,and you’llseethat it works.
1625One can raise one’s voice to stress a point, but, often, a very soft, faint voice is ever more effective, as listeners willstrain to hear it. I found
1626that, if I raised my voice noticeably on a feared word, it was easier to say . If I did the reverse, and spoke ever so softly, it was even
1627easier to say. When you continuously surprise your mind with opposite patterns, speech tends to floweasily.
1628Always remember that Crutchesare NOT needed forever (other than in very rareinstances), once you haveself-cured (i.e., reduced stuttering
1629to a level that strangers do not consider you a PWS). Again, the PWS’withwhomI amSkyping, depending on their level ofstuttering and work
1630ethic, are self-curing in 60-90 days, on average. Heavy blockers are going to take longer, but they, too, can do it, if they’ll work at it, but many
1631won’t;someeven seemto want to continuestuttering.
1632With practice, while reading aloud by myself, I trained myself to hand-pick words to modulate: louder, softer or flat/monotone. Interestingly,
1633using both louderand softer voices seemed to make wordseasier to say. This wasanother break through.
1634So, the more that I thought about which word/syllable to modulate, and in which way (louder, softer), the less Fatuous Fear seemed to rouse
1635himself and impose a barrier. I was simply too busy planning and doing my modulations. As I was reading/speaking alone, there was no
1636risk of embarrassing myself , so, before long, I used all the Crutches discussed so far (skipping first letters/syllables, using synonyms,
1637skipping words, inserting alternatethoughts, using pauses and voice modulation), and I didn’t stutter at all, when reading aloud, and my
1638pressured-speech was doing ever so much better .
1639So, stop thinking that you “can’t”makethese Crutches work, because you can, if you’ll keep an openmind and just usethem. Start with one,
1640then two, and then useall ofthem. The morethat you can fillyour mind planning which Crutches to use, whileyou’respeaking, theless fear
1641is ableto intervene. Let us turn to an incredibly important Voice Tool/Crutch.
16425.7 The “Magic” Instant Cure
1643As an inveterate NFLfan, I had season tickets for eons. I used to go to the games and screammadly for my team. Often, I screamed so much
1644(always without stuttering, of course), that I became hoarse. Thefollowing day, Monday, a work day, I found myselfat work with no voice. I
1645was forced to whisper. I noticed that, when I whispered, I had no thought whatsoever ofstuttering, and I just spoke, devoid offeared words, until
1646my voicerecovered,a day or two later.
1647Voila! I thus stumbled uponwhat I gratuitously dub my “Magic Instant Cure”for stuttering; that is, it will work magically and perfectly in
1648“spots” or measured doses . Ican fade or drop instantlyinto a full whisper; then, go to half-whisper-halfvoice and back to full voice
1649and, then, slide back to half-whisper, etc., and listeners never notice a thing! With a bit of practice, IT’S EASY! It takes no time to learn
1650it, and itabsolutelyworks. (I have only encountered one PWS who has difficultywhispering audiblywithout stuttering.) This Magical, Instant Cure
1651is, ofcourse, WHISPERING . Some PWS haveinstantly dismissed this option as ludicrousand unworkable, but, then, some ofthemdon’t really
1652seemto want to cure. In any event, I made it work, and, often, without calling attention to the fact that I was intermittently whispering at various
1653volume-levels. If you Skyped withme, Icould proveto you howeasy it is to whisper,as needed, withoutappearing to haveaspeech issue.
1654Crutch 6, voice modulation (VM). VM works extremely well, interchangeably, with whispering, allowing one to bounce back-and-forth
1655between thetwo. Onceagain, I try to make games ofmy problems, and noneis moreinteresting than thrashing that ManicalMonsterevery day of
1656my life. Try thinking ofit myway:Makea game ofit, and knowthis:You and all other worker beesARE going to win!!! Othersare nowdoing it.
1657Youwill, too.
1658Whispering is a “magical cure”, because it provides immediate relief and can be employed in many ways: a total whisper; whispering only
1659problemwords; a partial whisper (using one-quarter voice, one-half voice, etc.) used untilcomfortable speaking in full voice in that situation. It’s
1660also so easy to useit on one word hereand there. I sometimes drop my chin acouple ofinchesand lean forward toward thelistener when I do it,
1661as if I’mtelling a secret. People rarely notice that I just whispered one word, and, once again, I dodged the stutter without even thinking about it.
1662Mymind knows how to breathe without my instructions, and it knows whichwords to grab to express my thoughts without my instructions, and I
1663havetrained, by practice, to knowwhichCrutch to use without instruction.
1664Fromthe first time I tried it, it worked like “magic”for me countless times. You say, “It’s embarrassing to start whispering.”I retort, “It’s less
1665embarrassing than stuttering oreven blocking.”It simply beats thealternative, and, as you area known stutterer, most listeners will viewitas what
1666you need to do, and they will be RELIEVED not to be forced to listen to you stutter ! After a while, as you get better at it, no one will
1667notice that youwhispered, in part or inwhole here and there. Don’t resist it; stop thinking, “I can’t”, and use it, when and as needed!!! Once you
1668become accustomed to using it, you will blend it seamlessly into your normal voice and back to whispering and back to normal voice, back and
1669forth, effortlessly, all while not stuttering at all, thus substituting endless positive memories and images in your MMIB, in lieu of more
1670stuttering ones .
1671No one has stuttered when whispering , when so faint as to be heard only by the whisperer; it can then be increased in tiny increments
1672just enough to be heard by the listener(s). The brain “hears”all thoughts, even if not verbalized, but it makes a more lasting impression when the
1673brain can hear the words. Try it; try it right now; whisperaloud these words: Can you whisper this so faintly that onlyyou can hear it? Now,
1674whisper these words,at varied levels to your pleasure:
1675“Give us strength to persevere.
1676Give uscourageand the quietmind”
1677Robert Lewis Stevenson (1850-1894)
1678“On theroad to Mandalay, Wheretheflyin’ fishes play,
1679An’ the dawn comes up likethunder
1680Outer China, ‘crost the Bay.”
1681Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936)
1682“Nothing is so much to befeared as fear.”
1683HenryDavid Thoreau (1817-1881)
1684It was the whisper to theear on the pillowthat lightened the heartand picked thelock and released theimprisoned tongueforever.
1685You whispered all of the above without stuttering. It’s interesting that, when you whisper at whatever level, you will not stutter . Now,
1686increase your whisper so that itcan be heard (just barely ) by someone sitting next to you. You still will not stutter . This IS a cure, and it is
1687so easy that it deserves to be called, “magic” . Does it take practice? Ofcourse! “Ludicrous,” you protest. “I can’t whisper everything.” Of
1688course not, but you CAN use it for a word or phrase or even sentence here and there. I used to work it into my speeches to large groups all the
1689time, even in court, and, now, I do it frequently during Skypes withmy PWS-Mates. Yes; whispering isa very effective way ofspeaking, and it is
1690idealfor leapfrogging a would-bestuttered word or phrase hereand there.
1691Stuttering cannotstop/block a whisper, period. Now, whisper thefollowing:
1692Whispering is a failsafe method of defeating stuttering and of beginning to reprogram my Mental Memory Bank, which is the
1693source ofthefears thatcause my stuttering. This WhisperingTechnique, used enough,could cure my stuttering by itself.
1694You did it stuttering-free, again, and you could keep right on doing it, as long as you want. If you’re not whispering, as I ask, why are you
1695reading this book? Can you beso content with your speech that youwish to remainwhere you are? You should learn these methodsas you read.
1696So, whispering,atalllevels, hereand there, for words, phrases or sentences, is the“magic” ofthis instant“cure”. Onecould even givean entire
1697speech that way (and I’ve come close inmy day), or talk all day that way, while apologizing for being horse (as I was onmany Monday’s during
1698NFL season) or having lost one’s voice due to abuse. Some singers have lost their voices and been required to speak in whispers for months.
1699They survived it.You can, too,and youwon’t haveto do it for long, as your FluencyMemoryBank will overwhelmyour StutteringMemoryBank
1700faster than you expect.
1701Long ago, I sometimes whispered large portions ofmy speech. Ieven apologized for having “losta bit ofmy voice”. It worked verywell. No
1702one suspected anything. It wasyet another of my growing, early triumphs – and a major eraser of negative stuttering memories. Whispering
1703solved so many stuttering “crises”, gave me so many positive memories, and literally launched me into the realmof normalspeech. I was on a big
1704time, fluency roll. I havetwo PWS right nowwho aresolvingmost ofthespeech problems simply bywhispering, and they’re over the moon about
1705it.
1706Clearly, whispering, by itself, is notacurefor life, nor isany other, single Crutch, but it IS a failsafe, short term, emergency cure for public
1707speaking or in conversations , and it’s also great for your practice sessions – because, armed with whispering, stuttering need never halt
1708your practices ; when hung on a word in practice, just whisper itand keep going (or use one ofthefirst fourcures in lieu thereof).
1709Yes; that’s right: If you stutter when speaking in private or before a mirror, whisper, and you can practice just fine; it takes a lot of practicespeaking
1710to re-programyour MentalMemoryBank, and you need to get started now. You will never self-cure unlessyou practice, and keep
1711practicing, and keep hearing yourself speak stutter-free, for however long your stuttering severity dictates, until your stuttering is no
1712longer detectable by others!If you need whispered-speech initially, that works; do it; use it; get cracking. Don’t just read this book; start using
1713the methods,everyCrutch, right now.
1714You could start reading (or whispering) the rest of this book ALOUD right now, while practicing all six of the earlier-above discussed
1715Crutches. Don’t postpone your self-cure. Kick-start it this minute!You could also buy the audibleversion of this book onAmazon , and read
1716it aloud withme. (I did the audible versionmyself, lending ample proof that I amnow an undetectable stutterer. You can check for stuttering, but
1717youwon’t find any.)
1718Your ever-sensitive mind records everything you think, speak and everything it hears , and your mind can hear whispers so soft that
1719yourearscan’t !You can’t fool your mind, but you can learn to take control ofit, and that is what this book is really determined to prove and to
1720inspire you to do. Keep reading, because the answers to the stuttering conundrumare here, and you’ve already learned enough to self-cure with
1721practice,and there’s stillmuchmoreto learn aboutself-curing.
1722Keep your mind busy with your newCrutchesand feel your fears fade!
1723Of course, I wouldn’t want to whisper every word forever, but I could do it anytime and on all words, as needed, to utter the most
1724frightening words, and I could even do a string of words in my three gears of whispers. Bottomline : Whispering became my “magic” short
1725term, spot cure, and gave me A SINGLE TOOL THAT COULD SAVE ME IN ANY SITUATION.
1726So, Iadded whispering to skipping first letters/syllables, synonyms, skippingwords, inserting other thoughts, pauses, and voice modulation, to
1727my growing list ofCrutches,and, presto, Stutter Fear Meter falling, falling, falling and FluencyMeter rising, rising, rising.
17285.8 Change the Entire Thought
1729For years, it never dawned on me that I could avoid a stutter by simply changing my entire thought. Actually, this forced me into a new,
1730SPONATANEOUS thought pattern,although I didn’t realizethat – or theimportance ofit.
1731I either changed to a related thought-line or something entirely different. I just wanted to avoid the imminent stutter/block, and it worked. In
1732fact, the more that I did this, the more I seemed to trainmymind to think fast (and to speak without planningmy words). The changes, however
1733abrupt, can seem(and be) very natural to the listener. Don’t fight these suggestions, because they are new or dif erent from what you have
1734been doing; you have been stuttering; that’s why you’re reading this book . Think out of the box, to use a cliché. Think creatively. It is
1735“broke”; let’s fix it. Iand others have doneit; you can, too.
1736Stuttering is a habit , a very bad habit, and fluency is a habit, too . We can’t have both habits, because they are and willalways be in
1737conflict. So, the morethat wechange ourentirethoughtand, hence, what we’resaying (and with no noticeto the Word-Selector in our minds), the
1738easier it is to avoid stuttering. As I did this, my Fear Meter kept falling, falling, falling.
1739Ialso used to dodgeastutter by switching to an impromptu question, hence passing theconversation back to the other person, taking heat off
1740me and letting the listener enjoy regaling me. I become a better questioner and listener. When under pressure, pass the conversation back to
1741others. Fear Meter falling, falling, falling.
17425.9 Tell a Story about the Word
1743Just yesterday, one ofmy PWS-Mates was tellingme how she had this incredibly embarrassingmoment, when she just meta new neighbor in her
1744yard and couldn’tsay her name;she gotstuck on itand tried to forceit:Disaster. Shelocked-up so tight thatshecouldn’t utterasound. Shesaid it
1745was the worststuttering incident of herentirelife,and she’s 37 and has been stuttering sinceage 3.
1746I told her to never FIGHT to say any word ; let it go; go over it, under it, around it, drop letters/syllables, use a synonym (even a
1747nicknameforyourself) or skip it for a moment and/or tell a story about it . Here’san example. Let’s pretend my PWS-Mate’s nameis Mary
1748MacIntyreand her newneighbor’s nameis JaneJohanson. The dialogue might go likethis:
1749Neighbor:“Oh, hello. I’myour newneighbor. I’mJaneJohanson.”
1750My PWS-Mate(Fear Meterexploding):“Oh, yes, Iam. Howniceto meet you. Johanson, say, isn’t thata Swedish name?”
1751Neighbor:“Well, yes it is. And what’s your name?”
1752PWS:“Well, I’mfromalong line ofScots, Ack-in-tyre’s the name – AryMacIntye. When did youmovein?”Thelistener got the name.
1753Namecrisis passed and conversation continues.
1754In reality, if the PWS can get past one name, either one, last or first, he/she can generally then say the other name just fine and likely both
1755names: Forexample, having said “Ary”, shecan jamthelast nameright into thefirst, “AryMacIntyre” or givethelast namefirst:“Ack-intyre–Mary
1756MacIntyre”. It’s hard to demonstrate in the written word, but, hopefully, you get the idea. It works. So does modulating different syllables of the
1757name or whispering part ofit. Just get past thecrisis; then your speech flows!
1758Very, very severe stutterers need to keep the responses short until they have built up lots of Fluency Memories by reading aloud, talking to
1759their mirrors, and talkingwherever else they feel little to no pressure and, so, don’t stutter much, and, ofcourse, mastering and using the Crutches
1760ANDdoing extensive, daily auto suggestion and/or self-hypnosis sessions,as per Steps 5 and 6.
1761I loathed saying my name, too, ofcourse, and, rather than give my name right back, I started a conversation about the other person’s name,
1762job, roots, etc.; then, when I was comfortable talking, and moving ata good pace, I tossed-inmy own name, although dropping the first letter the
1763first timethat I said it; then, I repeated it in its full glory. Simple. Easy. You can do it, too.
1764So, Iadded Crutch 9, telling stories,convert problemwords into events, to my first 8 Crutches. Fear Meter falling, falling, falling.
17655.10 Talk Slower(limited elongation)
1766As best Ican determinefromtalking to many PWS who have had therapy, one ofthe most popular“cures”that therapists recommend is“slowing”
1767their speech,“elongating”syllablesand/or“articulating”words, which Icall“ Slowed Speech ”for short.
1768While I rarely used Slowed Speech as a Crutch (but, rather, its cousins, Modulation and Pauses), it will work (if you combine passion to
1769increase your emphasis and take your mind off stutter-fears), but it is painful for the listener in large doses; that is, it makes the PWS’ speech
1770“sound funny”, as many PWS have complained to me that it does. Like most Crutches, in small doses (a word, phrase or even sentence here
1771and there) is fine, but , as way of speaking, it’s not an option – but, then, neither is any other Crutch. For example, one can’t drop the first
1772letter ofevery word or use a synonymfor every word or skip every word, etc. Talking Slower, as a Crutch, can be useful, if blended seamlessly
1773into my Baker’s Dozen ofCrutches. When used in the aggregate, one Crutch here, a different Crutch there, speech sounds totally natural; indeed,
1774this is way peoplespeak.
1775Again, I must stress that all Crutches, if used INDIVIDUALLYand CONSTANTLYwill result in “funny-sounding speech”, but if youmove
1776smoothly back-and-forth among them, they will NOT sound odd at all. If you listen to me speak or to those self-cured PWS who have worked
1777withme, youwillsee(and hear) that we do not“sound funny”. If you doubtme, Skype with us.
1778So, please, do yourselfa favor:Do not be dismissive of Crutches, because “they sound funny” when used non-stop, because they do indeed
1779work,and the proof,again, is inmy speech and that ofmy self-cured PWS-Mates.
1780Now, as to “elongating” (eeee-looonnng-gaaa-ting) words or “articulating” (pronouncing themvery clearly and ver-rr-ey slowly), I have no
1781problemwith use ofthis Crutch. Slowed Speech is, indeed,another, viable Crutch for temporary, spot use, to add to my first 9 Crutches.
17825.11 Talk Faster and Immediately
1783I haveinterwoven this Crutch throughout thefirst 10 Crutches. As has often been noted in this book, the primary cause ofstuttering and blocking is
1784PLANNED speech. As other authors have noted (e.g., Ruth Meade and John Harrison) “spontaneity” is the first key to fluency .
1785Spontaneous means unplanned. To that, I would add “ instantaneous ”, meaning immediate . If one speaks with immediacy, he/she has zero
1786time to plan words; hence, to speak immediately assures spontaneity . Spontaneity is a goal; speaking immediately is The Way to
1787achievethat goal.
1788Thus, to speak anythought immediatelyis to guaranteefluency.
1789Speaking “immediately” takes practice, too. I do some drills with PWS-Mates and ask them to answer questions while talking as fast as
1790humanly possible; I don’tcare what they say; I simplywant immediate answers at maximumspeed. (Ieven accept“’pass” or“don’t know”, but I
1791insist on IMMEDIATE responses.) Sometimes I do WordAssociationDrills or simply ask themquestions to which theanswersare well known to
1792them(their age, weight, eye color, etc.). I want IMMEDIATE answers. When they give me immediate answers, theyNEVER stutter. When they
1793hesitate, they often stutter, and Icomplain bitterly, but it proves my point. Speak your thought immediately, and youwillNEVER stutter! Do drills
1794on point,and teach yourselfto do it. Speak immediately.
1795Talking fast is dif erent from speaking immediately . Talking fast means running your words together a bit, dropping word-endings,
1796speaking severalwordsas iftheywereconnected as one. This iseasy to demonstrate on Skype, but hard to write. Onceyou have gotten bythe
1797First Feared Word, the easiest way to avoid a Second Feared Word is to talk fast , to connect your words more or less as one. This does
1798not sound “funny”; it sounds like every teenager on the planet, and no one thinks that it sounds odd. Youmay not always be understood, but you
1799usuallywill be,and it, too, works. Again,each ofthese Crutchescan avoid mostany stutter-incident.
1800As such, talking faster, obviously, is the reverse of slowed speech (Crutch 10) but both can work well as Crutches. (Opposites attract in
1801nature; remember your physics?) Frankly, talking faster is much more ef ective than slowed speech , because the latter allows and even
1802encourages the PWS to PLAN his words – the worst possible result, while talking faster is more “normal”. I prefer slowed speech with lots of
1803passion , because,as it is prettierand moreintelligibleand entertaining.
1804You complain, “Talking too fast makes one hard to understand, seems unnatural, etc.”Yes, a bit, but that is precisely the way all of my 13
1805grandkids talk and most of their friends. I protest vehemently to them, but they don’t slow down and I do understand them, most of the time.
1806Talking faster IS normalspeech, and it WILLexpediteaself-cure. Try it. Sit in front of your mirrorand read aloud as fastas you can or interview
1807yourself (a simulated pressured conversation), and give each question and each answer as fast as you possibly can – even to the point ofslurring
1808your words somewhat unintelligibly. This drill is notaimed at intelligible speech; it is intended to train you to allow your mind to choose ALL
1809words without any guidance fromyou ! When you do this, YOU WILLNOT STUTTER, PERIOD! If you do, you are pausing to plan your
1810words. Stop doing that. If you do such drills daily, it won’t belong before you become good at giving IMMEDIATE responses (with no stuttering,
1811ofcourse). All ofthisexpedites (and guarantees) your self-cure. Fear Meter falling, falling, falling. FluencyMeter rising, rising, rising.
18125.12 Talk Less
1813The ultimate “dodge”is to simply shut up! That’s right. Stop talking. ALL of the heat is removed. It’s NOT the dreaded “avoidance”(which so
1814many speech gurus (and I) oppose, as a policy), anymore than dodging a tackler in football is the same as quitting the game. “Necessity remains
1815the Mother of invention.” So, when you’re really feeling the heat, give yourself a break and talk less. Ask questions; be a good listener
1816and learn something whileyou’re at it . Then, slip in somethoughts hereand there,and use your Crutches, if needed, to get you on aroll.
1817While I oppose avoidance as a modus operandi (method of operating) for PWS, if I hadn’t avoided talking here and there, I would have
1818created suchDISASTEROUS Stutter-Memories that would have takenYEARS to overcome, such as I did when tryingmy firstcase in court, as
1819painfully detailed in Section 1. Gruesome incidents like that put us back YEARS, and they MUST be avoided, if we ever want to selfcure
1820. So, talk less under pressure and use various Crutches, as needed, to shoot-down/avoid stutters one-by-one. The fact is that, after you
1821become good enoughwithCrutches to keep your stutters to a minimum, they begin to occur lessand lessand less.Afterafewweeks or month or
1822two of this, you’ll be thinking:“You know; I didn’t stutter today,”and that’s the beginning of the end of Satan Stuttering in your life. So, I added
1823talking less to my other 11 Crutches, and thesun offluency burned away the black-nimbus stutter-clouds that had so cursed my sufferingmind for
1824so many years.
1825Thisends my 12Anti-StutteringCrutches. There’s somethingmagicalabout the number“twelve”. Think ofit: 12 disciples ofJesus; 12 days of
1826Christmas; 12 stars in Mary’s crown in Revelations; 12 months in a year; 12 hours in a half day; 12 inches in a foot; 12 signs of the Zodiak; 12
1827jurors onAmerican juries; 12 tribes ofIsrael; 12 tribes ofArabs; 12 facecards in a deck ofcards;and on and on. So, let’s make good use ofthe
182812 Anti-Stuttering Crutches. Without these 12 Crutches, I would not have self-cured nor could I have avoided relapses for all these
1829years . So, try using them,all ofthem,and jump-start your self-cure.
1830Memorizethelist in the Summaryin 5.0 above and keep a copyin your pocket , and practice using themin your daily reading until you
1831are comfortable using them; as you master them, watch your embarrassing stuttering-incidents grow less and less every day and then
1832DISAPPEAR,and your fear ofstutteringwillsoon follow,and, then, youwon’t need the Crutches much, ifatall,anymore.
1833Don’t forget to SMILEAS YOUSPEAK. This willimprove your speech and your karma.
18345.13 Post Script: Keep It Light
1835This post script could just as well have been placed in Section 14, Healing the Whole Person. Stuttering is but one manifestation of other issues
1836withwhichwe must dealto right our listing ships.
1837The more success I had with the above Voice Tools/Crutches, the less my brain feared stuttering. My Mind’s Memory and Image Bank
1838(MMIB) began to be filled with positive memories and images, which I supplemented by reading aloud (Step 4). I was taking the advice of the
1839Chinesesage,author ofTaoismand idol ofConfucius, Lao Tsu’s (604-531 BCE):
1840“When I let go ofwhat Iam,
1841Ican become what I might be.”
1842Stop pressing and stop worrying.You’realready beginning to do what I did. I began to reversethesnowballeffect ofstuttering. I was literally
1843choking fear to death every day with victory after victory. I began turning Stuttering-Fear into road kill. The more success that I enjoyed , the
1844easier it was to make a joke of any brief, stuttering-boo-boos . All of my burdens seemed lighter; my karma was changing; I was morphing
1845fromasometimes recluseinto a blithespirit. As James Allen taught us in his little masterpiece, As A Man Thinketh,
1846“To conquer doubtand fear
1847is to conquer failure.”
1848Ofcourse, peopleloveto laugh, and, when they’relaughing, stutterers have much diminished stuttering-issues. (Peoplefeelsorry for stutterers,
1849and they so admirestutterers (oranyoneelse) who can laugh at themselves.)
1850So, when you stutter, smile or laugh
1851and keep right on talking .
1852Keep itas lightas you can.
1853My point hereis:Look for humor in yourself, your speech, your situation,and your life.
1854One way to inject laughter is to OVER-accentuate words, especially NAMES . Sometimes, the most feared word (your name) can be
1855converted into a conversational masterpiece by simply DRAMATIZING IT (over-modulating). You’ve heard the ring announcer at a prize fight
1856introduce the combatants by loudly saying their names; for example, “Roughian Rasputin” might said, elongating syllables: “ROUGH-eee-ann
1857Rass-PUT-in”. My above-mentioned, hypothetical PWS-Mate, “Mary MacIntyre”, might become “MARE-ee MACK––intyre”. Just remember
1858to SMILEwhen you do this. Thiscan be donein a positive and humorous way, but it’s hard to typeit.
1859In one such case, I was introducing a now-deceased client named “George DiMatteo”, which was usually pronounced by Americans as
1860“Dee-MAT -ee-o”. For some reason, it frightened me to have to say it to a large crowd. I knew the Italian pronunciation, and it was more
1861beautiful (as is all Italian) and it seemed less risky and it allowed me to play with the syllables. So, I introduced him as “Gee-ORGE [DEE -
1862Mah-TAY-OH”, whichwas flawless, formalItalian (even ifI had omitted the“D”), and I s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d thesyllables to the max, almost singing
1863them, and he loved it, and, before giving his talk, this American-born-Italian thanked me for being “the onlyAmerican to appreciate the proper
1864pronunciation ofmy name”.
1865My point:Think CREATIVELY with your pronunciation . HAVE FUN with names:
1866“Thereis no sound in the English language
1867as sweetas thesound of one’s own name.”
1868Anonymous
1869Make people happy! Make ANYname an event, a story, a chance to CELEBRATE the name by OVER-emphasis, over-modulate, overpause,
1870make a humorous face to boot. (Most stutterers can say anything in an accent. This is a formof using an accent.) So, don’t be so serious;
1871we’reall dead in theend,and you’re not dying. In fact, you’realready on theroad to fullrecovery – recovery of your speech,and your life! Smile!
1872The Stutter-Planner that lives in your brain canNOT beat you, if you followthe methods in this book – and perhaps many other therapies with
1873which Iamnot familiar; I just don’t see much evidence of others that work and so many PWS fatalistically insist that stuttering is incurableand only
1874“despicableliars”argueto thecontrary. Those defeatistsaresimplywrong!
1875I began to enjoy thinking ofmyselfasan actor, playing a part,and having thelatitudeto bereally expressive,and the morethat I believed in the
1876part, theeasierand easier it becameto speak withouta hint ofstuttering. I was too busy having fun playing a thespian’s part and selling my
1877message. I was Robert DeNero, Al Pacino, MichaelDouglas, Robert Duvall, Chevy Chase and Will Ferrellrolled-into-one. (Asa kid, I used to
1878singwith the Duvall brothers.) Fun. Sometimes, when I becametoo carried away and over-acted too much, listeners laughed, and I laughed back,
1879and welaughed together.“Lee, you’rea bit ofaclown.”Well, yes; yes, Iam(which beats being astutterer). Let us never forget Voltaire, France’s
1880greatest philosopher, whose motto was:
1881“Laugh and makelaugh.
1882Laughter saves us frominsanity.”
1883Laughter also instantly mitigates our stuttering . Life is so short, and we take ourselves (and our spoken words) far too seriously. Westutterers
1884are perfectionists , as said my psychiatrist, and we need to take a Valiumnow and then (not really). As we are painfully aware, to
1885beat Beelzebub Blocker, we must relax, but we can’t relax when we stutter, but we already have a host of very good Voice Tools/Crutches
1886(including laughing at one’s miscues) to keep Lucifer Lockjawshackled in our mentalcellar – untilwe bury himin the bowels oftheearth (or Hell).
1887As we relax about stuttering, we willrelaxmuchmore about our lives, and life will become so muchmore enjoyable in all ofits myriad facets. We
1888need to learn to laugh at ourselves,especially at our stuttering . The more that we do, the less we’llstutter. We’re going to win this battle, and
1889you’realready on the way.
18905.14 Conclusion as to Crutches
1891All ofmyCrutchesarefor TEMPORARY, EMERGENCY, IMPROMPTUUSEONLY; they are NOT acure, but they allowacure. DO NOT
1892use ANY ONE Crutch continuously, or your speech WILL sound funny. Conversely, if you move back-and-forth among the Crutches, never
1893using any oneto avoid morethan afewfeared stutters, no one, but NO ONEwill knowthe difference, and your speechwillNOT “sound funny”,
1894to quote my PWS-Mates. They can’tcatchme usingCrutches,and Iamnowhaving troublecatching them!
1895Without my Crutches, I could not have cured, ever. With them, I cured 40 years ago, and I have never relapsed. How many cured PWS do
1896you know who have not relapsed, even once, in 40 years? I rest my case. You can naysay all that you want, but I am LIVING proof of my
1897methods,and Iamhelping asmall, but growing army of PWS’achievethesameself-curethat I did, and I’mover the moon aboutevery self-cured
1898PWS ( People Who Self-Cured or PWSC ). Most ofmy PWSCs have volunteered to “give back”; that is, to help coach other PWS, no charge,
1899and a bunch of us are setting up a website (a charity) to do this very thing. Get on our Fluency Wagon ASAP. Join Speech Anxiety
1900Anonymous/SAAnow. See Section 17.
1901Afewmore of our latest findings onCrutches,as learned frommy PWS-Mates,are given in newSection 11.12.
1902I’mfar too old to have anything to prove or to care much about what others think. I don’t need praise, and I won’taccept money for helping
1903PWS. My “thing”is: I just want to help PWS self-cure. Love me or hate me for it (as some probably do), but it’s what I do. It’s not only very
1904rewarding; I makea game ofit, justas do ofmy life. Every PWS isa newchallengeinmanyways, and my job is to help themself-cure. What fun
1905it is.
1906So, join us, reader. If your mind is open to acure, and if you’ll do the work, youCANAND WILLself-cure. There wellmay be other ways;
1907Ican’t say, but mymethods work, period. So, if what you’re doing hasn’t worked yet or ifyou’re not making substantial progressevery
1908week, get tough with yourself and give my methods a serious try. What have you to lose?
1909Section 6
1910StepThree:
1911The Vocabulary Asset
1912“Ofallthesad words oftongue or pen,
1913Thesaddestarethese:
1914Itmight have been.”
1915JohnGreenleafWhittier, (Poet, 1807-1892)
1916As words are the avowed enemy of stutterers in general, how much fun it is to turn the table on Satan Stuttering and convert words into the
1917stutterer’s friend. I did precisely that.
1918As my stuttering grew progressively worse in my teens, the very first defensive move that occurred to me was to increase my
1919vocabulary , because, obviously, the more words there were/are in my mind, the more options (or escape –routes) I would have to avoid
1920stuttering. So, I began a very, very seriousand lifelong effort to improve my vocabulary. Having loved English in schoolanyway, I wasattracted to
1921words. Over the decades, I developed a massive word list (now over 5,000 entries) and became a lay etymologist to boot. In fact, shortly after I
1922published the 1
1923st Edition of this book, I published a word book (“WORDS You Need to Know and Facts You’re Embarrassed Not to
1924Know” , onAmazon Books under Lee G. Lovett). Frankly, it was several of my PWS-Mates who asked me to publish my list, and they, too,
1925have taken to broadening their vocabularies. The book includes a number of fascinating facts, which, to me, are “embarrassing” not to know. So,
1926it’sentertainment,as well.
1927So, broadening my vocabulary massively was another major way in which “stuttering became the biggest blessing in my life”. I simply “got
1928smarter”. To be sure, this method of self-curing takes more work than any of my other methods , and it may give less DIRECT benefit.
1929HOWEVER, Ican assure you that the more words that you know, the less you will stutter. So, is expanding your vocabulary worth it?
1930Ofcourse!Is it an essential method to self-cure? No.
19316.1 Words & the Causes of Stuttering
1932Although some hold that thecauses ofstuttering are unknown, I determined what caused mystuttering :
1933(1) fear ofstuttering and
1934(2)a MentalMemory and Image Bank (MMIB) full of horrid imagesand memories ofstuttering, which kept pushing fear ofstuttering into the
1935forefront ofmymind, seemingly increasingwith the passage ofevery day.
1936I shall leave the arcane dialectics as to the unknown causes to the vast body ofesoteric academia who opine in tomes that comprise libraries
1937on the mysteries ofstuttering. Whatevercauses this MENTAL problembecomes irrelevant, when you makeyour stuttering undetectable
1938. My goal is to get you talking fluently, period. In an effort to help other stutterers, I can do no more here than share what worked for me. Logic
1939suggests that the same processes will suffice for many and, quite possibly, for most of those who will practice and use the self-cures articulated
1940herein.
1941Whileit wasn’t“the words”, per se, thatcaused my stuttering (but, rather, the fear ofsaying those words), I found that, if I knew a synonym
1942or a kissing-cousin, and as many as possible, I could quickly substitute another word for a feared-word and avoid stuttering . Also,
1943when I was sedulously searching my Word-Memory-Bank, my mind was productively busy and, thus, not dwelling on fear ofany word. At the
1944get-go, searching forand finding alternate words worked quite wellfor meinmany cases. Clearly, my vocabularywasan extremely valuableasset
1945inmyWaragainst Stuttering and the want ofita weighty negative.AsalifelongEnglishLitaficionado, I had a good start, but I wanted more, and I
1946respectfully suggest that the greater your vocabulary, the more tools/synonyms/options you will have to fight the unforgiving Stuttering Beast
1947and thefaster youwillself-cure.
1948Expanding your vocabulary will absolutely help you mitigate stuttering, but I concede that this is not an easy solution, as it takes time,
1949dedication and discipline – but mastering stuttering is worth it. Vocabulary-expansion is more than worth the effort as it is a Win-Win-Win-Win- Win-Win,a SIX-pronged winner:
19501) Giveyou more words to substitutefor feared words ,
19512) Increase your written communications skillsas well,
19523) Increase people’s viewof your IQ,
19534) Fight dementia by keeping your memory-cells vibrant,
19545) Make wordsyour friends, rather than yourenemies ,and
19556) Enhance your self-esteem,
1956a key to healing the Whole Person.
1957Yes; it’s work, but it’s so worth it. So, give it seriousconsideration and add it to the growing arsenal ofanti-stutteringweapons that this book
1958is offering you. Again, if youwantastate-of-the-art 5000-entry vocab book, go onAmazon and look atmine.
1959I madethis pay in spades. When I was giving aspeech, I would writetheentirespeech (before memorizing it), and, for the most likely stutterprone
1960words, I would include, in parentheses next to it, a number ofsynonyms; then, as I gave my talk, referring, as needed, to the written text, I
1961would use whichever word seemed easiest to meat thatmoment. It worked marvelously.
1962Wordsarefascinating. Consider this:Words, like peopleand countries, have histories, ever-evolving. They tell us intriguing storiesand give us
1963the keys to names, biographiesand arcanefacts.Your word-knowledge willset you apart frommost, and youwill be viewed, and treated, as one
1964with a higher intellect, deservedly so or not. So, it is strongly recommended. Regardless, I concede that it is one method that you can skip and
1965still get thejob done, but don’t skip it. Make your lifethe best that itcan be.
19666.2 How to Enhance YourVocabulary
1967I began studying vocab in earnest inmy lateteens. It was thefirst Step that I took to attack stuttering, and it was of immediate help .
1968Using synonyms or even remotely similar words, when fear of stuttering over a word threatened me, averted or minimized many stuttering
1969instances. While this, alone, is not a cure, it can be a huge help . The simple fact was and is that I can “beat”stuttering over a feared word
1970by simply choosing another word. For example, consider the following, which are not exact synonyms, but they aresimilar, somewhat
1971overlapping and, hence,can be used asalternate words:
1972Begging :importuning, beseeching, pandering, soliciting,entreating
1973Hard to understand :abstruse,ambiguous,arcane,enigmatic,esoteric, ineffable, inscrutable, obscure, recondite
1974Lazy :enervated, indolent, inert, languid, lethargic, phlegmatic
1975Lustful :lascivious,concupiscent, lecherous, libidinous
1976Immoral : base, depraved, dissolute, licentious,alibertine, wanton
1977Vulgar:crude, lewd, ribald, scurrilous
1978Again, the words in each line are not absolute synonyms, but they are near enough to be used as alternates. So, words, lots of words,
1979became(chronologically) my FIRST-line of defense against stuttering .
1980The more that I studied words, the more that I enjoyed knowing and using them. Words, like my other self-cures (and my life itself) became
1981“games”for me. As words tell us stories, their prefixes, suffixes, roots and origins help us understand, explain and remember them. Students of
1982words (etymologists) and those who work on dictionaries (lexicographers) find words fascinating. After you have studied words analytically for a
1983while, you will likely get the bug yourself. While no one has ever counted the words, some lexicographers estimate that the English language may
1984have as many as one million words, or two to five times as many words as the world’s other dominant tongues. One reason is that English is a
1985hybrid; it has borrowed words fromall ofthe WesternWorld’s languages. This girth offersan advantageto astutterer.
19866.3 Some Word Books
1987When I was self-curing eons ago, what books did I use? Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary is the most user-friendly (and accurate) and
1988became my favorite for quick definitions. I now use Google extensively, too; just type in any word and add “define” or “meaning” and several
1989sources, including Merriam’s, will pop-up. For serious study, the 20-volume Oxford Unabridged Dictionary , which I purchased in hard copy
1990and still enjoy, is the finest and most complete dictionary ever compiled in any language. Definitions of words are much longer, some even
1991hundreds of words. I also purchased severalsynonymbooks, Roget’s Thesaurus being the best of those, but Google is likely the fastest way to
1992find synonyms, although some are inaccurate, as they tend to embrace of “contributors” who are not scholarly. Armed with these, I began to
1993develop my own, above-mentioned word list, which I have been updating, at least weekly, with newwords since my twenties.You should do this,
1994too, as you’ll want to review your chosen words regularly – which, don’t forget, enhances your mind’s memory skills (not to mention fights
1995dementia).
1996There are a host of excellent vocabulary books . I bought several of same and mastered them. The best, starter-one (and easy ) that I
1997found, a true classic , is 30 Days to a More Powerful Vocabulary , by Dr. Wilfred Funk and Norman Lewis. It fairly boasts that, in just 15
1998minutes per day, you can dramatically improve your vocabulary in just 30 days.You can.You can find this littletreasureinmost book storesand,
1999ofcourse, onAmazon-Kindle. Besureto master that book ata minimum. Youwill need a hard copy,as thereare many drills to complete.
2000Ofcourse, Ican’t resistcalling specialattention, again, to the word-book that I“wrote”, or moreaptly, put together, by extractingwords from
2001the great books that I have read (at the usual rate of one per week, most weeks for a lifetime). As noted earlier, at the suggestion ofsome ofmy
2002PWS-Mates, I assembled and released “WORDS You Need to Know & Facts You’re Embarrassed Not to Know” , which includes 5,000
2003entries, making itmuch larger thanmost vocab books. You’llfind onAmazonBooks, under Lee G. Lovett.
2004When Iencountera word that I don’t know, I look it up and add it to my list. My word-definitions includecomments on the word-origins,
2005prefixes, suf ixes and roots . All of these word-derivatives have become my “friends”. I keep my Word List next to my dictionary and my iPad,
2006which are next to whatever book I amthen reading (now mostly on my iPad). Most weeks, I add a handful of new words. I then spend thirty
2007minutes or so, one or two days a week, reviewingmy Word List. I try to review the entire, 100-plus page (and growing) listat least once a year,
2008enhancing my fluency, erudition, comfort-level with words, and my self-esteem. Words are my friends, and they can be your friends, too. The
2009more“warmand fuzzy” you become withwords, the moretheywillrescue you fromstuttering.
20106.4 Memorizing New Words
2011Having forgotten more words than I know, I have resolved, in recent years, to remember more and forget less – ofeverything, but of Words, in
2012particular. Hereareafewofthethings that I do to try to retainmywords:
20131) Learn the meanings of prefixes, suf ixes and roots ,
20142) Listas many synonymsas possiblein each definition,
20153) Test myself bylooking at the definitions , not at the words ,
20164) Keep, regularly updateand annually reviewmy ownWord List.
2017Again, I stress:Our brains think in concepts firstand then search for words in our memory bank. So, if you can look at the definition and then
2018name the word, you truly know the word, and you will be much more likely to have it “available” and use it in your written and verbal
2019communications. So pick up some word booksand join thefun. You’ll growto loveit – and it will do wonders in your waragainststuttering.
20206.5 Implementing Step Three
2021Howdo you implement this Step Three? Remember the old saw,“Useit loseit.” So,
2022* learn your words
2023* review your words
2024* use your words wherever you can
2025* havefun with your wordsand
2026* surprise your friends
2027I won’t belabor this particular stuttering-fighting techniquefurther, becauseI fear that too many readers won’t be willing to undertaketheeffort
2028required to makeit work – and, as I said earlier, you can beatstutteringwithoutemployingThe VocabularyCure, but enhanced vocabulary will
2029help your stuttering and self-esteem immediately and willenrich your lifein general . For those who don’t wish to build their vocabularies, I
2030would suggest buying and reading synonymbooks, like the afore-mentioned Roget’s, or regularly use Google for same, because synonyms are
2031often simple words that should beeasier to rememberand to add to your quiver ofstuttering-fighting arrows. Ifeven synonymbooksexceed your
2032level of interest, disregard this Chapter and work on the other Chapters. Happily, you can still lick stuttering with the other tools set forth herein,
2033but, if you areas determined as I, youwillattack word-study and usethe VocabularyTool.
2034Let’s nowturn to Step Four, which is thesecond-most important Step ofall. (Steps 5 and 6 aretied for“Most Important”, but I savethemfor
2035last.)
2036Section 7
2037StepFour:
2038Get Lost inYourMessage and, Thus, Speak Spontaneously And INSTANTANEOUSLY
2039“If you don’tchange direction,
2040you’llend up where you’re heading.”
2041Lao Tzu, Founder ofTaoism, 604-531 BCE
2042To reverseacliché,“Ifit’s broke, fix it,” because, if you don’t, you’re on acollision course.
2043The exception, ofcourse, is those PWS’who “don’t want to be ‘fixed’”, as one PWS said to me. How does not curing improve life? Had I
2044not self-cured, Icould never haveenjoyed thecareer that I did – norcould I help other PWS self-cure . So, anyway, inmy humble opinion,
2045ifyou’re not self-curing noticeablyvirtuallyevery week, you need to re-think what you’re doing . Time is not your friend. This isyour
2046life, and you need to make the best of it RIGHT NOW. Moreover, as I say in my video, “Stuttering became my life’s biggest blessing,” and
2047that’safact, BUT it would NOT have doneso, had I notself-cured.
2048As all PWS know, stuttering is not static; that is, it is generally increasing or decreasing, but (except for very mild cases, of which there may
2049well be countless millions) stuttering is unlikely to disappear on its own. It requires bold actions, a change in the status quo, a new game plan and
2050maximum efforts to execute that plan. This Step Four suggests that the stutterer change his/her (his) basic thought pattern: FROM
2051concern/fear over the next word TO focus on the content of the thought/the message . This Step is major change in the PWS’ mental
2052direction. It isa preliminary step to mind-control,as delineated in Steps 5 and 6.
2053All of us are capable ofconcentrating on something:an image, a newspaper article, what another person is saying or most anything else. Ifa
2054PWS can simply throw his mentalswitch FROM planning his next word TO the complete message that he/she is trying to convey, at that instant,
2055no stuttering will occur, because the human mind can focus on only ONE thought at a time. If the PWS focuses, truly focuses, on the
2056message/thought, he/she will NEVER stutter as long as that focus is maintained . Stuttering Fears, however, are a formidable force, and do
2057not wish to be shoved aside by any other thought/message. So, it becomes a battle, a tug-of-war. IF the PWS can stay focused on the message,
2058stuttering is finished as long as that focus remains firm. Unfortunately, with so many Stutter Memories in his/her mind, Stutter Fears tend to win-out,
2059and stuttering occurs sooner than later.
2060Fluent speakers speak spontaneously; they do not plan or pre-think the words that they say. Stutterers can do this, too, as my PWS-Mates
2061and I regularly prove. How? Most PWS can read aloud without stuttering. Why? The words are given to them; they do NOT have to PLAN
2062them; so, they simply say them. I also give themWordAssociationDrills (WAD’s). They give me immediate responsive words, without planning,
2063and, no surprise, virtually never stutter during the WAD, even the most severe stutterers. (There are always exceptions, such as those who have
2064issues far transcending stuttering.)
20657.1 The Power of the Message to Cure
2066Anyone, who can focus fully on his message, will never stutter. That, alone, offers an instant, fullcure. When anyone stutters, they are not focused
2067on their message; they arefocused onwords within their message. Forexample,consider theseanomalies:
2068Why a minister gavestutter-freesermons , butstuttered when notat the pulpit?
2069Or why I, and countless others, could sing on stage before vast audiences without any thought or evidence of stuttering but fell into
2070stuttering patterns the minutesinging ceased and talking began?
2071Or why congenitalstutterers, in a truelife-crisis , such asafire, robbery,etc., invariably spoke withoutstuttering?
2072Or whymost PWS could talk to children and pets withoutstuttering?
2073Or speak in unisonwith others or in accents withoutstuttering?
2074And whymoststutterers stutter randomly; that is, only afewwords hereand there?
2075Or why some PWS stutter only in specificsituations?
2076What allows such randomfluency?
2077You’ve heard all the above previously, and you have likely experienced some or most of it yourself or at least witnessed others do it; so, you
2078know that the above is true . What sense does it make? Zero. The tongue is free only “on special occasions”? Are you kidding? How
2079ludicrouscanwe be? Onceagain, Iamconstrained to submit to you thatalllogic dictates this :
2080If Ican say ONE word anywhere, anytime,
2081Ican say ANY word anywhere, anytime.
2082Lee Lovett’s Lifetime Mantra
2083The human mind is much more powerful (and malleable) than is generally believed . We know that the mind causes (or allows)
2084stuttering and that the mind is the only, realcurefor it, but the $64 MillionQuestion remains,
2085“Howdo WEtake control of ourminds?”
2086That’s really thecoretopic ofthisentire book. Thereare manyways,and concentrating on the messageis one ofthem.
2087Steps 1-3 deal with techniques that largely go around or leap over the problem, beating stutter-fears one-by-one as they occur, which
2088eventually removes the fears and allows fluency by themselves. Steps 5-6 deal with Mind Controland attack the mind directly and seek to train
2089the mind and takecontrol ofit, thus removing theimpulseto stutter,also granting afullcure.
2090This Step 4, concentrating on the message, deals with yet another technique, but it is a technique that attacks our minds directly; so,
2091Step 4 straddles theline between Techniques-Methods-Crutches and Mind Control .
2092One stutterer, Frank Bettger, who rose fromabject poverty to become one of the Top Five insurance salesmen for 20 consecutive years for
2093Northwestern Life Insurance Company and who wrote the best-selling and most inspirationalsales-book of his generation (How I Raised Myself
2094from Failureto Success in Selling) wrotethat he was finally ableto use his raw enthusiasmto overcome his fear . He became so passionate
2095about his messages to others that his fear was literally drowned by hisenthusiasm. He becamelost in his message, thus overcoming his stuttering.
2096One wayto seizecontrol of your mind is by becoming so absorbed in the messagethat thefear becomes overwhelmed – thesameas it
2097does when singers sing and ministers preach. The foregoing is done by many every day. We need to accept as fact: Stutterers, who become
2098passionate about their message, deliver their messages without stuttering . If you chose to view your message as important enough,your
2099message can unilaterally become yourcure. The mind can only think one thing ata time:It’s either the message or planning a stutter. Stutterers
2100allow,endorseand perpetuatethelatter.
2101We need to teach ourselves to think about the message and to ignore ourselves – the messengers. The message has the power to
2102self-cure, IF weconcentrate on it suf iciently.
2103Little is more boring than listening to someone speak in a monotone. Compare those one-pitch, dead or blurred voices to that ofan actor or
2104anyone who isexcited to convey their thoughts. Actors (and often newsanchors on radio or TV) put feeling,even passion, into their words; their
2105conviction comes through. How do they do it? Stutterers, one and all, listen up:Get excited about your message; modulate your voice (up
2106and down; loud-to-soft); emphasize this syllable or that; try to SELL your message – and you will NEVER stutter, period! You can
2107prove it to yourself right now. Re-read this paragraph, and do it WITH PASSION. When you do, the Stutter-Beast won’t be able to lay a hand
2108on you.
21097.2. Seven Ways to Max the Message
2110How do actors, TV anchors and the like (some of whomhave admitted to being stutterers in their early careers, including Marilyn Monroe and
2111TV-anchor John Stossel). They do thesethings:
21121) Stress the moreimportant words,
21132) Emphasizethe most importantsyllables in those words,
21143) Use pauses foremphasisand to let thelistener reflect,
21154) Usevaried and interestingwords/synonyms,
21165) Modulate/sing the voice, up and down, foremphasis,
21176) Feel and show a passion to sharetheir messageand
21187) Give 100%concentration to the message, not to the words.
2119I call the above list, “the jump-start to stutter-free speaking”. Implementing the above methods takes thought and becomes a consumptive
2120passion and game, so consumptive that, in time, stuttering-fears don’t have a chance to surface . Stutterers may say, “Fat chance,” but the
2121proof is in the fact that ministers, singers and emergency-announcers DO precisely that every day, over and over, and, if they can do it, so can
2122you , but you must focus on the message and sell it as hard as they do . Yes, it takes thought, effort, and lots of practice – to learn the habit
2123of keeping your mind focused on, and committed to, the message. This willalso make you the bestspeaker in your peer group!
2124Never forget: The message is important; the messenger isn’ t. Few listeners care a twit about the messenger; they only care about the
2125message.
2126Again, I stress that the mind cannot focus on two things at once. It must focus on or plan the next word (and stutter) OR focus on the
2127message(and speak fluently). It is timeto train your mind to focus on the message.
2128Whenever I haveforgotten myself and really focused on my message, I have never stuttered; when so focused, stuttering didn’t enter my
2129mind; my mind was full ofconcentration. Ofcourse, this made me a much more effective speaker in all respects, another win-win Step. Once I
2130began doing this, and making it a habit, my stuttering fears shrank steadily until my stuttering became undetectable. (I always allow for a nasty
2131weed to appear inmymental-garden nowand then; I just replaceit or leap over itand inserta positivethought.) Remember ourearlier quote,“Evil
2132cannotentera mind already full,” but we must keep our minds full of positives. Nothing does this moreeffectively than focusing on our message.
2133When wereally concentrate on the message, our minds have no room for fear, and we will not stutter at that moment. This, too, can
2134be practiced.
2135The great Greek orator, Demosthenes, is said to have cured his stuttering by going to the beach, inserting pebbles in his mouth, and speaking
2136for hours to the sea. He must have focused so hard on talking around the pebbles (a real, organic obstacle) that his focus on the pebbles was so
2137intense as to overcome his fear, and, in time, by sheer force of repetition and concentration on his message, he built a memory bank of
2138successes and cured his stuttering – which you can do, evenwithout pebbles by reading aloud to a mirror or familymember or by yourself
2139in acloset.
2140WhenDemosthenes heard himselfspeaking enough, with no trace ofstuttering, his fear ofstuttering simply vanished. Your fear of stuttering
2141will similarly vanish, once you have suf icient successful experiences of stutter-free speech . Each and every Step in this book will give
2142you an additionalweapon to createincident-after-incident ofstutter-freespeech, vast legions ofsame,and willenable you to build alibrary offearfreefluentmemories,and
2143that’sallthat you need to defeatstuttering.
21447.3 Using the Message to Cure
2145Similarly, I used to practicereading texts (in acloset, then in theroom, then beforea mirror, then to alistener) in increasingly passionate ways, just
2146to practice speaking and simultaneously concentrating on the message. It’s easier to focus on a message if you try your hardest to make it
2147compelling .
2148To teach yourself the habit of“getting lost in your message”, you need some reading material that speaks to you, that stirs your emotions. I
2149used to practice reading such compelling texts aloud (literally by the hour, as I aman indefatigable sort). For example, take any text that is full of
2150passion, such as, say, Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, or Edgar Allan Poe’s poem, Annabel Lee, and pretend to be Lincoln or Poe, and read
2151themsilently, first to get in the mood; then, throw yourself completely into it, and read the passage aloud WITH AS MUCH FEELING AND
2152PASSION AS YOU CAN MUSTER; visualize yourself as on a huge stage before thousands , and read slowly, very slowly, enjoying,
2153savoring and emphasizing theimportant wordsand syllables; tastethem; breathethe words inwhispers or shout themin shrieks; bean actor; then,
2154read themagain, and again, and enjoy letting THE MESSAGE out ; and enjoy the sound of your flawless voice, and, thus,enjoy being
2155the messenger . The more times that you read the passage without stuttering, the larger grows your memory bank of stutter-free
2156speaking and the weaker and weaker the Demon Fear becomes .
2157Use ALL of the Steps herein, as needed. Practice. Practice. PRACTICE! You’re not “teaching yourself to speak”; you’re teaching
2158yourself to focus on your message. Should you stutter, ignoreit,and keep on going. Then, read itagain and again and again, until you haveread
2159it many times, flawlessly. The act of doing this is sheer joy, and the accomplishment is pure ecstasy! The bonus is the salutary effect that it has in
2160deeply interring your fear ofstuttering and supplanting it with euphoricimages offluency.
21617.4 Daily Practice: Start Now
2162Throughout this book, I have repeatedly urged you to read it aloud. Now, I must insist that you do so, as it is a part ofa drill: Learning to read
2163expressively, which precludes, automatically precludes, allstuttering, because your mind cannot concentrate on being expressive and stutter-plan
2164words simultaneously.
2165So, let’s start now; you will be Lincoln (the most hated President during his tenure in office who much later became the most loved of all
2166American Presidents), and you will read his Gettysburg Address aloud (or in the faintest whisper, as needed) but with great passion, use
2167modulation (singing tones) and pauses, dropping letters/syllables if needed; to the extent you are able, alternate whispers with a raised voice there
2168(although I doubt that Lincoln raised his voice much in his soulfulwords), and FEEL his immortalwords, and let the chills run through your spine
2169as you think of this ghastly tragedy at Gettysburg (where 51,000 died in a three-day battle) and of the great icon with chiseled features, the longsuffering,
2170soon to be assassinated-Lincoln, with tears streaming down his leathered face, and feel the way he shared his unshielded, bleeding heart
2171with the crowd of 15,000 who came to mourn their kin. Amid the summer’s scorching heat, with the nauseating stench of rain-bloated bodies
2172exposed and rotting in the sun, covered by swarms of flies with gaggles of vultures swirling and cawing overhead, the teemingmourners gathered
2173around that make-shift speakers’ platform. Lincoln is said to have written these few eternal words with tremulous hands, on the backs of
2174envelopes, whileriding on thetrain fromWashington, D.C. to Gettysburg.
2175Now, I want you to be Lincoln. Go to any private space. Go now. While alone, be Lincoln . As you read his timeless words, think of this
2176tragic, macabre, three-day-long battle, where 51,000 died, each of whom fought bravely to their last breath for their country, and you, like
2177Lincoln, mourn them-all. (Since only 2% of Southerners possessed slaves, the other 98% fought and died purely to defend their homeland from
2178intruders.) Hereis your messageto that sweating crowd. Using allthetools (except word or thought substitution) that you’velearned so far,YOU,
2179as Lincoln, must passionately deliver this MESSAGE . Thecrowd awaits your words:]
2180Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address
2181Four score and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition
2182thatallmen arecreated equal.
2183Nowweareengaged in a great CivilWar, testingwhether that nation, orany nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. Weare met
2184on a great battle-field ofthat war. We have come to dedicate a portion ofthat field, asa finalresting place for those who here gave their lives that
2185this nationmight live. It isaltogether fitting and proper that weshould do this.
2186But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate – we can not consecrate – we can not hallow – this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who
2187struggled here, have concentrated it, farabove our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here,
2188but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us, the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here
2189have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us – that fromthese honored dead we
2190take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last fullmeasure of devotion – that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not
2191have died in vain – that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom– and that government of the people, by the people, for the
2192people, shall not perish fromtheearth.”
2193AbrahamLincoln,
2194November 19, 1863
2195Assassinated, April 15, 1865
2196If you understood theabove words, youwillfeelemotionally spent. That is how“getting lost in your message”should make you feel.Youmay
2197want to re-read this Address again now and/or use it in future practice sessions. All speech contains thoughts worth conveying; this Address is
2198simply a classic example. It all goes to prove the point: You must begin to become absorbed in YOUR MESSAGE AND NOT IN THE
2199SPECIFIC WORDS. You must dwell on thethought entirely.
2200Although nowviewed as theconsensus- greatest speech inAmerican history , Lincoln’s words were not so wellreceived, as they seemed
2201too simple, too from-the-heart, to rise to the level of great oratory, and Lincolnwas hated violently all Southerners and some Northerners. Before
2202long, Lincoln’s poignant, remorseful, redemptive yet hopeful-crushing sentiments touched the souls of journalists and historians, too, and printed
2203copies began to appear everywhere, and they continue today to salve memories of that savage conflict. Of the tenmillion slaves sold into slavery
2204byAfrican rulers, only 5% of themreached America, where the population of the North was 22 million and the South was 9 million. Only 2% of
2205Southernersactually owned slaves.
2206Begin now to enjoy and practicereading things aloud to yourself. It, too, can be sheer joy. Pick passages that speak to you and relish your
2207practice sessions. Each passage you read will be another milestone in your conquest of stuttering . Enjoy these passionate excerpts and
2208enjoy the sound of your voice. Each time, enjoy practicing which words and syllables to emphasize, where to pause, where and how much to
2209modulate,and, above all, forget yourself and concentrate on the message and enjoy delivering it with so much feeling. The challenge is to read
2210with more feeling each time. If you become absorbed in the message, that message willestop stuttering at that moment, and YOU WILLNOT
2211STUTTER. If you do, use the Voice Tools/Crutches, including the “Magic” Cure (whispering). Ifallelse fails, whisper the entire reading, as your
2212mind will hear it just as wellas it does your full voice. Each time you read without stuttering, you will have added to the growing anti-stuttering
2213snowball that you have created. Reading is, in some respects, akin to practicing with a therapist. The more that you read without stuttering,
2214the less you will stutter in your daily conversations . So, read aloud and keep at it until you can do it easily and fluently. I grew to love my
2215“ReadingTime”, becauseIchose passages that warmed my heartand enriched my soul.
2216Then, for fun, when you’re ready, read some ofthese classics to your family and friends. They’ll love it. You’ll love it. It works. The TV need
2217not be The Source of homeentertainment. Your performancesas readercan entertain you and others.
2218I can’t move ahead without mentioning another wonderful, and very different, practice-piece, one of pure make-believe: Edgar Allan Poe’s
2219divine poem, Annabel Lee. I read it hundreds of times. Maudlin though it be, it is full of music and love and, as such, affords an exceptional
2220opportunity to practice loosing yourself in the message. This poemis pure fantasy, but it captures the feeling of lost-love as beautifully as any
2221in literature. Again, that is your goal: To learn to LOSE yourself in the message; because, when you are lost in the message, like the singer
2222and minister,you will NEVER stutter .
2223Again, read to yourself (in front ofa mirror) and to spouses, children, and anyone who enjoys verse, and, these days, you can also do this on
2224Skype or FaceTime calls and watch yourself read in the bargain, all reinforcing your mind’s acceptance of the new fact: There is no reason
2225to fear stuttering, because you are simply too lost in your message to stutter. Each time you do this, you further reduce Lucifer Stuttering’s
2226power over you, until,at last, Lucifer scoresazero,and you score 100, 100%ofjoy.
2227Now, practice-read Poe’s masterpiece; read it right now – and don’t think one second about stuttering; think about the MEANING of the
2228words.AnnabelLeestands foranyone who might be, or have been, thelove of your life; so, let theemotions of Poe’s loving remembrances flood
2229your mind and body. Use all the tools you’ve learned so far (except word or thought substitution) and enjoy reading Poe’s unforgettable
2230lamentation:
2231Annabel Lee
2232https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems-and-poets/poems/detail/44885#poem
2233EdgarAllanPoe, 1809-1849
2234It was many and many a yearago,
2235In a kingdomby thesea,
2236Thata maiden therelived whomyoumay know
2237By the name ofAnnabelLee;
2238And this maiden shelived with no other thought
2239Than to loveand beloved byme.
2240I wasachild and she wasachild,
2241In this kingdomby thesea:
2242But weloved with alovethat was morethan love–
2243Iand myAnnabelLee;
2244With alovethat the winged seraphs of heaven
2245Coveted herand me.
2246And this was thereason that, long ago,
2247In this kingdomby thesea,
2248Awind blewout ofacloud,chilling
2249My beautifulAnnabelLee;
2250So that her highborn kinsman came
2251And bore heraway fromme,
2252To shut her up in asepulcher
2253In this kingdomby thesea
2254Theangels, not halfso happy inHeaven, Wentenvying herand me –
2255Yes! That was thereason (asallmen know,
2256In this kingdomby thesea)
2257That the wind came out ofthecloud by night,
2258Chilling and killingmyAnnabelLee.
2259But our loveit was stronger by far than thelove
2260Ofthose who were older thanwe –
2261Ofmany far wiser thanwe –
2262And neither theangels inHeaven above
2263Nor the demons down under thesea
2264Can ever dissever my soulfromthesoul
2265Ofthe beautifulAnnabelLee;
2266For the moon never beams, without bringingme dreams
2267Ofthe beautifulAnnabelLee;
2268And thestars never rise, but I feelthe brighteyes
2269Ofthe beautifulAnnabelLee;
2270And so,allthe night tide, I lie down by theside
2271Ofmy darling – my darling – my lifeand my bride,
2272In her sepulcher there by thesea –
2273In her tomb by thesounding sea.
2274Another gripping poem to practice, although long, one of the greatest poems ever written, is “Renascence” by Edna St. Vincent Millay,
2275perhaps the greatest poet ofthe 20
2276th Century. Consider also, the poems ofthe polymathic Persian-Omar Khayyam, the Sonnets of Shakespeare,
2277and Gandhi’s favorite-the Bhagavad Gita. You can find all onAmazonBooks or Google. You’lllovethem.
2278So, dear reader, Step 4, getting lost in your message, suggests that you:
2279(1) Refuseto think about yourself ,and think ONLYabout your MESSAGE. Fullconcentration on the message will over-power fears of
2280mistakes. Hard to do but doable; it just takes practicereading and concentrating.
2281(2) Read the message withmaximumPASSION. Passion over-powers fears ofmistakes – as it does for the ministerat his pulpit or thesingerat
2282his mike or thestutterer whenmaking an emergency announcement.
2283(3) Use voice modulation (fromwhispers to raised voice)and pauses foremphasis. As your mind is FILLEDwith such thoughts, methodsand
2284plans, therecan be no fears.
2285(4) Playwith syllables. As needed and/or foremphasis,elongate orcontractsyllables, drop syllables or run themtogether,and over-enunciatethe
2286syllables you say forclarity and to further mitigatestuttering. Concentration on such techniques will overwhelmany fears ofmistakes.
2287(5) Practicereading aloud DAILY;enjoyreading aloud, using all oftheabovetechniques. The more you embracethe message,and forget the
2288messenger, thelessand lessand less youwillstutter,and,as your MentalMemoryBank becomes increasingly full of positive-speech-memories,
2289the positiveef ects will becumulative and will begin to carry over naturallyinto your dailyconversations .
2290The mind cannot host two thoughts simultaneously. Mutually exclusive concentration on your message, which shuts out fear, can be as
2291habit forming as stuttering. Usethis to youradvantage.
2292How often and how long do you need to practicereading-speaking? The answer depends upon the severity of your stuttering problemand
2293your time. Subject to modifications of the answer as dictated by the more detailed discussion of this question in Section 8, I recommend thirty
2294minutes daily. This could be divided into ten or even five minute increments and, again, can be done in private and/or to a family member or
2295anyone.You can also carry asmall pamphlet or book ofselected readings that you love, and read italoud-inwhispers, when you’reidle during the
2296day.
2297Although I view Steps 2-4, individually, as capable of providing fullself-cures, we now turn to what I respectfully suggest is the Holy Grail of
2298stuttering-cures, and a primary key to a rewarding life, a direct assault on Mind Control, which is discussed in the Steps 5 and 6, which now
2299follow.
2300Section 8
2301StepFive:
2302Auto Suggestions
2303“I haveseen theenemy,and heis us.”
2304Pogo, Walt Kelly,c. 1950’s
2305Pogo , in the much-loved comicstrip byWalt Kelly (1913-1973) said itso wellin the quoteabove:“I haveseen theenemy,and heis us.”Thereis
2306wisdom and humor for all ages in Pogo. (Find these classics online at: https://www.amazon.com/Pogo-Complete-Sunday-StripsThrough/dp/1560978694
2307)
2308Now, we come to that part ofmy self-cure that hasenabled me to convert debilitating stuttering and blocking into “the greatest blessing ofmy
2309life”,enablingmeto make myselfa better person.
2310If we can keep ourselves from defeating us, we can win . The ball is in our court. There is no “free lunch”. We knew that. To self-cure
2311Lucifer Stuttering, only we can man the laboring oar. This means declaring war on stuttering and committing yourself to daily, hourly and even
2312minute-by-minute vigilantefforts, as needed, to win that war – but, then, most of us_PWS havespent most minutes, 24/7 worrying about stuttering
2313anyway. What could be more mentally crippling and life-sapping than that? So, we might as wellconvert those thoughts into affirmative actions
2314that will metamorphose themselves into NON-detectable stutterers. You can do it. Since the author started Skyping with PWS-readers of his
2315book, on average, those who Skyperegularly areself-curring 75-90%in 60-90 days (i.e.,after 8-12, one-hour Skypes. So, how?
23168.1 Treating Yourself
2317Theessence ofaself-cureis that YOUlearn to master your ownmind,and INSTRUCT itevery day,as did Iand asarethose PWS who are now
2318SELF-curing via my book and/or via Skyping with me, no charge. Some of you have had extensive therapies but still stutter and others cannot
2319afford any therapy. Do not worry; you can stillself-cure. If you aretaking therapy,and ifit is helping you, for heaven’s sake, staywith it. However,
2320if you were making progress that satisfied you, you probably wouldn’t be reading this book. In any event, since I believe that my methods are
2321compatible withmost therapies,you should havelittleto lose by adding my methods to your therapeuticef orts .
2322All of the first four Steps in this book require practice (generally daily), as discussed in those Sections. Steps 5 and 6 are a bit different; they
2323require what I call“Treatments” or “Sessions”, which is time that you allocate to making “suggestions”to your mind (much as a psychiatrist might
2324were you on his couch and even under hypnosis). Suggestions (“Auto Suggestions” or “AS”) that you repeatedlymake to yourselfwill have postsuggestion
2325benefits, and, the more relaxed that you are when making AS and the more that you repeat each, the more lasting the
2326suggestion will be. Suggestions to your conscious and/or subconscious mind, over time, willenable you to improve your image of yourselfand
2327of your speech (and,asa huge bonus, your life).
2328Auto Suggestion Treatments (AST’s) or Self-Hypnosis Sessions (SHS’) are not voodoo, and they are not hard to do. Indeed, if you neverever
2329achieved ANYlevel of hypnosis, you can stillself-cure. All that is required is (1) a comfortable state of relaxation and (2) endlessverbal
2330repetition ofthethought,coupled with visual imagery of yourselfsuccessfully implementing thethought. That’s it!
2331Thiscombination of(1) practicing and using the Techniques fromSections 1-4 and (2) giving yourself Auto Suggestion Treatments
2332(AST’s) fromthis Section 5, will serve as ongoing therapy : daily, hourly, and evenminute-by-minute, as needed, will make you your-own
2333therapist and will producefluency without relapses – as long as you continuethe user-friendlyAS Treatments (ASTs).
2334These mind-training and mind-managementASTs and/or SHS’, when combined with use of Crutches, as needed (as discussed in Step Two)
2335to dodge a potential, embarrassing relapse-causing stutter-block, will defeat stuttering. (I have rarely needed to use Crutches for decades, but my
2336rare use of themabsolutely prevents relapses.)After a while, your suggestions will become just as imbedded as were the pattern of thoughts and
2337stuttering-memories that perpetuated your stuttering. In other words, you will train yourself to think (about speech) as do all fluent speakers. The
2338fears vaporize; the black speech cloud lifts, and you arefree, as Iamand asare my self-curing PWS-Mates. (Ican hear the words of one ofthem
2339now,“Lee, I just don’t think thatmuch aboutstuttering anymore.”MayGod or someone bless him. Icould have kissed him!)
2340Again, most ofmy readerseithercan’tafford therapy or havetried itand stillstutter. Bottomline:You, dear reader, want to self -cure; that is,
2341youwant to cure yourselfAND STAYCURED and youwant to, or must, do it without a professional therapist. Fine, you CAN self-cure, BUT
2342you must spend such timetreating yourself asyour level of stuttering demands , using a planned, step-by-step program , details ofwhich
2343areset forth (foreach Step/Technique) in every Section ofthis book.
2344Treating-training-managing your mind is not “teaching yourself to speak” ; it is teaching your mind to accept logic, to focus on the
2345messageand to suppress stutter-fears,and to teach yourself howto enjoy speaking – all ofwhich eliminates stuttering.
2346This Section 8 focuses onAuto Suggestion Treatments (“AST’s). In broadest terms, a “Treatment”is defined here as a period of time during
2347which you make planned, positive af irmations about yourself and your speech and visualizations of yourself performing consistently with
2348those affirmations. Millions of people clean and regulate their mental health in this manner every day . (My wife calls it “Talking to
2349myself.”)AST is a cousin and more mentally aggressive and highly directionalized formof yoga, meditation. AST is a mild formofself-hypnosis
2350(also discussed belowin Section 9). I havetried all ofsame(yoga, meditation,AST, and SH), and I havefound AST to be byfar the most userfriendly,
2351and easiest to apply form of mind control. Only Self-Hypnosis works better (Step 6 below), but it takes more practice and
2352work and most PWS won’t need it if they become proficient at AST . (One ofmy PWS-Mates has become proficientat SH, and he used it
2353to curea very severelevel ofstuttering.) Like SH,AST (although easier) requires relaxation, repetition, mental-imagery, disciplineand consistency
2354– plus sometimethat you’re nowwastingworrying about your speech.
23558.2 Becoming the Boss of Your Mind
2356The most powerful of all my six Steps are this Step 5 and Step 6 , which follows in Section 9. These Steps 5 and 6 are closely related but
2357sufficiently different to mandate being classified as separate Steps. Both deal with remapping the mind to replace the bad thoughtsmemories
2358with good ones ; this is a formof mind remapping and control, but, again, so are meditation, yoga; the latter two are simply more
2359circuitous and (for me) much less effective. (No matter how much you and/or I may believe in God, logic dictates, as goes the old saying, “God
2360helps those who help themselves.” So, by remapping our messed-up minds, we are helping ourselves (and doing “God’s work”for those of us
2361who believeinGod).
2362Like Steps 1-4, this Step 5 can defeat stuttering by itself, and it is a monster Win-Win: Defeat StutteringAND Simultaneously Unlock the
2363Door to Mind Controland the Creation ofthe You that YouWould Liketo Be – a direct path to a Better Life!
2364There may be no such thing ascomplete mind control; I can’t say, but, clearly, there are degrees of it sufficient to do most jobs that we need
2365to do. (Again, I amnot the only PWS claiming a cure fromthese methods; all but one PWS with whomI amworking regularly either has cured
2366already or is curing. (I started workingwithmy first PWS on Skype inAugust 2016, and he self-cured in 90 days or so; I stillwork with himbut
2367doing only one Skype per month now; I’m monitoring him. My second began in September (2016), and he self-cured by year-end. As of
2368February 2017, I Skype with himevery other week. He volunteered to translate my book into Chinese. Three morefollowed by spring 2017, and
2369our numbers continue to grow. My fourth self-cured PWS volunteered to translate my book into Hindi. Only one, so far, has made almost zero
2370progress, but he stutters often on every single word and he has many mental issues transcending stuttering, but I haven’t given up on him. I have
2371about ten others in very early stages. My point isn’t “Yea, Lee.” It’s far too late in my late life for praise to matter much! My point is that my
2372methodsare working across the board with PWS who are open to acureand who are willing to work at it. My goal is self-cured PWS, period. I
2373KNOW what pain and suffering stuttering can be; it can be life-crushing, and millions suffer it. It’s not necessary, and I want to do what I can to
2374stop it.
2375Anyway, as with most goals in life, our degree ofmastery depends primarily upon the degree of our determination. Give Steps 5 and 6 your
2376bestefforts,and they’lltake you to your own Shangri-La.
2377Step 5 does morethan finesse/go around feared words; it enables us to removethe macabre, haunting memories of stuttering and the
2378plethora of debilitating images of your surfeit of ignominious stuttering-incidents – and, best of all, it erases the relentless fears which
2379spring therefrom. Byso doing, Step 5 frees thetongue.
2380Ifyou gain nothing elsefromthis book, master this Step 5 .
2381Psychiatrists tell us that the human mind has two thresholds: the Conscious Mind (CM) and the Sub -Conscious Mind (SCM). Control of
2382either the CM or SCM leads to control ofthe other, and control ofeither will gain control ofthoughtsand, thus, actions, including fullcontrol over
2383fear ofstuttering (or ofanything else). Whatever degree ofcontrolwecan achieve, however littleit mayseemto beto us, will likely besufficient
2384to achieve your/our goals as to speech and life in general. If we do not aspire to achieve control of both, we leave our minds to chance, the
2385environment, often leading to a helter skelter orchaoticexistence.
23868.3. How Auto Suggestion Works
2387Step 5 deals with control of the Conscious Mind/CM, which can bereached in a conscious statevia simplesuggestions of your choice
2388that youmake to yourself (Auto Suggestions ). Eventually, if youmake enough suggestions to your CM, it will penetrate to the SCM, too, which
2389is the bedrock of your thoughts and impacts what your mind does or doesn’t do to and for your body. Controlling the mind and body via Auto
2390Suggestions (AS) takes moretime/treatments but iseasier; it isenjoyable,and it willwork.
2391For the most Severe Stutterers, Step 6 is highly recommended; it deals with controlling the Sub -Conscious Mind/SCM, which is best reached
2392via hypnosis by others (hetero hypnosis) or by self -hypnosis (SH or sometimes called Auto Conditioning ). SH, like AS, requires what I call
2393“Treatments”. In this Section 8, we will deal only with AS and shall defer SHto Section 9 .
2394Specifically, Auto Suggestion (also written by some as one word, “autosuggestion”) is a procedure here-defined ascontrolling and
2395remapping your mind by making repetitious statement s, while in a conscious or sub-conscious state. This Step 5 assumes that you will do
2396this onlyin a conscious state.
2397The use ofAuto Suggestion (AS) on the Conscious Mind was popularized notably by Émile Coué (pronounced “e-meelcoo-ay”), a French
2398psychologist (a pharmacist by trade, 1857-1926). Now, a century later, his handful ofshort books continue to sellmillions ofcopies. He became
2399famous in his day and remains so today for curing people of myriad ailments (or, as he insists, “I never cured anyone in my life; I simply helped
2400peoplecurethemselves” – a sentiment to which the author aspires). He did this by teachingAuto Suggestion (AS) techniques, which some also
2401callconsciousauto suggestion (CAS); that is, bymaking suggestions to hisconscious mind. The word “conscious”is important, as it distinguishes
2402Steps 5 and 6, thelater dealingwith thesub -conscious mind.
2403Thereare many protagonists ofAS/CAS, but Coué was thefirstand is likely stillthe best known, and hecertainlywrotein user-friendly terms;
2404so, I will focus on his teachings. The cornerstone ofCoué’s method is very simply repeating suggestions, typically 20-times each, daily – out
2405loud, in whispers and/or silently. (Of his number of short books on the topic, I prefer his 59-page “Auto Suggestion: My Method”, which is
2406available onAmazon-Kindle orat many book stores. Please orderand read it straightaway, as my book is not intended asasubstituteforany of
2407Coué’s.)
24088.4 The Placebo Effect
2409Coué was the first to extensively use placebos, here defined as a pill that has no medicinaleffect but is used in testing new medicines. (In such
2410experiments, patients volunteer to participate. They are alternately given therapeutic (medicinal) pills and placebos (non-medicinal pills), and they
2411report the curative effects ofeach. Placebos had been pioneered by an English physician, John Haygarth, in 1799, but Coué put themto much
2412more extensive use. After testing hundreds of patients (with their permission), he concluded that patients who were satisfied with a therapeutic
2413pill/medicine weretypicallyjust as satisfied with a non-therapeutic placebo, provided they didn’t know that they weretaking a placebo .
2414Since Coué died, his placebo-findings have been confirmed by legions ofstudiesand physicians. Couéconcluded that:
2415The patient’s mind (nota medicine) was providing thetherapeuticeffect.
2416Before explaining the Auto Suggestion Methods that Coué created (which many psychologists, psychiatrists, speech-therapists and
2417millions of laymen employtodayto allmanner ofailments, mentaland physical), it is worth noting furtherexamples of“the Placebo-Ef ect ” as
2418a cure(by which I mean wherethe patient’s mind, not the medicine,ef ects thecure) .
2419As stated in Section 3, the book by Dr. Norman Doidge cites case histories of using the mind to cure physical infirmities, which
2420include:
2421• Blood pressurelowered;
2422• IQ’s raised;
2423• Learning disorders overcome;
2424• Aging brains rejuvenated;and
2425• Awomanwith halfa brain that rewired itselfto work as would a whole brain.
2426To learnmore about this, read Doidge’s book and related books (in Bibliography) for the details and for manymore examples. In short, the
2427mind is now being used commonly by medical doctors to mitigate and/or numb pain and, among the more progressive, to treat some
2428organic health problems . The nowwidely accepted Placebo-Effect has opened the door (and our minds) to thesefacts:
2429• The humanmind is highly receptiveto suggestions.
2430• The mind seems to find methods offulfilling thesuggestions.
2431• Negativesuggestions produce negativeresults.
2432• Positivesuggestions produce positiveresults.
2433Just as medicines have different effects among patients, the impact ofsuggestions will vary, ofcourse, among patients. Those more receptive
2434and open to the process and those more diligent in making such suggestions will naturally benefit the most. Those who approach it with a
2435negative attitude will not likely benefit materially. Conversely, those who expect positiveresults willmost likely obtain them.
2436When I first used AS, I was not convinced about it either way, but I experienced almost immediate relief in a number of areas. Over
243790% of those PWS, who have usedAS with me, havefelt immediate and substantial benefits .As I havesaid, although I long ago ceased
2438needing to treat myselffor stuttering, Icontinue to give myself AS Treatmentsevery day to this day , attacking a host of problems, mentaland
2439physical. I intend to continue doing so as long as I live.
2440A kissing-cousin of the Placebo-Effect comes to us fromfaith-healers , who, for eons, have been providing live demonstrations of God’s
2441healing powers by simply placing their hands on the head of the sick and saying “Heal”, often while pushing the sick person backwards, and,
2442thereafter, the sick are sometimes miraculously healed. Some or many of these instances may or may not have been faked, but some have been
2443realcures ,as Ican statefrompersonal knowledge.
2444I, personally, knew of one such valid “healing”, decades ago, ofa friend ofmine, whomI shallcall“John” here. John, an outstanding athlete,
2445was in a sportsaccidentand was paralyzed fromthe waist down and had been confined to a wheelchair for several years. He went to the church
2446ofa then very prominent television evangelist and subjected himself to the above-described healing process. After being directed to “Heal”, and
2447being pushed backwards, Johnwas lifted to his feet, and, miraculously, he was then ableto stand , leaving his unoccupied wheelchair empty, to
2448the astonishment of thousands of the faithful onlookers! On the command of the preacher, John then walked haltingly to the preacher and
2449embraced him;as then further instructed by the preacher, John ran up the aisle of the church praising God! I knew some ofJohn’s friends, who
2450witnessed this event. Unfortunately, some three hours later, John collapsed and was returned to his wheelchair where he remained permanently,
2451BUT the fact remains that, for several hours, John’s severed spinal cord was cured suf iciently to permit him to stand, walk and even
2452run, if only for a period of several hours . There is no medicalexplanation for this temporary cure; somehow, his mind overcame the severed
2453cord for a time. I respectfully submit to you that John’s belief (that is, his mind) ef ected a temporary cure ofan “incurable” organic injury:a
2454separated spinal cord. In spite of that separation, John could and did walk and even run. Logic suggests that, had John’s mind been able to
2455continueto hold onto the positivesuggestion/belief that allowed thetemporarycure, he might well have walked permanentlythereafter ,
2456similar to some of the mind-cures cited by Dr. Doidge and those in other books about the mind by medical doctors. John’s mind may have
2457reverted to thinking of his spineas severed, makingwalking impossible.
2458In any event, our minds have great powers over our bodies, and modern medicineis only now beginning to usethem to cure patients .
2459(Forexample, see Use Your Brain, DanielAmen, M.D.and otherscited in the Bibliography.)
2460Other instances of“Mind Cures”include numerous dentists who have successfully substituted hypnosis for Novocain. It takes training to mute
2461pain via hypnosis and takes time and is not as profitable as selling shots of Novocain and not all patients want to be hypnotized, but the fact
2462remains that hypnosis has been very ef ective for use in lieu of Novocain , which uses have been documented in multiple medical
2463publications. (Hypnosis is discussed in Step 6, but it, too, is based on suggestions to the mind, the difference being the method of making the
2464suggestions.)
2465Similarly, in recent years, I read an article in The Wall Street Journal which summarized a medical article about cancer patients on whom
2466morphine, due to extended periods of use, no longer suppressed the pains ofcancer, and, in such cases, hypnosis was substituted for morphine to
2467subduethe patient’sability to feelthe pain.
2468No matter howmuch ofa Doubting Thomas you (and I) may be, or have been, therecan be no doubt but that the mind has, at minimum,
2469mitigated and/or totally eliminated pain and, in some cases, has cured some organic diseases . See Bibliography for books by Dr. Doidge
2470and other physicians, allavailable onAmazon or simplyGoogle“booksabout usingmind controlto cure disease”. This nascent“movement”seems
2471on courseto explode.
2472On thescale of medical dif iculty, stuttering (a non -organic or psychosomaticailment) is a “simple” problem to cure – the denials ofthe
2473stuttering naysayers notwithstanding. (They are about to join the group that once insisted, “The world is flat.”) Indeed, Coué writes that several
2474stutterers cured themselves, in his presence, on the spot, after being taught Coué’s Auto Suggestionmethods and going through themwithCoué .
2475Did those cured inCoué’s presence remain cured? We do not know. My bet is that, if they continued the Auto Suggestion Treatments (AST’s),
2476they DID remain cured, but, if they did not continue, they relapsed into stuttering. (Mind you: I have not needed to do AST’s or SHS’ for my
2477speech for decades, but I still do themdaily to work on otherattitudinaland physical problems,and they continueto “save my life”.)
2478Thesix curative Steps in this book are not dependent on each other. Eachwill help, independently. Icould and did survive with only the Tools
2479outlined in Steps 1-3, with nothing else, but, if you forced me to pick just one ofthe six Steps, it would be Step 5 OR Step 6, aseither willwork,
2480and I knowhowto use both. Having said that, myCrutches guarantee my continued success; that is, evenwhen I have not doneas good ajob as
2481needed withAST or SH, myCrutches willstillsave me,at least fromstuttering.,
2482My point here is that different Steps will work better or worse than others for each stutterer. All of us are individuals and need to adjust all
2483solutions/cures to our idiosyncratic differences.All ofthe Steps, however, should be used, and allshould help. Except for Step One, every Step, if
2484used to the max,can provideastand-alonecure.
2485This Step 5 isa perfect method or tying together, and reinforcing all ofthefirst four Steps, and segueing into all ofsame. Put differently, Step 5
2486is a nexus to Steps 1-4, a homeostatic stage duringwhich all ofsame can be used. In other words, we’re building a pyramid here; we’re building
2487to a climax: the reader’s self-cure. We might also look at it as a six story building, wherein every floor is suitable for our needs, but allcan and
2488should be used together to providethe best housing for our soon-to-be House ofFluency.
2489I say all of the above as an introduction to recommendations ofAuto Suggestion techniques, as popularized by Coué and now practiced by
2490millions of others. Since such cures were not then documented in the convincing ways that they are today, some detractors pooh-pooh Coué’s
2491cures. I do not, because they are consistent with modern findings by numerous doctors, and, equally important, Coué’s methods have been
2492helping me for years and continue to do so – to mitigate or eliminate pains of myriad kinds, to help my memory, to shape my attitudes and
2493emotions,and,aboveall, to keep stuttering in its place – which, happily, is nowhereinmy life!
24948.5 Affirmative Findingsre: AS
2495Auto Suggestionmethods, byCouéand others, have demonstrated that:
2496(1) Conscious repetition of positivethoughts willinfluenceand can controltheconscious mind (CM).
2497(2) Thoughts repeated sufficientlywill be picked up by theever sensitivesub-conscious mind (SCM).
2498(3) Over time,and generallywithin afewdays, both the CMand SCMwill do our bidding and acceptand begin implementing the daily repeated
2499suggestions. We don’t need to attempt to tellthe mind what to do and we don’t tellit“howto speak”. The mind performs millions offunctions
2500every day to keep usalive. “The mind knows what needs to be done,” as Couésaid. Logicsuggests that the greater thefrequency and
2501duration of treatments, thefaster and morelong lasting will beself-cures .
2502(4) There are no “relapses” fromtheseself-cures ,as long as thesubjectcontinues daily treatments, inwhatever frequency and length is then
2503needed. (Inmy case, onceagain, I long ago stopped addressing stuttering inmy daily treatments, becausethereis no need to do so.)
2504Unless continued, these “cures”are NOT permanent, any more than our vegetable gardens can be expected to grow vegetables indefinitely
2505without regular watering, fertilizing, weed-pulling, etc. So, too, our minds require continued, daily care : the daily repetitions. Then, over time,
2506most of our repeated suggestions will become deeply imbedded in our psyches (and, in time, will filter into our sub-conscious minds) and,
2507therefore, into our bodies, thoughts and, hence, conduct, and, thus, will prove stronger and will “last” as long as vigilant, daily maintenance is
2508performed.
25098.6 YourAuto Suggestion Treatments
2510In addition to reading aloud and using your Crutches, youwill need to give yourselfAuto Suggestion Treatments (“AST’s), and you will need to
2511spend such timetreating yourself asyour level of stuttering demands . Seethe Stuttering SeverityChart in Section 4.4.
2512If you aren’t experiencing noticeable progress EVERY week, you need to spend more time doing AST’s. It may astonish non-stuttering
2513readers to learn that stutterers can spend virtually everyminute ofevery hour ofeveryday thinking about stuttering, but Ican swear to its truth, as,
2514at my Stuttering Nadir, I surely spent 45 (and sometimes 59) minutes per hour doing precisely that! This is a crushing waste of valuable time and
2515dissipation of one’s life.) So, the stutterer MUST convert those minutes of negative energy worrying about stuttering into minutes of
2516positive energy curing it . Encourage the cancer to destroy itself. Worrying about stuttering accomplishes nothing. Attacking it, via practice
2517readingsand AS Treatments reducestuttering. So startattacking it now.
2518To do this, thestutterer (you,as Icontinueto presume) should usea planned, step-by-step program(Treatment). So, what is such a program?
25198.7 Daily Treatments inGeneral
2520Divide your Treatments into two types:
2521(1) Daily Treatments :Timesetasidefor your Treatments (initially no less than three 20-minutesessions daily – beforesleep, beforearising and
2522one during the day) AND
2523(2) Idle Time Treatments :When you’re driving in yourcar or riding the bus or waiting somewhereforan appointment, turn offthe musicand
2524give yourselfanAST as long as theidletimeallows. I used to pick-up another 30 minutes ofASTs this way. Everyminute ofASTsexpedites your
2525cure.
25268.8 YourDaily AST’s
2527This is not hard. Thereis no “perfect”way to do it. Your bestefforts WILLBE SUFFICIENT.
2528Again, Coué’s core technique is monotonous repetition (MR) to the conscious mind. The repetitions can be varied in volume, speed of
2529speech and in every other way. The more varied, the more interesting and memorable for me. MR is also one ofthe methods (albeit it indirect) of
2530reaching thesub-conscious mind.
2531Howdo you do it?In private when possible, inhale and exhalevery deeply 10-20 times until relaxed . Then, repeat each of the plannedsuggestions
253220 or more times. (Keep your list of 10 or so auto suggestions handy, which yourcan revise and update regularly.)You can say your
2533AS SILENTLY, but I urge you to say themasaudibly as yourcircumstancesand stuttering-impedimentallow, or in afaint whisper, oreven under
2534your breadth, as needed, but, preferably, loud enough for you to hear, however faintly. I refer to this process as “Daily Auto Suggestion
2535Treatments” or“Daily Treatments”, or“Treatments” orasAST’s. I urge 1-3, 20-minutesessions every day. (I did three 20-minuteAST plus Idle
2536Time ASTs for years.) Thirtyminutes is the minimumfor AST, but, time notwithstanding, just do them. Moreis better but any beats none.
2537Do as many daily AST’s as you feel that you need, but, initially, no less than three : (1) before going to sleep, (2) before arising in the
2538morning and (3) one during the day. (Ialso urge doing “Idle Time”AST’s; that is, five minutes here, 3 minutes there, 10 minutes whenever. Just do
2539them.
2540These Treatments may tend to put you to sleep, which beats sleeping pills (which I have never used as I can usually beat insomnia by simply
2541using sleep-Auto Suggestions for a few minutes:“I amvery sleepy; I amfalling asleep, etc.”). If you tend to go to sleep before you finish your
2542Treatments, try to makethemup during the day.
2543My preferred times forAST’s is beforesleep , before arising ANDwhile doing aerobics , e.g., when riding a stationary, recumbent bike
2544plus anytimethat I’midle. I usually do 30 minutes, which allows for one, fullTreatment of 10-20 Suggestions, 20 timeseach. (To avoid losing
2545count, I count my reps with my fingers .) I look forward to that time, as it is “My Mentaland Physical Health Time”; and, each day, I thank
2546myselffor doing it, beforeand after Iexercise, becauseit helps (1) my stuttering, ifI needed that reinforcement, (2) thefunctioning ofmymind, (3)
2547performance of my heart, (4) elevates my attitudes/karma, a Win-Win-Win-Win, and (5) it makes me proud of myself for being self-disciplined
2548and for doingmy best (my acid test for success).
25498.9 Examples of Auto Suggestions
2550In your Daily Treatments, why not begin with Coué’s most famous Auto Suggestion (modified to aim it at speech), as used and quoted by
2551countless millions to this day:
2552Every day, in everyway, my speech gets betterand better.
2553After this opener, you should make any proclamations that address your problems and fears in words that resonate to you . There are
2554infinite possibilities ofwording. For stutterers, the goal is to endlesslyre-af irm the abilityto speak, thelove of speaking, thecalmness when
2555speaking, and to visualize mental images of oneself doing so aseach statement is repeated 20 times .Afewofminearelisted below; many
2556areintentionally similar, but the variances keep themfresh; I repeat themin a wide range of tones and volumes frommonotonous to emotional
2557and fromthe faintest whispers to raised voice. My Daily Auto Suggestion Treatments are a second method of practicing fluency , if you do
2558themaloud (even in a faint whisper). Below are some that I used to use, and/or still use, as needed. Visualize yourself in whatever situations
2559concern you most, and then begin:
2560“If Ican say ONE word anywhere, anytime,
2561Ican say ANY word anywhere, anytime.”
2562“I no longerchooseto stutter.”
2563“When I speak, CALMfloods my body.”
2564“I nowVISUALIZEEmyselfspeaking fluently and easily.”
2565*I loveto speak; I loveto saymy name
2566[insert your name]”
2567“I willspeak without planningwords.”
2568“IcanDODGEmoststutters with anyCrutch.”
2569“I shallREJECT FEARin all ofits forms.”
2570“Whenmymind is idle, I willcountmy blessings.”
2571“I willfocus onmymessage, NOT on anywords.”
2572“I willspeak my thoughts with PASSION.”
2573“Mymind shallforgetallmemoriesand images ofstuttering.”
2574“Speaking iseasy, relaxing – and fun.”
2575“Ienjoy thesound ofmy voice.”
2576“For fun, sometimes I speak very slowly, withmuch feeling.”
2577“For fun, sometimes I speak very fast.”
2578“For fun, sometimes I speak in partial or fullwhispers.”
2579“For fun, sometimes I finesse or skip afirst letter orasyllable.”
2580“Speaking isa game,and I love games.”
2581“In class, Iamso relaxed as to bealmostasleep.”
2582“When Ienterclass, Iaminstantly overwhelmed with calm.”
2583“When Iamcalled-on in class,calmness floods my body.”
2584“I shallspeak easily, softly,enjoyingmy thoughts.”
2585“I don’tavoid speaking; I look forward to speaking.”
2586“I LOVE to talk on the PHONE.”
2587“I SEEmyselftalking on the phoneeasily.”
2588“I nowVIZUALIZEmyselfspeaking fluently,easily,effortlessly.”
2589All of these are intended to create Pavlovian-type responses to each and every fear of stuttering. Then, I always end my Treatments with
2590something like:
2591“Today, I willmakea very happy day.”
2592“Today, will beanotherchapter inmy life with a happy ending.”
2593(The last Suggestion is a paraphrase ofDavid Gregory Roberts fromhis best-selling novel, Shantaram. ) The above are illustrations only
2594– to give you some ideas. You should pick some and write some of your own. You can repeat about tenAS (20 times each) in one 20-minute
2595session;so, prepareachart of 10-20 Suggestions.
2596You should makelists, in groups of ten . Typethemin large, bold caps and stick themin your pocket, and put themon your phone
2597and iPad . (Keep your list ofCrutches in those places, too.)
2598Initially, you will be doing no less than three, 20-minute Treatments daily (such as, before going to sleep, before arising and one during the
2599day) with bonus Idle Time Treatmentsas often as you can.
26008.10 How Much Time forDaily AST’s
2601The more Daily Treatmentsyou do now, thelessyou will soon need to do .
2602In Section 4.4, the Stuttering Severity Chart, attempts to classify stutterers by severity and describes how that chart applies to different
2603stutterers. Depending upon the severity of the stutterer, based onmy own experiences, as I ranged frommild to severe and based upon what my
2604PWS-Mates tell me, stutterers typically spend from10 to 59 minutes PER HOUR thinking about stuttering. Obviously, the more minutes that
2605you spend per hour thinking about stuttering, the more time that you need to spend in self-therapy . Clearly, a severe stutterer can’t spend
260660 minutes per hour treating him/herself, but he/she should spend as much time as possible. Non-stuttering readers will not understand what I’m
2607saying here, becausethey have neverexperienced The Stutterer’s Curse(a mind consumed,around-the-clock, by fears ofstuttering).
2608Why not convert those minutes worrying about stuttering into time spent treating the problem? Happily, as you self-treat, you will be
2609progressively self-curing, and the amount of treatments and the total time devoted should steadily decline , as mine did. Again, I haven’t
2610needed to do anAST or SHS for speech for decades, BUT a stutter-fear stillcomes and goes (once a day, week or month), but I never stutter
2611detectably, becauseI usea Crutch,as needed, to defeateach and every threatened stutter. Result:NO relapses.
2612Although I rarely devote anyAST’s to stuttering now, my mind needs daily training and direction, as it always will, and, thanks to my daily
2613AST’s, I am an infinitely better and happier person than I would otherwise be. (Example: Next to hate, anger is the most destructive of all
2614emotions. My daily anti-angerAST has made meincredibly slowto visibly anger. This helps meand everyonearound me.)Yes, stuttering became
2615my life’s greatest blessing,and itcan become yours.
26168.11 Idle-Time orBonus Treatments
2617Idle time (time spent in waiting rooms, on trains, alone in cars, etc.), provides wonderful opportunities to treat yourself (and a “treat”it is) to do
2618moreAuto Suggestions,asevery single oneisa“pick me up”.You can pull out your list (with the Suggestions that youwrotefor yourself)and give
2619yourselfa Treatment on the Go. Do as many suggestions 20-timesas timethen allows,and enjoy the warmafterglow.
2620Remember: the number of minutes that you spend DAILYdoing your Treatments needs to be sufficient to replace the minutes per hour that
2621you were spending thinking about and recalling stuttering. YOU ARE NOT GOING TO WASTE TIME WORRYING ABOUT STUTTERING
2622ANYMORE, becauseyou will immediatelyreplaceeach such worry with one or more positive Auto Suggestions .
26238.12 Automatic Response Treatments
2624The process of replacing each fear with an Auto Suggestion needs to become automatic ; so, Icall it your“Automatic Response Treatment”.
2625It is important that youmakeit“automatic”.
2626Remember Bill Gates’ brilliant book, Business @ the Speed of Thought? As he noted, nothing, not even light, travels as fast as
2627thought . Computers are enabling us to do business at the speed of thought. Your speech can and should flow as easily and effortlessly as does
2628thought. Now, forachange,you’re going to usethespeed ofyour thought to help you whip Satan Stuttering .
2629The PavlovianResponseis well known:Every timethe bellwas rung, the dogwas served food.Aftera number ofrepetitions sufficient for that
2630dog, when the bell was rung, the dog began to drool, even though no food was presented. The trigger/the bell, not the food, automatically
2631stimulated the brain to commence drooling – a mental cause of a physical event . Similarly, the Placebo Effect demonstrates that the human
2632mind can bejustaseasily taught to respond,automatically to atrigger:a pillthat has no medicalsubstance.
2633In thecase ofstuttering,anyFEAR ofstuttering overanyword is going to becomethe TRIGGER foryou .
2634Thetrigger-Fear = Two thoughts:Calmand Fluent
2635Fear = Calm&Spontaneous Speech
2636Here’sanAST on point:
2637“Speech-fears triggercalmfluency.”
2638Just imagine if your brain automatically converted speech-fear to calmfluency! Well, it CAN do precisely that. If youwill hold to that thoughtand
2639keep it very close to the front of your mind and if you will get in the habit of thinking-visualizing-verbalizing that thought EVERY time fear of
2640stuttering arises, you willsoon find the fear suppressed and your tongue released. (I expand on the Think-Visualize-Verbalize-Do link in Section
26418.16.) We mightalso callit the Think-Visualize-Verbalize-Speak link.
2642Then, to put thelast nailin Stuttering’scoffin, as you speak, you can always usethe Voice Tools/Crutches (Step Two), when and if needed ,
2643and continue speaking with a relaxed smile on your face. The Crutches facilitate stutter-reduced speech in Phase I of the self-cure (when the
2644severe PWS has trouble saying anything), and they are used in the last Phase to make the PWS’ stutters undetectable by others and to prevent
2645relapses. Happily,aftera while, they are needed so rarely as to bea non-factor in one’elife.
2646This AUTOMATIC Response Method (combined with the Crutches foremergencies) may bethe most important form of Treatment in
2647this book :Each time Demon Fear injectsastuttering thought into your mind, youmustattack itmercilessly, with immediaterejection and denial –
2648and replace same with one or more of your Auto Suggestions . This response must become automatic . You will replace each stutteringthought
2649with any of your then favorite Suggestions. You can then backup the AS with a Crutch that dodges an imminent stutter-block and keep
2650right on talking as if nothing happened.
2651Your replacement of EVERYfear with a positive suggestion can be made just as automatic for you as was Pavlov’s dog’s response to the
2652bell, or Coue’s patient to the placebo. You simply need to be diligentand disciplined in replacing EVERYfear until it becomesautomatic. Once it
2653becomes so, your stuttering will become undetectable overnight. “But what if it doesn’t,” you ask. You will use all of the other Steps and
2654Tools/Crutches given herein. Then, youwill keep working on the Automatic Response until your AST’s train your mind to makeit work!
26558.13 Summary of Mind-Treatments
2656When you aretrying to self-cureand avoid relapses, you are your own therapist, and youmust havea plan, a plan to treat yourselfclinically, much
2657as youmight betreated on aspeech therapist’scouch or in aspeech clinic. Thisexplains thereasons for myThree-Pronged AS Treatments:
2658(1) Three, Daily Auto SuggestionTreatments ,
265920-minutesessions, repeating 10 suggestions 20-timeseach
2660(oras manymoreasare needed to get your non-stuttering snowballrolling)
2661(2) Idle-Time AS Treatments
2662(1-5 minutes,as many you haveidletime)
2663(3) Automatic Response Treatments
2664(every timeastuttering fearenters your mind,attack it,and counter it with anAS until you knock it out)
2665Theabove Treatmentsarein addition to PracticingVoice Tools (PVT),as described in Section 5.7.
2666Again, the mind does not need the details ; that is, it does not need to be told how to make the cure happen. As Coué and multiple doctors
2667have told us:Our minds know what the body needs to do to heal or cure itself ; OUR JOB IS TO IMPLANT THE SUGGESTION –
2668again, as demonstrated by placebos, hypnosis’ usein lieu ofNovocain, etc. We need only givethe mind conclusions :“I speak flawlessly, easily,
2669fluently.”
2670Should you concentrate when doing ASTs?
2671Coué says, “The mind knows what to do,” and he adds:Don’t concentrate ; leave concentration to your subconscious mind;say [or
2672whisper] the words methodically, over and over . Others disagree:Among latter-day mind gurus (neurologists, psychiatrists, etc.) there are
2673three schools of thought: (1) Use maximum concentration. (2) Mild concentration is sufficient. (3) No concentration is needed. The plurality of
2674current medical opinion (and my logic) suggests maximumconcentration; so, I try to concentrate, but, when my mind wanders, I don’t get
2675upset about it . So, do iteither way, or mix a bit of both. It is difficult to remain 100% concentrated, but I try. VISUALIZATION, of yourselfin
2676specificsituations being fluent, helps immensely as well.
2677All oftheforegoing providesa blueprint, a map, astep-by-step plan for you to useto applyAuto Suggestion and to begin to reversethelikely
2678accelerating stuttering-snowball in your life. Nothing in life is static. For better or worse, everything changes every day. Your stuttering is no
2679exception. Either you beat it, or it will beat you , increasingly. Whichway are you goingwith it right now? If you fail to act on and implement
2680the above-detailedAuto Suggestion plan, youwasted your money (ifI didn’t give it to you)and your time on this book. I so hope that such is not
2681the case, because I amnot so delusionalas to write any book “for money”; I wrote this book to help YOU! So, please, start Treating yourself
2682today!
26838.14 Why Auto Suggestion Will Work
2684If you deny that Auto Suggestion (AS) can work, it won’t work for you – because you won’t let it . As discussed earlier, we-stutterers
2685CHOOSE to stutter, subconsciously; we keep thinking aboutand compounding our own problem. Perhaps, in time, some stutterersenjoy being a
2686tragic figure, a subject of pity. We hide behind stuttering; we use it as a shield; we retreat inside ourselves. When I came face-to-face with the
2687brutal fact that I, alone, was choosing to stutter, I decided to stop, to stop filling my ghastly memory bank full of debilitating stuttering memories
2688and to start reversing that process by implanting endless positive images and memories every single day, until, at last, I didn’t have the problem,
2689and that is preciselywhat I did,and you can do it, too. However, thereisacatch. It is this:
2690To stop stuttering, youmust haveanOPEN mind to mind-control.
2691To nailthis point, let’s revisit a few others who had open minds to mind-cures ofmentaland/or physical problems:
2692• Thosecured by placebos,
2693• Thosecured by faith-healers,
2694• The hypnotized dental patient who feels no pain fromthe drill
2695• The pain-consumed cancer patient whose hypnoticstate does whatmorphine no longercan,
2696• Thestuttering-minister who never stutters when giving his sermon,
2697• Thestutterer who does notstutter when singing, talking in unison or to children oranimals,
2698• My friend-John, who reconnected his broken spinalcord and stood, walked and ran, for three hours, justas long as he believed
2699• Dr. Doidge’s patients who raised their IQ’s
2700• And re-grewmassive brain cells
2701• Or theauthor ofthis book and his PWS-Mates who beatstuttering
2702• Millions of others who use mind-controlto curethemselves daily ofallmanner ofailments
2703• All oftheseand more, who curethemselves withAuto Suggestion
2704So many people. Why not YOU, too ? Allit takes isan open mind, a mind open to the power of the mind to fix thing s, justas it has, and
2705continues to do, for millions.
2706Your mind, left unattended can be yourenemy (especiallywhen you allowothers orevents to guideit), but, once you put the bridleand bit on
2707it, it will become your biggestassetand will then give you the biggest victory of your life, and, in time, harnessing stuttering will be one of your
2708mind’s minor achievements . It is ofmine.
2709If you can’t (or won’t) buyinto all thisevidence , which demonstrates the mind’sability to cure myriad mentaland physical problems, well,
2710then, you need to admit that, deep down,you enjoy stuttering . Poor you! Poor me! I say “Hogwash”to all of that. All of us, INCLUDING
2711YOU,can becomethe boss of our own minds , if you, I, wereally want to do it, ifwe’rereallywilling to work for it, but we must allow for the
2712possibility, thelikelihood and inevitability of completecure; we mustaccept theapodicticlogicthat says:We weren’t born stuttering; welet it
2713happen; we nursed it; we compounded it; we let it grow; we came to subconsciously expect and choose to stutter, BUT, if we decide to go the
2714other direction, this book detailsa user-friendlymethod ofreversing and killing the StutteringDemon:
2715• Wecan read aloud extensively, thus replacing stutter-memories with fluency-memories, whilesimultaneously training ourselves to concentrate
2716on the message, thethoughtsand not on planningwords.
2717• Wecan usethe Voice Tools/Crutchesand other Steps herein to begin to reducestuttering and gradually extinguish it;
2718• Wecan consciously,and then subconsciously, guide our minds to stop accepting it,expecting it, dwelling on it,and remembering it;
2719• Wecan consciously,and then subconsciously, startexpecting fluency,and dwell on fluency and remember fluency;
2720• Wecan startenjoying fluency and our newlives, withminds freeto think about other things;
2721• Wecan visualizeand experience ourselvesas fluent;and
2722• Wecan practice our Voice Tools/Crutchesand give ourselves Treatments untilwearecured and at peace with ourselves.
2723No onecan cureyou of stuttering,except you . Therapists, this book and many other things may help, but ONLYYOUcan cure yourself.
2724Just remember that I did it,and many othersare doing it now.
2725Auto Suggestion isn’t new; it isn’t voodoo, and it’s not dif icult ; and, again, it is now working for millions (including this author and a
2726growing number of your PWS-Mates). If youwillstop fretting about stuttering right now and tackle The Beast, you can and will beat it to a pulp.
2727Being mentally tough is much harder than being physically tough. Weights and aerobics will never do for you what Mind Control will . Start
2728devoting timeto your mind. Resolve now to get into your mind and takeit over .
2729Now, try it: Close your eyes; inhale and exhale very deeply 10-20 times, and focus on being relaxed, as you repeat your Ten Currently
2730Chosen Instructions to yourself. Don’t struggle; say the words; believe the words; visualize yourselfachieving the goal of thatAS, and just let the
2731cure happen. (If you stutter as you say them, whisper themor use the Crutches to finesse the stutters as needed and avoid all the stuttering even
2732before you teach yourselfand apply this Step 5. Steps 2-4 leapfrog the fears and enable fluency, but Step 5 (and 6) give youways of removing
2733thosefears, thuseliminating the StutteringBeast fromyour mind and life.)
2734The key, again, is to FILL your Mental Memory Bank/MMB with positive speaking memories and images, which will gradually
2735overwhelm the negativestuttering memories and images. Over time, all the repetitions of yourAuto Suggestions to Conscious Mind/CM will
2736filter down to your Sub-Conscious Mind/SCM, and, although your SCM cannot be forced to do anything, it is ever receptive to suggestions and
2737knows howto put theminto practiceand will do so in time, if you keep downloading sameinto your MMB.
2738Again, when we do not feed our minds with positive thoughts, our minds will obtain their thought-sustenance fromother sources (fromothers
2739or fromevents – “the Environment”) and will dwell on any negatives that we allow to remain there. Stop it now. We cannot af ord to abdicate
2740control of our minds,ever . Those daysare over.Auto SuggestionTreatments have worked for millions to cureallmanner of problems, and they
2741willwork for you, if you’ll do themwith an openmind.
27428.15 Rejecting Negatives
2743Decades ago, there was a book, Hidden Persuaders , a best seller. It was republished in 2007 and is available now on Amazon-Kindle. It
2744revealed the ways inwhich retailers (especially grocery stores) imbedded messages in the music-background which directed customers to buy this
2745or that, often repeating instructions. Customers’conscious minds do not hear these messages as they are too faint, but their subconscious
2746minds do . (Note wellthe power ofthe SMto “hear” virtualthoughts fromothers!)
2747Statistics reveal the unheard messages substantially increased purchases of the products subliminally sold . This was accomplished by
2748commercial“suggestions”; i.e., SILENT thoughtsendlesslyrepeated did thejob . Imaginethat!
2749You think that your mind is not subject to the suggestions? Wake up and get real! This further proves the point :If YOU don’t program
2750your mind positively, it will drift like a rudderless ship wherever environmental currents take i t and others (intentionally or
2751unintentionally) will program it. Uncharted ships rarely reach a desirable destination , least ofall one that youwould chart. Youmind is no
2752exception. Either you “map”it, programit, direct it, dictate the thoughts, etc., or others will. So, if your stuttering problemdoes nothing else for
2753you, IF itcauses you to becomealifelong “programmer” of your mind, stutteringwill become“your greatest blessing”!
2754Consider another example, in October, 1960, Nikita Khrushchev, who had followed Joseph Stalin as leader of what was then The Soviet
2755Union or U.S.S.R., gaveaspeech at the United Nations, inwhat became known as“the banging shoe” or“I will bury you”speech. In that speech,
2756to emphasize his threats to the West, he allegedly took off his shoe and banged it repeatedly on the podium. Not long thereafter, a memorable
2757three-block cartoon appeared. In each block, it showed Khrushchev addressing acrowd (putativelyRussians)and banging his shoein each block,
2758using hetero suggestions to controltheirconscious minds. The dialogue undereach block follows:
2759Block One:
2760Khrushchev (NK) says,“Black is white.”
2761Thecrowd responds,“No, black is black .”
2762Block Two:
2763NK repeats,“Black is white.”
2764Thecrowd replies,“No, black is grey.”
2765Block Three:
2766NK again insists,“Black is white.”
2767Thecrowd relents,“Yes, black is white.”
2768The cartoon mockingly demonstrated a basic truth, to paraphrase Milton, “Repetition will out.” We buy the product (thought) that is most
2769advertised (inserted) – or the onethat is subliminally implanted in our minds bywords thatare buried indecipherably in thestore’s music. Theseare
2770factsabout the humanmind, ladiesand gentlemen. You can takethis to the bank:
2771Repeat (or hear) anything enough,
2772and it will becomeyour reality.
2773Therefore, it is imperative that we (1) maintain a regime to implant positive thoughts on a daily basis and (2) activelyresist all
2774negativethoughts, or thelatter will become our realities – justas our stuttering fears have become.
2775Even wearing a shirt with a negative message can do more than spread negative karma; it can become a self-fulfilling prophecy . I
2776had afriend who oftenworeateeshirt with theribald slogan, “Shit Happens”; hethought that it was funny, in a way, and “cool”(while I sawitas
2777disgusting). (Profanity isa verbalsewerand nothing good happens in asewer; it degradeseveryone.)After some months, hestopped wearing that
2778shirt. When Iasked himwhy, hereplied,“My lifefellapart; when I stopped wearing it, things improved.”This isn’t magic; it’s logic. Thoughts
2779are powerful , possibly the most powerfulelements in our universe. (Even Jesus referenced moving mountains with faith, which is thought.) We
2780can’tseeelectricity either, but think ofits power; I’vealways believed that thought isevenmore powerful. Common sense dictates:
2781All negative thoughts need to be weeded fromour mental gardens ASAP, and we should never be so foolish as to implant themourselves, via
2782slogans on shirts, tattoos, posters in our rooms, stickers on our cars, and on and on. We must wash the negatives fromour minds and be evervigilant
2783to block theirentry.
2784We now get it: Our minds are incredibly receptive to suggestions, and our minds act on them. Words and messages and thoughts do
2785matter ; ifwe want to livea positivelife, we must monitorand control our thoughtsand our words, as they dictate ouractionsand howour bodies
2786feeland respond – and sometimes those of others – all ofwhich alters our livesand, domino-like, thelives of others.
27878.16 Think-Visualize-Verbalize-Do
2788There is afour-step process ( Think-Visualize-Verbalize-Do, as I call it) that can be planned and positive or unplanned and negative; if the
2789latter, it must be nipped in the bud and then reversed by substituting positive thoughts for the negative ones. While thoughts have a powerful
2790impact,visualized actions and/or verbalized words can have an even greater impact. (This is why I call profanity “the curse of profanity”,
2791because profanity puts our minds and keeps our minds in the gutter ,and nothing good happens in the gutter. This is logic notmetaphysics.)
2792As such, it isclear:To control our bodies, we must first control our thoughts. To achievethis, we need to:
2793(1) THINK thethought of ourchoice and
2794(2) IMAGINE/VISUALIZE ourselves as we want to be and then
2795(3) VERBALIZE thesethoughts and then
2796(4) DO what wethink-visualize and verbalize.
2797Think-Visualize-Verbalize-Do!
2798Subconsciously, we knowall ofthis, but we need to bring it into therealmof ourconscious thoughtsand address and removeevery negative
2799thought as it occurs,and, for stutterers, stuttering is the Number One Thoughtand Problemin their lives.
2800When discussing stuttering, thestutterer should do so in positiveterms :“I’mworking on it; I’mmaking progress; I will lick it,”etc.As
2801noted in Step One, discussing the problemcan jump-start the cures, but one must always expect ultimate victory – and think victory, and
2802visualize victory,and verbalize victory aftervictory aftervictory.
2803As The New York Times said, in its reviewof psychiatrist-NormanDoidge’s revolutionary bestseller, The Mind That Changes Itself,
2804“The power of positivethinking finally gains scientificcredibility…and straddles the gap between scienceand self-help.”
2805Brain “plasticity”(or ability of the brain to change itself) shows that the brain can be “rewired” or taught to think and program the body’s
2806organs in new ways, and, in so doing, af ect and reshape our body’s performance. Frankly, in the greater scheme of the brain’s capabilities,
2807solving stuttering is a MINOR problem. Harvard paleontologist-Stephen J. Gould, Ph.D., confirmed this in his compelling book, Wonderful Life,
2808where hesaid,
2809“Thinking can changethe behavior of genes.”
2810Sadly, stutterers have been taught by group-think to expect defeat ; if that includes you,you must now unlearn that erroneous belief .
2811Onceeveryonethought the world was flat, and that theearthwas thecenter of our universe, and even that theclosest mountain (“El” or“Elhoim”)
2812was God, but we nowknowbetter. Newdata haveforced us to change our views. It is nowtimefor you to change yourexpectationsand resolve
2813to begin, with optimism, theroad to your self-cure.
28148.17 Conscious v. Subconscious Mind
2815Couéexplains theimportant link between ourconsciousand subconscious minds thusly:
2816“The conscious mind is but a small islet in the vast sea of the subconscious mind… The subconscious both receives and transmits
2817ideas; it misses nothing . We are free to implant any ideas we wish…It is impossible to separate the body fromthe mind; the mind
2818sends messages to allcells; our physical condition depends on our mental condition… It is thesubconscious mind that sends blood
2819to thearea ofacut orevokes pain at the point ofan injury…The mind can speed or slowthe heartbeat…”(Emphases supplied.)
2820The psychiatrist, Dr. Norman Doidge, recently proved and corroborated the foregoing, as earlier noted, in his widely praised best-seller, The
2821Brain That Changes Itself” .
2822The conscious mind is like an unbroken horse. Without a bridaland reins, the rider must go wherever the horse chooses; once the bridaland
2823reinsarein place, therider takescharge. When wetakecontrol of our minds, our minds will respond as we direct . It may takesometimeand
2824dogged persistence, but it will happen. Auto Suggestion Treatments and self-hypnosis are the best methods of accomplishing this. My PWSMatesand
2825I not only don’tstutter detectably, we“don’teven think much aboutstuttering anymore”. What betterendorsementcan be given?
2826Conquering stuttering via the above-described Think-Visualize-Verbalize-Do Chain Reaction might be accomplished in days (and Coué
2827reported stutterers curing themselves within hours in some cases – but I’ll wager, absent ongoing self-treatments of some sort, resulted in relapses),
2828but, foranyone who is diligent and persistent , such self-cures, as my PWS-Mates are proving, should be accomplished in a fewmonths
2829of Daily Treatments, with continued Daily Treatments thereafter, as needed, to prevent relapses. I don’t believe things until I see or experience
2830them; I have both seen and experienced the efficacy ofAST, in myselfand in others. It works. So, drop the naysaying and start joining a SelfCuringTeam.
2831Thereisafinal Step, Step 6. It is likely not necessary for most stutterers to curethemselves, but, for severecases OR foranyone who has not
2832accomplished the desired self-cureafter Step 5, this Step 6 willfinish thejob.
2833In fact, even without the prior five Steps, Step 6 alone can result in a self-cure – as it did almost single handedly for me. Step 6 was my
2834second Step (expanded vocab was my first),and then I gradually discovered myCrutches (Step 2).
2835In this book, thefirst five Steps, however, willmakeitmuch easier to make Step 6 take hold quickly and permanently. In allevents, Step 6 isa
2836great bonus weapon to have in your anti-stuttering arsenal, and, of possibly greater importance, Step 6 (and 5), more than any other steps, will
2837give you a greatly improved life and, hence, convert your stuttering-issues into “the greatest blessing in your life”. So, let’s turn to the last Step to
2838our self-cure, Step 6.
2839Section 9
2840Step Six:
2841MentalImagery and
2842Self-Hypnosis
2843“Our lifeis in our mind.”
2844Buddha(c. 563-483 BCE)
2845We spend so much time working, playing, learning, improving our appearance and health, but we give almost no time or thought to the most
2846important work that we need to do: Concentrate on our minds, implant desired thoughts, and remove negative thoughts . We
2847effectively abandon our minds, and allow themto wanderaimlessly in an almost dysfunctionalenvironment, driven by chaos, conflict, mayhemand
2848abject misery, while events and other people implant suggestions in our minds. Can it be any wonder that we often feel depressed, bored, angry,
2849jealous, defeated, frightened, and not in control of our lives – and even our speech, a relatively benign function no more complicated than
2850swallowing or blinking?
2851We began our discussions ofmind-control in the last Section, under the heading “Think-Visualize-Verbalize-Do”. Here, we’llfocus further on
2852MentalImagery (MI)and the ways itcan beexpanded many fold through Self-Hypnosis (SH).
2853In my case, it was my mental image of myself as a chronic stutterer (and an “inferior person”, at some level, or so I then believed) that
2854perpetuated and continuously increased my stuttering. My image ofmyselfas a stutterer had been imbedded over a period of ten years, before it
2855reached its debilitating zenith, after I graduated fromlaw school, when I bordered on severe stuttering, even suffering occasional, momentary total
2856blockage (an inability to say anything or even make a sound), an instance of which I detailed in Section 1. Once I began my cure, in my midtwenties,
2857although I achieved “passable fluency” within five years or so, it took me roughly ten more years (some 25 years laboring in Stuttering
2858Vineyard) to be able to say triumphantly, “No one can nowdetect my stuttering.”(I genuinely believe that, if I had possessed this book, in my
2859mid-twenties, I could have accomplished my goal (to not be detectable as a stutterer) in less than a year , and, with a Skype-coach who
2860had lived it, perhaps in 60-90 days.) I have never claimed to be 100% “cured”; I only claim that strangers cannot detect me as a
2861stutterer . This isan achievable goal.
2862My cure came in reverse. That is, other than working hard to accomplish common-sense expansion ofmy vocab (Step 3), I beganmy selfcure
2863with Step 6 (because my psychiatrist suggested it) and, then, developed Steps 1, 2, 4 and 5, one-by-one (and not necessarily in that order),
2864as Iapplied Step 6. This worked too, but it would have been much easier for me, if I had begun mycure with Step 1 and worked my wayto
2865Step 6 ,as this book has done.
2866So, for me, the hardest part came first: learning self-hypnosis (SH). It is important that we/you distinguish between these confusingly similar
2867terms: Some callself-hypnosis “Auto Conditioning ” – not to be confused with Step 5’sAuto Suggestion . (To avoid confusingAC andAS, I
2868will usethetermSHrather thanAC.)
2869SH helped immediately , but, as I stumbled upon and used Steps 1-5, each one helped make Step 6 more effective. My belief is that only
2870seriously severe stutterers will find Step 6 a necessity, BUT I amever so grateful that I learned SH, and I urge you to master Step 6 as well,
2871because it WILL expedite your self-cure and will make it much easier to control your mind in ALL things for the rest of your life. Also, it is
2872insurance against a failure of the other Steps, and it is further great weapon to fight relapses, and, perhaps best ofall, it will help you handle many
2873non-stuttering problemsand to achievealastingly happy life. With this inmind, let’s delveinto Self-Hypnosis.
28749.1 Auto Suggestion v. Self-Hypnosis
2875Step 6 (Self-Hypnosis) is Step 5 (Auto Suggestion) on steroids. That is, instead of attacking the Conscious Mind (CM) directly and the SubConscious
2876Mind (SCM) in directly through the CM, Step 6 attacks the SCMdirectly. It isa kissing cousin ofCoué’s Auto Suggestion Method.
2877Don’t let the concept ofself-hypnosis scare you; it’s not that hard, and it’s notatall dangerous. I was so desperate for a cure that I can fairly
2878say thatself-hypnosis (SH) may well have saved my life, figuratively and, likely, literally. Youmay not need it to save your life, but, I’llwager,
2879SHwill improveyour life morethan anything you haveever done or learned . Such is its vast potential.
2880At the zenith of my battle against stuttering, for a year or so, I hypnotized myself two to three timesevery day, usually in twenty-minutesessions
2881(before going to sleep, before arising and once around mid-day with a bonus session right before I gave any formalspeech). It not only
2882largelywiped stuttering frommymind, itenabled meto substantially or totally cure or greatlymitigatea whole host of other problems.As such, no
2883matter how successful you are in applying Steps 1-5, you owe it to yourself to capitalize on Mental Imagery and Self-Hypnosis; they will reform
2884your emotions, your karma, your relationships and your life, thus healing the whole you – and it will dramatically expedite the obliteration of your
2885stuttering,and, used asasixth Step, it will do precisely that:It will purge whatever is left ofstuttering in your mind.
28869.2 Lessons from a Psychiatrist
2887So, howand why did Ichanceto undertakeself-hypnosis (“SH” herein)? As noted earlier, my psychiatrist urged meto do so.
2888I am NOT recommending herethat you consult a psychiatrist (although I view itasa capital idea for most humans, at leasta few sessions
2889at some point). I am, rather, about to explain some specific things that I learned frompsychoanalysis which helped me immeasurably; in fact,
2890these things not only greatly diminished my stuttering; they allowed me to re-shape my character, my attitudes, and, hence my conduct;
2891all of which changed my entire life for the better, forevermore. Again, self-hypnosis is Auto Suggestion on steroids, becausethe
2892suggestions and imagery bypass the conscious mind/CM and are delivered directly to the sub-conscious mind/SCM , confirming the
2893mathematical principlethat theshortest distance between any two points isastraight line. It is thesub-conscious mind (SCM) that determines most
2894of ourconscious thoughtsand, hence, ouractions.
2895If we can make suggestions directly to the SCM, we will feel the effects in our conscious thoughts and actions much, much faster (and
2896perhaps much deeper) than we possibly can via Auto Suggestions that are directed to the Conscious Mind, which, again, must work their way
2897down, but it takes longer.
2898My psychiatrist, again, was Frank S. Caprio, M.D., a prominentauthor ofmany books. If youwere to consulta psychiatrist today, I’llwager
2899that he/she would offer observations and recommendations similar to those that Dr. Caprio made to me. Some of his most salient observations
2900included these:
2901(1) Everyonestutters , sometimes,and has the potentialto becomeastutterer, butmost people don’t worry about it,and it doesn’t become
2902chronic. Stutterers should view occasional stuttering as “normal”, then ignoreit and continuetalking . Thatsimple decision helped me
2903substantially. Start trying it immediately:When you stutter, try to ignoreit,concentrate on your message,and keep on talking. (For me, talking
2904faster, Crutch 11, helped me do this,as it reversed thestutterer’s normalcycle ofslowing speech and planningwords. When I talked faster, I
2905stuttered less.)
2906(2) Thereis no physical cause of stuttering; it is mental, period . (Some ofthe other stuttering-related books that I’veread and list in the
2907Bibliography, disagree, but Dr. Caprio wasa verywise man,and his statementseemed and stillseems logicalto me,and my self-cure proved,at
2908minimum, thatmymind caused and sustained my stuttering. Regardless, debating this is foracademics; the precisecause ofyour stuttering is
2909not nearly as important as is self-curing it .)
2910(3)“Stuttering iscaused byexcessive perfectionism,” hesaid,and, to paraphrase him, it reflects fear of not being perfect; thespeaker is so
2911anxious to speak perfectly that he/shespeaks haltingly, often resulting in stuttering incidents. Cut yourselfsomeslack; forgive yourselffor wellintentioned
2912miscues; keep practicing and treating yourselfwith thesix Steps herein and just keep speaking.
2913(4) Clearly, the more onestutters, the morefrequentand the more pronounced thestuttering often becomes. Stuttering then feeds inferiority
2914complexes, which furthercompound the problem ,as it did inmy case.
2915(5) Afterextractingmy life-story (however short when Iconsulted him,atmy then tender 25 years), Dr. Caprio (immediately seeing the need to
2916“healthe whole person”, notsimply thestutter)commented that I had every reason to be proud ofmyself, for my education,and record ofearning
2917(as I had held jobs fromageten and through collegeand lawschool), my young family, parents, siblings,etc.,and there was no earthly reason for
2918meto think ill ofmyself or to fearanything,and I didn’t need to try so hard to speak perfectly; perfection is notareasonableexpectation of
2919anyone.
2920(6) IfI would only stop fearing stuttering,and stop thinking about itconstantly, my stutteringwould gradually abate,and I would cease or greatly
2921reduce my stuttering,although headmitted that thecycleis difficult to reverse – after which, I slowly developed thesix-step-cureas presented
2922herein.
2923(7) Heasked why I had consulted him. I said that I thought that, if he hypnotized meand told methat I didn’tstutter, thatmight wellcure me. He
2924advised that, ifI werea good subject for hypnosis, yes; it would work, BUT not indefinitely; hetero-hypnosis (hypnosis by a hypnotist) might
2925work forafewmonths,a month,a week,a day or only an hour; it depended uponme – reminiscent ofmy friend’s, John’s,experience with the
2926evangelist’s temporary healing ofJohn’s organically severed spinalcord. Dr. Caprio said that theef ects of hypnosis would need to be
2927reinforced at regular intervals, as needed, and, to accomplish this, I had to learn to hypnotize myself . Hethought that I should daily
2928and repeatedly hypnotize myself and VISUALIZE-SEE IMAGES OF MYSELF AND HEAR MYSELF speaking fluentlyin all manner
2929of situations. This seemed logical but daunting at first, but herecommended a book on point that was shortand easy to read, understand and not
2930difficult to apply:A Practical Guideto Self-Hypnosis by thelate Melvin Powers (withwhomI had the pleasure ofspeaking by phonein recent
2931years), which book is stillavailable onAmazon-Kindle. This 130-page book is a dream of simplicityand isa Must Read forany stutterer.
2932Please do yourselfafavorand order it onlineright now. I will notattempt to turn this book into ashortcourse on self-hypnosis (noramIequipped
2933to do so); BUT you can learn it,and rather quickly, fromPowers’ book. Surely, thereare many other books of value on this topic, but Powers’
2934book is the only one withwhich I have personalexperience. His methods DO work,and he writes laconicand lucid proseand makes selfhypnosiseasy
2935to teach yourself.
2936(8) The psychiatrist (Dr. Caprio) was doubtfulthat I, orany stutterer,could eliminate 100%ofallstuttering, but he did firmly believethat, through
2937mind control, Icould eliminate most ofit. (As noted earlier, in time, I did eliminateenough of mystuttering to make mystuttering not
2938detectable. Iamconvinced thatanyone, who diligently applies thetechniques, which I outlinein this book,can achievesimilar success.)
2939Combining allsix ofSteps is thereal“magic”. Theseverity of your problem,and of your diligencein applying the principles in this book, will
2940determinethelevel of your need, ifany, for self-hypnosisand will dictatethespeed of yourcure. It is the workers ofthe world who fair best, over
2941thelong run,and I so hopethat you are, orcan nowbe,among them.
2942Youwillenjoy some ofDr. Caprio’s words,as quoted fromhisexcellent book, Helping Yourself with Psychiatry:
2943“Fear motivates mostactions.”
2944“Believethat you can improve,and youwill.”
2945“Most destructivetendenciesarelocked up in the‘basement’ of our mind [in our sub-conscious].”
2946“We havefreechoice:to accept or reject thoughts. Nothing compels us to think anything except our own desires. Useyour mental
2947switch to dictateyour thought s.”
2948“Neuroticsymptoms (headaches, dyspepsia, insomnia[and stuttering ]cometo our rescue by acting asa defenseagainst what weare doing
2949wrong.”
2950“You can’t help others if you can’t help yourself.”
2951“Discuss your troubles with someone[but not with everyone].”
2952“Hypnosis is theshortest path to mind-control.”
2953“Relax . Do everything in arelaxed way. Relaxmentally. Relax physically. Talk to yourself . Keep yourcomplaints to a minimum. Avoid
2954bickering. Be appreciative. Becheerful. Be a friend .”
2955What betteradvicecould any of us possibly receivethan that fromthe wonderfulDr. Caprio?
29569.3 Self-Hypnosis and You
2957In psychiatry, hypnosis is popular, and SELF-hypnosis (a/k/aauto conditioning) isevenmore popular. Hypnosis is really nothing more than a
2958very deep state of relaxation . On scale of 10, if a 10 is 100% hypnotized and a 1 is not hypnotized at all, I made significant progress
2959overcoming stuttering when I reached only a level of only 2 or 3 or just barely “under” thetiniest bit .
2960My PWS-Mates often complain that they can’t seemto geta very deep state of SH. I havetwo thoughts on this:(1)ANYstate ofrelaxation,
2961however light, WILL produce very desirable results and (2) if you keep giving yourself SH treatments, you will eventually achieve deeper and
2962deeper levels ofSH. Regardless, do NOT worry about thelevel of your hypnoticstate; it WILL BE working foryou; just keep doing it !!!
2963After severalmonths of doing 1-3 ten to twentyminutes self-hypnosis sessions daily, I wasableto slowly climb to something on the order ofa
29647 or 8 level(on a scale of 10) of hypnosis; in other words, I was substantially hypnotizingmyself, and I could do this quickly and mostanywhere.
2965The effects were stunning and richly rewarding in allaspects ofmy life. Stutteringwas becoming a blessing. (Again, I discoveredAuto Suggestion
2966years later,and I tend to useitmorethan SH, becauseit is much easier to do. WhenBigTroublestrikes me, however, I stillreturn to SH.)
2967I finally becameso proficientat self-hypnosis, that Icould “put myself under”in 1-2 minutesand remain under for theexact number ofminutes
2968that I chose; I did this usually in private, but I was able to do it even while standing erect during a ten-minute bus ride, and I was stillsufficiently
2969alert to react normally to all external situations. If you will read, study and master some books on self-hypnosis (such as Melvin Powers’
2970sententious, 130-page Practical Guideto Self-Hypnosis , which I repeatedly recommend herein dueto its simplicity and efficacy),you will soon
2971learn to hypnotize yourself suf iciently to make major progress on stuttering AND with any other mental issue that now or ever plagues
2972you . Again, it’s not that hard!
2973In Step 1, I recommend discussing your stutteringwith trusted confidants (or therapists, if you can afford them), and my six, one-hour sessions
2974withDr. Caprio provided opportunities for me to do just that. While Dr. Caprio’sabove-observations, by themselves, helped quite a bit, they did
2975not enable me to overcome my stuttering; however, when I took his advice and learned and applied self-hypnosis, I enjoyed immediate,
2976long-lasting help .
2977My stuttering declined as if in free-fall, and my life improved inALL areas. So, a psychiatrist’s advice will surely help. One doesn’t need to
2978become a life patient ofanyone. In my case, six, one-hour sessions were all that I could then afford, and I ameternally grateful that I had those
2979sessions. Psychoanalysis didn’t make me stutter less by itself – nor will simply reading this book make you stutter less. Acting on what I
2980learned did! You need to ACT on what you learn here ; but, if you do, you WILL eliminate or reduce your stuttering to a level that will not
2981impair your life or, quite possibly, like mine, become undetectable by anyone. Your self-cureis my goal. Achieveit, because you can.
2982Dr. Caprio also explained the key pointabout hypnosis:It is not dangerous; hypnosis does not result in a loss of self-control ; it does not
2983result in a loss ofconsciousness that won’t be restored automatically in a few seconds, ifa situation changes (such as becoming dangerous). In
2984sum, hestressed thesefacts:
2985Hypnosis is nothing more than heightened state of relaxation. When hypnotized, we never lose control of ourselves. Our conscious minds still
2986control our actions. Our subconscious minds control our conscious minds. Hypnosis allows us to reach our subconscious minds directly, and to
2987feed it suggestions that willaid our post-hypnotic actions. Hypnosis, then, is the straightest line to our destination: Control of our minds
2988and, hence, our actions and our speech.
2989The goal, then, is to reach our subconscious minds as fast, as deeply and as often as we can, and, once there, to give post -hypnotic
2990suggestions . The more relaxed the subject becomes, the deeper the state of hypnosis and the more the subject responds to treatment by the
2991hypnotizer (other person or oneself). Being so relaxed feels wonderful, ofthat you can besure.
2992Thetechniques for self-hypnosisare not difficult. It just takes practice. Whetheryou achieve a deep, mediumor only a verylight state of
2993self-hypnosis, with repetition, you WILLmake huge strides with stuttering , and youwillcontinue to improve as long as you give yourself
2994such treatments.
2995Dr. Caprio suggested that, in each self-hypnoticstate, I:
2996Visualize myselfspeaking flawlessly
2997to an individual, group or to thousands.
2998I did this countless times. It worked. Over time, such positive visualizations (even more than reading aloud) will replace the many negative
2999stuttering-images and memories. As I did this, my new images had a potent ef ect on my mind . In my self-hypnosis treatments, I saw these
3000wonderful scenes in 10-20 minute meditative sessions, before I went to sleep, before I arose in the morning and, often, in one or two bonus
3001sessions during the day. My progress began slowly but was immediate, and it grew virtually every day. With SH/Auto Conditioning, as later
3002coupled withmy otherearlier-discussed Steps, I was onmyway to burying stuttering and bury it, I did.
3003Asexplained in theearlier Sections, I knewthat theentire problemwas betweenmy ears, and that was the most frustrating part. There was no
3004physical reason or cause; it was all inmymind. “All”that I needed to do was take control ofmy ownmind. How simple, how confounding, how
3005wonderful.
30069.4 Learning to Hypnotize Yourself
3007Teaching myself Self-Hypnosis wasn’t that hard, but it took many attempts, but I did it, and you can do it, too. Basically, like most things, it just
3008takes practice. (The Auto Suggestionmethods,as described in Step 5,are much easier; they don’t need to belearned; you juststart doing them.)
3009Anyway, to learn self-hypnosis youwill need to read another book (such as the above-mentioned 130-page , user-friendlyPractical Guide
3010to Self-Hypnosis byMelvin Powers). Fromit, youwill learn that self-hypnosis is not like a light switch; that is, it isn’t all-on or all-of . It is like
3011a dimmer switch; you can learn it and practice it in degrees , exactly to the level of your choosing, making it pure pleasure from the first
3012attempt.
3013You probablywon’tever put yourself 100% under; I doubt that Iever have, but, the morerelaxed you become, the more youwill be“under”.
3014At the beginning, you’ll probably be barely “under”at all – but any degree “under” helps; and, over time, you will gradually increase the level of
3015your relaxation, even perhaps to 50% or even 75%, when you do it daily for a month or so, this will happen, and you will grow to be able to
3016regulatethelength ofeach session.
3017When “under”, even the least bit, you will find that your mind is amazingly receptive to your suggestions (much more than is your conscious
3018mind to audible suggestions). When at my best with self-hypnosis, I could eventually put myself under in less than a minute, while sitting on a park
3019bench or wherever and treat myself for an exact time period, such as five minutes. At night in bed, I even trained mymind to awaken at 6:00:00
3020A.M.; that is at 6 AM with the minute and second hands on the 12. It sounds incredible, ofcourse, but it’s true. All that it takes is determination
3021and practice.
30229.5 Self-Hypnosis (Subconscious) vs.
3023Auto Suggestion (Conscious)
3024Everything in life becomes“useit or loseit”. I regret stopping self-hypnosis treatmentsas I did after stuttering faded into near oblivion for me. I
3025havereturned to it oflate,as needed,and have benefited proportionateto thefrequency ofmy sessions,even thoughmy degree“under”isn’tmuch
3026yet, as I don’t do itenough. However, I havefound Coue’s book, Auto Suggestion: My Method,and its techniques to beso very effective that I
3027don’t need self-hypnosis (except perhaps in a crisis, when I would re-learn it and fast). So, I have become a faithful, daily devotee of the more
3028user-friendlyAuto Suggestion (as discussed in Step Five), which helps meimmensely every single day.
3029Having both of these tools (Auto Suggestion and Self-Hypnosis) available has dramatically improved every aspect of my life : my
3030attitude about everything is more positive; my health is better; my memory loss seems to be nil, and I am able to mitigate pains from myriad
3031manifestations of the atrophies ofage. I said “mitigate” not eliminate, but I keep at it, always striving to eliminate. Ifany pain hit me too hard, I
3032would re-immerse myselfin self-hypnosis.
3033I will not attempt to detail further the techniques of self-hypnosis here, as it is a big subject and warrants its own book , and a writer
3034moreattuned to its nuances, and thereare many fine ones. This isn’tacop-out; Ican’t instruct you on itas wellascan the 130-page, user-friendly
3035Practical Guideto Self-Hypnosis, by Melvin Powers. Its Chapters 6 and 7, only 18 pages in the aggregate, lay-out a magically easymethod of
3036hypnotizing yourself. Get the book now; read it a few times and then master its diminutive Chapters 6 and 7. Within several weeks of daily
3037treatments,you will be STUNNED at your improvement in all aspects ofyour life. Try it. You’llloveit. If you thenwant to “thank”me or
3038anyone, just pass theseadvicesalong to some needy soul.
3039So, dear reader, if you struggle with stuttering and if you truly want to stop, you must pay The Piper, as always, which here means that you
3040must do as herein suggested, and, thus, complete your mastery and ongoing daily application of the principles set forth in the six Steps, as
3041recommended in this book.
30429.6 Public Speaking
3043I’mgoing to make an optimistic leap here and assume that you will in a matter ofa few months, push your stuttering into the deepest recesses of
3044your Mind’s Mentaland Image Bank and become an undetectable stutterer, and that youwill then be ready to speak anywhere. At that time, you
3045will have “graduated”fromthe “course” given herein and will be ready for post-graduate work, which is public speaking. Even the best speakers
3046need practiceand constructivesuggestions fromother,competentspeakers.
3047You should then join a public speaking group, such as a Toastmasters’ Club and/or take a Dale Carnegie Communications Skills Course or
3048something like it. Attending weekly sessions of same will reinforce all of your increasingly good habits, just as does an alcoholic’s attendance of
3049regular sessions ofAlcoholics Anonymous. Perhaps you should forma “Speakers’Anonymous Club” or a “Recovering Stutterers Anonymous”?
3050Or, perhaps you should register at Speech Anxiety Anonymous, which was just formed by me and some of my self-cured PWS Mates. See
3051Section 17. That organization has one goal:Give PWS access to self-cured PWS.
3052In the years when I was stillactively recovering fromstuttering, I ran headlong into The Stuttering Monster by doing as much public speaking
3053as I could, including to organized speaking-groups, where I enjoyed considerable success. I developed Ten Techniques for Better Public
3054Speaking, which I have given to various people whomI have coached in public speaking; I gratuitously share my hard-earned lessons with you
3055here,as further bait for what liesahead for you,as you progressivelymakestuttering a part of your distant past.
3056TenTechniques forBetterPublic Speaking
3057Itmay seemhard to believe, butmy bet is that, within afewmonthsafter you begin applying the methods outlined in this book, youwill beready to
3058join a public speaking group of some sort, and you should definitely do it . It will keep you focused on your self-cures, practicing and using
3059them, and learning to view speaking as a joy, rather than a curse. Public speaking before groups will be the capstone of your self-cure, an
3060accomplishment ofwhich you can bejustifiably proud. Below, I give you somesuggestions thatshould improve your speeches.
3061By my calculations, there are three types of speeches: (1) extemporaneous (without preparation), (2) semi-formal (made froman outline or
3062notes),and (3) formal(wherethespeech is fully prepared and iseither read, partially read or givenmemorized, word-for-word).
3063Whenwe address a Public Speaking Club, such as a Toastmasters’Meeting, we are expected to give a formalspeech – and be critiqued by
3064those present. The more formalspeeches that we give, the better will be our semi-formaland extemporaneous talks as well. Accordingly, giving
3065speeches before such groups is a very worthy activity for most of us, assuming that we wish to improve our speaking ability at all levels. My
3066suggestions here will focus exclusively on formal speeches. Indeed, it should be noted that, after giving an extemporaneous talk at a dinner,
3067AbrahamLincoln said, “Iapologizefor not having had timeto prepareshorter remarks.”In other words, preparation should lead to tighter, shorter
3068and better talks.
3069Before planning any such talk, you need to knowthreethings:What is theassigned topic; who is theaudience;and howlong are you expected
3070to speak? With theforegoing inmind, very briefly theten guidelines that I suggestare:
3071(1) KnowYour Subjectand Lose Yourselfin It . Pick asubject that you know(or havetimeto master). Youwill be morecomfortable with it,
3072which invariably gives you conviction and youraudiencea better talk. Concentrate on your message; lose yourselfin it. (I wrote,and have
3073repeatedly given,atalk about, you guessed it, stuttering.)
3074(2) FeelStronglyAbout Your Subject . If you feelstrongly about thesubject, youwillspeak withmoreemotion,and that’s infectiousand lends fire
3075and excitement to your remarks. (Recovering Stuttererscan get really passionateaboutstuttering.)
3076(3) Outline Your Major Points . Do an outline of your talk, to avoid missing or misplacingmajor points.
3077(4) ResearchYour Points . Evenwhen you knowasubject, research to makesurethat you aren’t giving anymisleading or false data.
3078(5) Write Your Speech (but do not read it verbatim) . Lincolnwroteeveryword ofThe Gettysburg Address, shortas it is. You should do no
3079less. Massageit;edit it;shorten it;makesurethat your pointsarein the most logical order,and search for the mostexpressive words. Usea
3080Thesaurus to besure. Make your speech as shortas you can for the occasion. Listenersappreciate brevity aboveallelse,and short talks put less
3081pressure on you. Just remember:Your goal is not “perfection”, not even subconsciously;your goal is to speak from the heart and share
3082your honest feelings and information .
3083(6) Reorganizeand Shorten . Eliminateall unessential pointsand words (other than thosethatadd interest,color or humor). Brevitywins. If you’re
3084allowed 20 minutes to talk, givea 15 minutetalk. If you’reallowed 10 minutes, useeightminutes. Leavethemwantingmore. Mostspeeches to
3085public-speaking-related clubsare 5-10 minutes.
3086(7) Timeand Condense. Read your talk aloud, perhaps in front ofa mirror; timeitand keep condensing it.
3087(8) Rehearse UntilMastered . Practiceitaloud repeatedly untilit iseffectivelymemorized,enabling you to giveit with only an occasional glanceat
3088thetext. Practice doing it with emotion and emphasis. Actors must do this with their parts. Pretend that you areacting, not in thesense of
3089pretending or faking, but, rather, that youwant to informand entertain youraudience.
3090(9) Work onYour Frame ofMind; Avoid Distractions; Inject Humor . Practicerelaxing when you practice your talk. Raise your voice on some
3091words,almost whisper others. Use pauses, long pauses, nowand then, whichwill bring youraudience back to you. Avoid hand motions of all
3092kindsas they distract thelistener. Avoid eyecontact as youmay become distracted and lose your train ofthought; you can look atiny bit to the
3093right or left orabove or belowyour listeners’eyes; they’ll never knowthat you aren’t looking themin theeyes. Turn your head leftand right,
3094engaging as many listenersas you can. Listeners lovethat. Also, if you can inject humor, humorous quotes or profound ones (especially at the
3095beginning and end), youraudience willenjoy your talk more.
3096(10) EnjoyYourself. You are well prepared. You, morethan anyone, deserveto enjoy your talk, your moment in thesun. It is fun, if youwill
3097allowit to be. Remember the words ofthe great Roman orator, Publius Syrus,“Speech is the mirror ofthesoul:asa man speaks, so is he.” So,
3098speak;speak often; be prepared; relax; forget yourself;enjoy yourself,and youwillspeak well.
3099In time, you can have fun speaking. I LOVE to give speeches, and the larger the audience, the better I like it! You can feel this way, too.
3100Publicspeaking can and should bethecapstone of your self-cure.
3101P
3102a
3103r
3104t
3105I
3106I
3107I
3108Wha
3109t
31101
31110
31120
3113+
3114PWS
3115Ta
3116ug
3117ht
3118M
3119e
3120Section 10
3121“Speech Is ARiver.”
3122By
3123RuthMeade
3124The author, Ruth Meade (often referred to as “RM” herein), writes, “Speech is a river.” I wholeheartedly agree and applaud that graphic and
3125beautifulmetaphor. This Section ofmy book is devoted to her superb book. Ourcore philosophiesarethesame,and our methodsarecompatible,
3126inmy view, although somewhat differentand mine have numericallymanymore elements. IfMs. Meade’s methods are now working for you right
3127now,and you are progressingweekly toward aself-curethat you believe will beachieved near-term, you should skip my book and mymethods. If
3128your speech isn’t where you likeit, or, if youwish to compare herapproach to mine, youwill keep reading.
3129Several of my readers have justifiably spoken highly of Ruth Meade’s book, “Speech Is a River” and urged me to amend my book to
3130explain how her methods relateto mine. So, I just read Ms. Meade’s book, and Ienjoyed it thoroughly. Some of our methods (e.g., reading
3131aloud) are identical; some are different (her “writing ” and her “observations ” vs. reading aloud, auto suggestion/self-hypnosis and use of
3132Crutches,as needed), butmany ofthe differencesare moresemanticalthan philosophical.
3133To my eyesand logic, her methods seem quitecompatible with mine, becauseI believethat Icould haveincorporated her primary different
3134method (observing and writing) into mymethods without missing a beat. Moreover, depending on one’s approach, there can be overlap between
3135auto suggestion and “observing”. She doesn’t define“observing”in detail(that Icould find);so, sheleaves the details of“observing”to the PWS.
3136While I like her methods, I don’t feel the need to do both (add observing and writing to mymethods), nor would I wish to substitute themfor
3137mymethods, which have worked so wellfor me. Her“writing”function (to me) isamply covered inmy Steps 5 and 6,Auto Suggestionsand SelfHypnosis
3138(whereI visualizeand assertall that I wishmymind to think on point). It becomesa matter of personal preference. Do I prefer to RM’s
3139“observe and write” or my “think; visualize; verbalize; do”, as I do in my daily auto suggestion treatments (AST’s) and/or self-hypnosis sessions
3140(SHS’s)? No. I prefer instructingmymind to observing and writing about it (or my speech).
3141Some of my PWS-Mates note that the biggest “difference” between RM’s and my methods is my use of Crutches (Step 2), and, again,
3142without myCrutches, I would have been (and be) likeso many PWS’:(1) I would never havecured and (2) I would still berelapsing. Regardless,
3143RM’s book is so good that I wanted to insert this tributeto her and her book, which both richly deserve, and make a few comments.
3144First, and most important, Ms. Meade shares my unequivocalconviction thatspeech anxiety, stammering-stuttering and blocking CAN
3145be cured . Here, both of us depart from the view of many in Stuttering Establishment (the litany of books by therapists, most of whom never
3146stuttered, and lifelong stutterers, who have yet to find acure).As proof ofcurability, RM hascured herself, as I havecured myself, and I nowhelp
3147others self-cure(and I have witnessed fivesuch cures in as manymonths).
3148Second, RM and I do not believe in using mechanical devices, breathing techniques, elongated words, throat vibrations or
3149myriad other artificial methods , because they are unnatural, and because, as she says, “Speech is a river”; that is, it should flow naturally,
3150spontaneously, without planning anyword or sentence in advance. Icouldn’t possibly agree more. Fluency comes only spontaneously. Iexpress it
3151a bit differently: Speech is not only a river; it is as naturalas breathing, coughing, blinking, swallowing, etc., and speech should require no more
3152thought than those other bodily functions, and, whenwestutter, it is because we-PWS areinterferingwith the NaturalSpeech Process that God or
3153Mother Natureendowed in us. Weare, in effect,choosing to block the“river”.
3154“Spontaneity”is thelinchpinword inMs. Meade’s self-cure, and I vociferously second her focus on that word, but I would add another key
3155elementary word: “INSTANTANEOUSLY” . Spontaneity suggests “without planning”. “Instantaneous” suggests “ without allowing
3156time to plan”. I believe that it is easier to get a PWS to speak instantaneously/immediately (which forces spontaneity) than it is to convince a
3157PWS to “stop planningwords”and, thus, speak spontaneously.
3158It is one thing to instruct your mind “not to plan”; it is yetanother thing to “notALLOW your mind time to plan”. This iscriticaland decisional
3159distinction. Regardless, for the most part, RM and I are reading fromthe same sheet music. So, as far as I amconcerned, all you Fans of Ms.
3160Meadeshould keep right on applauding.
3161Neither she nor I believe that any of our respective methods interfere with spontaneous speech; that is, our respective methods do not
3162require “planned speech”, and they are designed to promotespontaneity above allelse.
3163My use ofCrutches (my Step Two),as I deploy them, do NOT plan speech;myCrutches becomeasautomaticand spontaneous through use,
3164as is“normalspeech”. Thus, myCrutches don’t “PLAN speech”; theyspontaneously DODGE problems .
3165Some PWS, who cometo me, leave mestraightaway, becausetheymistakenly viewmyCrutchesascontrolling speech, but they never remain
3166with me long enough (past reading my book and a few emails and/or one Skype session) to understand thatI use Crutches to avoid
3167controlled/planned speech . Moreover, they never give me a chance to show themwhy I could not (1) have cured without my Crutches or (2)
3168have avoided relapsesall these decades without them, nor do they give me the chance to guide themthrough the processand prove that Crutches
3169ENABLE unplanned speech at the verymoment when the mind’s stuttering-fears seek to haltspeech.
3170Third, RMand I also agree that stuttering’s cause is clearly mental , as 99.9% ofallstutterers can speak some words fluently in some
3171situations; therefore, there can be no physical reason that is causing the problem; the cause is mental. Since the cause is mental, we agree that so
3172must thecure be mental. (I largely ignorethecause; I did comment on it briefly in Section 2, but, whatever thecause may be, my self-cure methods
3173work.)
3174Fourth, Ms. Meade and I further agree that “simply trying to stop stuttering will cure no one” , quoting her. RM adds that children
3175cannot be cured until they experience some degree of fluency. In my experience, that is also true ofadults, but, happily, there are ways (talking
3176wherefluentand usingCrutches) to help PWS experienceenough fluency to get thesnowballrolling away fromstuttering.
3177Fifth, and central to her view and mine , speech is and must be intuitive ; the mind selects the words WITHOUT help, similar to
3178breathing, coughing, laughing, etc. “Stuttering is caused by trying to controlspeech,” RM writes. Absolutely correct! Both of us write expansively
3179that fear ofstuttering is the vortex ofthe engine ofstuttering, and, left unharnessed, fear often accelerates stuttering into higher and higher levels of
3180disability. I removed stuttering-fears by creating fluency memories by reading aloud (without stuttering) and by reinforcing those positive fluencymemories
3181with daily treatments of AS and SH (Steps 5 and 6) and by using Crutches (Step 2) to avoid creating debilitating new stutteringmemories.
3182This one-two-three punch absolutelyworked for meand is working for my PWS-Mates.
3183Sixth, RMhas a battery of “UnworkableAnswers”, with most of which I heartily concur . She opposes planning words, watching for
3184mistakes, trying harder, using will power, teaching speech, special breathing, rhythmic speaking, elongating words and some others. (Slow talking
3185can be useful, as a Crutch, in spots. See Section 5.10, as can its converse, fast talking, Section 5.11.) Opposites, in nature, do attract:Male and
3186female; Yin and Yang,etc.
3187Seventh, she writes that she does not favor “positive thinking” . My guess is that she does favor it but, rather, means that positive
3188thinking, BYITSELF, won’t cure stuttering, and that is likely true, inmost cases. My Steps 5 and 6, Auto Suggestion and Self-Hypnosis, go far
3189beyond “positive thinking”. They are self-applied medical treatments. During allmyAS and SH self-treatments, I gave (and give) myself positive
3190suggestionsabout my speech and everything elseinmy life. Not only didAS and SHcompriseessentialelements ofmy self-cure(and ofthecures
3191of those PWS with whom I have been working), it is those positive mind-training and mind-control techniques that have enabled me, poststuttering
3192detectably, to improve my character, karmaand life.Although I will never bethe person I truly aspireto be, I knowthat Iaman infinitely
3193better version of myself than I could ever have been without the positive mind training; that is, the dictating of my thoughts which psychiatristCaprio
3194so long ago urged me to do through self-hypnosis. AS and SH have imbedded in my Conscious and Sub-Conscious Minds the road to
3195speech-fluency and a better karma, not to mention literally savingmy life, by restoringmy optimismand willto continue.
3196Eighth, RM cites Barbara Dahm, a speech therapist fromIsrael, and others (the much-esteemed John Harrison and Dr. Robert Bodenhamer,
3197whom my PCS-Mates have mentioned and extolled and whose books I added to my Bibliography) in support of her basic premises, and, of
3198course, Iconcur. Based onRM’scomments, all of samestriveto encourage PWS to “speak in an ef ortless manner” . This is the sine qua
3199non or condition precedent of my methods. Indeed, as I have said and written ad nauseam, the primary difference between PWS and fluent
3200speakers is that PWS pauseand plan their words, whilefluent speakers simply releasetheir thoughts inwordsautomatically chosen by their minds
3201on the fly. Fear causes hesitation; hesitation leads to stutters. The elephant in the room, the insoluble condition precedent remains: How to help a
3202PWS forget their fears and stop planning every word? While RM and I havesome overlapping and compatible methods, there are differences.
3203To help PWS begin to seethat theyCAN “speak in an effortless manner”, I do a number ofthings,as described in throughout this book.
3204Ninth, as noted above, I urge PWS to learn to use a series of “Crutches” (my Step Two), temporarily and in emergencies, which literally
3205prevent “the next imminent stutter”. Again I stress: These Crutches are the opposite of “planning speech” ; they allow the PWS to dodge an
3206already planned-word imminent stutter. As my Crutches are memorized and practiced, they can be and are used as spontaneously as the mind
3207grabs and uses words WITHOUT planning. Memorized and practiced Crutches becomeAUTOMATIC, hence SPONTANEOUS. I can assure
3208any reader that these Crutches are needed in first Phase of the self-cure and in the post-cure Phase, because, in Phase I, the biggest problem is
3209how to say the first word or syllable without stuttering , after which one or more fluent sentences follow for most (thus beginning to build a
3210Fluency Memory Bank), and, then, after the self-cure is complete, I continue to use the Crutches to this very day, and, without them, as I have
3211said, I would surely have had many relapses, and I would surely nowstill bea detectablestutterer. Myself-cured PCS-Mates areliving proof of
3212theveracity and ef icacy of the Crutches that we use.“Yeshall knowthemby their fruits,”to recallJesus’ words.
3213Tenth, RM an I observethat most PWS do NOT stutter when doingmost orall ofthefollowing:reading aloud alone, yelling in an emergency,
3214yelling when angry, reading or talking in unison, whispering, talking to animals or children, talking when he/she can hear him/herself. I would add
3215“talking in an accent” or “playing a part as in a play”. Candidly, my fluent speech is driven in part by my efforts to be passionate about my
3216message. I find that, when my mind focuses on both the message and the wayI sayit, my mind will NEVER have a stutter-fear .
3217Eleventh, RM finds that , to cure, you “must reach the bottom of the [stuttering] barrel.” Sadly, this seems true in most cases.
3218(However, many PWS evaluate their own stuttering as less severe than others see it. Hence, quite a few never seemto reach “the bottomof the
3219barrel”, and they find acceptance as easier than continuing the fight to cure.) Quite a few of those who contact me, drop away as soon as I ask
3220themto devote two hours a day to their problem, or as soon as they can find anymethod ofmine withwhich they do notagree; they then dismiss
3221all ofmymethods and return to the safety of their lifelong stuttering, which, I fear, provides an isolation and/or anonymity that they have grown to
3222covet. Stuttering can become a shield, a safe haven, against others and life in general . They say that they don’t like it, but their actions
3223suggest otherwise. Some PWS send me angry emails, attacking me for giving “false hope” to suffering stutterers. Sadly, when I read the online
3224stuttering-community websites, blogs and posts, the depression and desperation is palpable. I reach out to as many as I can, but most ignore my
3225entreaties to help, no charge. Suspicion, fearand resignation predominate.
3226Twelfth, RM holds that the conscious mind (CM) “is incapable of being in charge of my speech,” and I wholeheartedly agree . When
3227the CM tries to plan speech, stuttering invariably follows. The CM, however (whichworks interchangeablywith the sub-conscious mind (SCM),
3228both dictating to and taking instructions fromthe SCM)can beremapped , as can the SCM – as I learned frommy psychiatrist eons ago and as
3229confirmed in a plethora of neuroplasticity-related books. See Bibliography for samples. The easiest, fastest and most effective ways of remapping
3230the mind are auto suggestion (AS) and/or self-hypnosis (SH), as discussed in Steps 5 and 6, respectively. Massive writing ofspeech-journals (as
3231RM urges) may accomplish this, as writing is form of visualization and memorization (which is central to AS and SH) and it can provide the
3232repetition so beneficial in AS and SH. Writing, however, I fear, will take more time (and ef ort) than AS or SH, and would not be as
3233ef ective , for me. So, I shall stick with AS and/or SH (using the latter for only the most serious crises). To congeal and oversimply, I shall
3234continue to combine (1) reading aloud, (2)AS/SH (whichmy wife refers to as “talking to myself”, to which I would add “in a heightened relaxed
3235state”) plus (3) the Crutches, as my one-two-three punch. Since my methods “ain’t broke”, I won’t try to “fix” them. Ms. Meade will,
3236understandably, not wish to change hers.
3237Thirteenth, RM avers, “Blocks are imaginary.” Having experienced and watched others block, here, I cannot agree. At the time
3238experienced, they can feel physically threatening. She urges, “Talk to your blocks,”saying things like“You areariver.”“Talking to” your blocks or
3239other speech issues IS a central part of Auto Suggestion Treatments (AST’s) or Self-Hypnosis Sessions (SHS), although she doesn’t outline
3240“how”to “talk to blocks”; so, I don’t know her exact method on point. My Steps 5 and 6 provide definitive details of my methods “to talk to
3241myself”(as my wife so colloquially puts it). Earlier in her book, I understood RM to be dismissive ofAS and SH, but perhaps I misunderstood.
3242Regardless of what she wrote earlier, “talking to”speech issues IS a formofAS/SH. I simply follow medically espoused ways of doingAS and
3243SH. She continues, “After 3 months of writing freely, my blocks were gone.” Unless I missed it, I did not read what she wrote that helped so
3244much . I find that most PWS appreciatevery specific guidance as to the phraseology of the suggestions that they willmake to their minds. She
3245then concludes that, oncesherealized this, “Magic happens. The boogie man disappears.”Inmy own case, it took meabout 15 years to self-cure,
3246but my PWS-Mates, even those with severe stuttering, seemto be self-curing from75-90% in 60-90 days after the first Skype. I do believe that
3247they are experiencing a formof“magic”; that is, their stuttering tends to drop offsomewhat abruptly after a few weeks of Skyping. (Some report
3248significant declines in stuttering after simply readingmy book.) It is my hope that this 2
3249nd Editionwill give many readers much ofwhat I have been
3250doing on Skype, and, ifso, lead to self-cures without Skyping – although I intend to keep doing itand to ask my self-cured PWS-Mates to help
3251me help other PWS. So, reader, youmay beableto receivecoaching fromone ofmeand/or one ofmy PWS-Mates. (See Section 17.) I so much
3252hope that you can, and will, do so. In sum, while RM’s “writing” may be The Answer for you, I prefer AST’s, SHS’, reading aloud and using
3253Crutches in emergencies. Although I rarely need to use a Crutch these days, when needed, they do prevent ALL detectable blocks and stutters
3254and relapses (for me),and, thus, keep allFear ofstuttering buried in thesarcophagus inwhich I long ago sealed it.
3255Fourteenth, RM maintains that stuttering is not a habit . I’m not certain that I understand her meaning. We may be devolving into
3256semantics. To me, the stutterer’s mind creates many stuttering habits : a habit of planning words in advance; a habit of fearing the next
3257stutter;a habit ofthinking about stuttering virtually everyminute ofevery day until he/sheis ready to vomit;a habit ofcreating astuttering-snowball
3258ever growing in size. “Arose by any other name would smellas sweet,”as Shakespeare said; so, whether we call these “habits” or “patterns” or
3259“customs” or“propensities” or predilections or dispositions or just plain “repeated fears” or something else, doesn’talter their nagging, ongoing,
3260relentless fixation in our minds, leading us to stutter and stutter and stutter . I prefer to attack this cancerous chronic-negative-thought-chain
3261with aggressive AST’s, SHS’, reading aloud and with a “gun”full of 12 “bullets”(Crutches) to shoot to killany errant stutter-block that raises its
3262ugly, Lucifer-mug onmy speech-horizon, which I have been doing for decades. As our stuttering-snowball grows in mass, it becomes who we
3263are, our identity, and ourcurse,at least that what it was to meand the PWS who cometo mefor help.
3264My goal is to attack it viciously from multiple angles simultaneously and to pound on it until I destroy it , as I have, and as are the
3265PWS who Skype with me and do their “Homework” long enough to turn the tide. “Quitters don’t win, and winners don’t quit,” said my high
3266schoolcoach, Whitey Schubert,and I, for one, NEVERquit. Ms. Meade, I surmise, is ofthesame disposition.
3267Ms. Meade makes many other points, but Ican only cover theabovefew. Youmust read her book to learn therest,and it’s worth reading!
3268In conclusion, RMand I agreethat stuttering CAN BE CURED and, so, does not haveto be our destiny,and that is the goalthat Ms.
3269Meade and I share, in totalcomity. I thank RuthMeade profusely for writing such an incredibly prescientand helpfully instructive book! I do here
3270and now and shallcontinue to recommend it to all, as I agree with the predominance of her views and, most of all, with her poetically perfect
3271title and theme, “Speech is a river.” Indeed it is.
3272Brava, bravisimi, Ms. Meade! “Speech is a river” and that is a Shakespearian metaphor worthy of hanging from the highest star !
3273Devotee ofmetaphorsand similes that Iam, I wish that I had thought ofit! Thank you, Ms. Meade.
3274Section 11
3275What 100+ PWS Taught Me
3276“By nature men areexactly alike.
3277By practice, they growfarapart.”
3278Confucius, Analects
3279Most important, knowthis:Those who Skype withmeregularly for two or more monthsARE self-curing using the methods in this book. I believe
3280that non-Skypersarecuring too, but I have no way ofmeasuring them.
328111.1 Who Are My PWS-Mates?
3282Who are the almost 2000 stuttering-Friends who have found me on Facebook and the 100+ PWS who communicate with me (by email, text
3283messages, Facebook, Messenger, Skype-chats, Skype videos, Facetime, landline phone and SnailMail) and the 10-20 with whomI now Skype
3284weekly?
3285They come fromfive continents across the world: Europe, the Far East, Middle East, SouthAfrica, Russia, Turkey, Greece, Australia, New
3286Zealand, Indonesia, UK, Canada and throughout the U.S. Thefirst languages for over half of my PWS are Hindi, Arabic, Punjabi, Urdo,
3287Chinese, Spanish, or one of the many lesser languages of those, and their English ranges fromalmost none to survival-level to excellent. Many of
3288them have had extensive therapy, but it has not generally helped enough; others live where no therapy is offered, and others cannot af ord
3289therapy(oreven a book) . Thefact is thatmany aresuffering and seemdesperateand that is whatmotivates me.
3290As I typethese words, I facethechallenge ofjuggling the 24-hour-day to accommodatetimezones thatspan the globe. So, I Skype with them
3291seven days a week at all hours of the day and sometimes night. These Skyping-stutterers are of all ages, ethnicities, religions, sexes,
3292educations, cultures, mindsets, intellects, and, of course, vastly varying degrees of speech dif iculty – from severe stuttering to severe
3293speech anxiety. I find most ofthemto be gentle, respectful, open to suggestion and willing to try hard,and mostappreciative – and mostare quite
3294likeable. Ienjoy trying to help them.
3295Although most PWS who contact me are genuinely open to a cure and are most appreciative of help, unfortunately, many PWS do not
3296appear to becandidates for a cure. When I read on blogs the suffering of various PWS, I volunteer my book and help, but many are not open
3297to the possibility ofany formofcure. Examples:(1) Primarily inAmerica, many PWS will not likely ever seek aself-cure orany cure with anyone. Why? Their minds are closed to cures , due to the deeply entrenched belief/conviction that there never has been and never will be a cure for
3298stuttering. (2) Those PWS who ask for (free) help but who are not willing to exert any seriousef ort or time to achieve their own self-cure .
3299(3) Those who seemto enjoy being in the PWS community.
330011.2 What 100+ PWS Taught Me
3301I have learned more than I can possiblywrite here. Youwillfind it in new Sections 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15 of this 2
3302nd Edition, and in changes
3303madethroughoutall Sections ofthe 1
3304st Edition. Self-curing oneselfis one thing;explaining it to someone else, with sufficientclarity to help them, is
3305quiteanother. This 2
3306nd Edition should presenta much clearer picture ofmy self-cureand howit is helping others.
330711.3 How PWS Differ?
3308We-PWS comein too many shades, backgrounds,and levels ofstuttering to list, but it is usefulto noteafewexamples ofthe varied manifestations
3309ofstuttering. Consider PWS’ who do thefollowing:
3310• Stutter or block on everyword orevery fewwords most ofthetimeto everyone.
3311• Fallinto theabove, severe pattern only sporadically.
3312• Stutter onlywhen speaking to certain people, usually strangersand/orat work and/or to otherauthority figures.
3313• Only stutters in “public”situations (ordering a mealin arestaurant, or speakingwherever morethan one or two peoplecan hear him.
3314• Do notstutter inmostsituations but their sporadicstuttering isaserious problem.
3315• Stutters so infrequently that, he/she guesses,“only 5%” of hiscontacts knowthat hestutters,and does not want his speech issueto be
3316known, but itstill plagues him/her.
3317We have other significant differences.
3318• Many PWS havesimply accepted their“fate”and live with it well. Iapplaud theirability to do that, but, why notself-cure? Onesaid to me,“I
3319don’t need to be‘fixed’.”
3320• Some PWS seemto usetheir stuttering asashield ofsorts,and,even though they read my book and countless others,and haveendless
3321therapies, they seemto havelittle or no desire(subconsciously and someconsciously) to cure.
3322• Virtually allmild to severe PWS (whomI have met) freely admit that theythink about stuttering ef ectively most minutes of most
3323hours of every day(as once did I). Stuttering, thus,consumes their minds; it becomes their identity; it is who they feelthat they are. While
3324some mild stutterers dealwith it verywell, othersadmit that they loatheit.
3325• Worse, itaffects theirability to getand hold ajob, which is THEmostcommon complaint that I have heard. Severestutterers viewitas
3326their personal prison.
3327Theabovearesimply examples oftheissues that I haveencountered. Aboveallelse,each PWS is uniqueinmanyways.
332811.4 PWS Self-Curing
3329Since releasing my book onAmazon and communicating with 100+ PWS and Skyping, these days, with 10-20 per week, I can say this: From
3330what PWS tell me, most of those who read the book and practice and apply the methods experience a 25-40% (lowest to highest) rate of
3331improvement, although I have no way ofconfirming these guesstimates by PWS or of knowing the success rate ofthose who do notcommunicate
3332withme.
3333However, Ican saywith certainty that those who Skype withmeeight to twelvetimesareexperiencing substantial improvements, which I (and
3334most ofthem) placein the 75-90%range, but it’s not percentages thatmatter. Mytest of self-cureis this:
3335Can theytalk to strangers without being detected as a stutterer?
3336They progress at variable rates of speed (due to the differences in stuttering-severity, work ethic, free time, language issues, family-situation
3337and intellect). As of this writing, I have six who have Skyped with me ten or more times; six of themare self-cured by my definition. Aseventh,
3338who has non-speech-related severe mental problems, has discontinued Skyping with me. I have several more who should self-cure in another
3339month or two.
3340Byway of gratitude, all ofmy self-cured PWS’ to date have agreed to help me “coach” other PWS, when I have too many handle on Skype
3341(one’s personalsituationwon’tallowit). Two ofthemvolunteered to translate my book (at no charge) into their first languages:Chineseand Hindi,
3342and we’re hoping to get that done by late 2017. See Section 17.
334311.5 Types of Stuttering
3344People who stutter significantly by THEIR definition stutter in different ways and, ofcourse, with a very wide range of severity. For discussionpurposes,
3345I put themin threecategories :Blocking, stuttering and hesitating, and many swing back-and-forth among all three. I make no attempt
3346to definethemin “medical”terms, but, rather, only as the wordsare used by the PWS withwhomI deal, which compriseafairly largeand diverse
3347sample. Since differentmeaningsareattached to these words, I’ll definethemas do aconsensus ofmy PWS-Mates.
3348Blocking. I define ‘block” as a halting ofspeech, during which the blocker may go silent and/or evoke physical distortions (e.g., squint, grimace,
3349nod or bob his/her head, gasp, pant, sputter, rock back and forth orevoke other physicalactions). Theresult isa gut-wrenching experiencefor the
3350PWS. These physical blockers (who fight the word until itcomes out) makea devastating block-memory in their Mind’s MemoryBank with each
3351and every block. I urge themNOT to force the word out; let the word go; either use a Crutch or go silent for a minute. See Step Two for 12
3352Crutches. Momentary silenceis better than a public wrestlingmatchwith anyword. Then,changethethoughtand releaseit immediately in astream
3353ofalmost connected words, which allows no time for the mind to plan a block or stutter. This is easier to demonstrate on Skype than to write.
3354Also, see Section 13.6.
3355Stuttering and Stammering. These terms are most commonly used as synonyms. I refer to both as “stuttering”. The term “stuttering” is also
3356commonly used by non-PWS to cover allforms ofspeech-hesitation. I use the term“stuttering”to refer to repeated repetitions ofa letter(s):e.g.,
3357pronouncing “sample”as “s-s-s-s-s-sah-ah-ample”, resulting in sometimes unintelligible words. Some stutterers also insert filler words or sounds
3358(such as, “like”, “ummm”, “ahhhh”, or make clucking or other noises, to buy time)and do so repeatedly while they prepare to say the next word;
3359their speech becomesastring ofirrelevant filler-wordsand noises punctuated by occasionalwords – a very unpleasantexperiencefor thestutterer
3360and almost as hard on the perplexed listener. To avoid confusing the reader and complicating this book, I use the term stuttering (and not
3361stammering).
3362Hesitation. In addition to blocking and stuttering, we have whatappears to meto bethe most common form of “stuttering”: hesitation , long
3363pauses before saying the Next Feared Word (NFW). Many stutterers do more hesitating than blocking or stuttering; some insert long “ahhh’s” or
3364other sounds (e.g., ticking,err) or words (“and”,“you know”,“yes”,“oh”,“like”“I’msorry”) or they s-t-r-eh-t-c-h out their words,allmethods of
3365gaining time to attempt to say the next feared word). The elongating ofwords is method taught by some therapists. Indeed, I have used it, too, as
3366one ofmy Crutches, and it works effectively but only in small doses; but I do not recommend the use ofany Crutch back-to-back; that is, I mix
3367themand in no particular pattern, which is the way fluent speakers do it. Again, my Crutches (including elongating words) are not cures; they are
3368methods ofavoiding stuttering on the NFW. Usingmultiple Crutches, alternately, takes practice, but it’s not difficult. My PWS-Mates do it in drills
3369withmeevery day.
3370I used to keep alist ofthe Crutches onmy lap whileI read aloud, or interviewed myselfin a mirror, and intentionally used various Crutches. It
3371didn’t take long to master themto the point thatmy mind could automatically and spontaneously grab a Crutch when needed to avoid a
3372stutter or block on the NFW. Whether my problemwas a block, a stutter or a hesitation, my goalwas to avoid it and keep on talking. In the
3373early going, I had to use Crutches often. Now, Ican go days, weeks orevenmonths without using one.
337411.6 Stutter-Free Zones (SFZ’s)
3375As discussed elsewherein this book, therearecertain situations inwhichmany (but not necessarilymost) PWS do not stutter. These stutter-free
3376zones (SFZ’s) include, in order of guesstimated probability,are when the PWS is doing one or more ofthefollowing:
3377• Whispering;
3378• Singing;
3379• Speaking in unisonwith others;
3380• Reading aloud when alone;
3381• Reading aloud to others;
3382• Talking to animals;
3383• Talking to children;
3384• Talking to inferiors (employees).
3385This is very valuableinformation, ifitapplies to you.
3386As is made clear throughout this book, the primary driver of stuttering-fears are the Stutter-Memories that dominate our Mind’s Memory
3387Bank. There is no hope of curing, until Fluency-Memories become greater than our Stutter-Memories , and the greater favorable ratio, the
3388fasterand morecertain thecure. Howto achievethis? SFZ’s offer one method.
3389One excellent way to expedite a self-cure is to spend more time and do our most expansive talking in SFZ’s , thus building your
3390Fluency Memories (FMs) and simultaneously reducing your Stuttering Memories (SMs). The higher the ratio of FM’s to SM’s, the less the
3391stuttering,as thesnowballis gainingmomentumin theright/fluency direction.)
3392So, wherever you can talk without stuttering, talk to the max,every day. Theconverseisequally true:While you areself-curing, minimize your
3393talking (stuttering) under pressure. This may mean that you spend a whole lot of time time reading aloud, talking to your kids, pets, etc. for a
3394while,as you simultaneously learn to use the Crutches, thus enabling you to reduce the number of new stuttering memories that you are creating
3395every day, thusexpediting the daywhen your FM’s have overwhelmed and driven your SMs into the dust bins of your mentalarchives.
339611.7 Saying Cursed Names
3397Names are a curse to most PWS. I have never met a stutterer who didn’t have dif iculty saying his/her own name . (I explained the worst
3398stutter-disaster ofmy lifein Section 1, which, ofcourse, beganwith trying to saymy own name.) Some PWS viewthis“name problem”as“rotten
3399luck”(e.g., they have a problemwith “B’s”, and their name is Bob Brown). Why is this? Simple. You can’t use a synonymor otherwise avoid
3400saying it; you’re stuck, and you’re forced to say itall the time, creating high pressure. (There are many, MANYEASYways to beat this – if only
3401someone had told me about them, thus savingme years ofsearching for answers in the dark. I have loved to say my name for 40 years now .
3402See my 12 Crutches, Step Two. You can do it, too. Most ofthemwillwork with your nameand the names of others.)
3403Introducing other people causes a similar problem, as one MUST say the exact name. In my early stuttering days, I avoided names like
3404poison; I sometimes didn’t say them (when under pressure) I talked around and about the person without stuttering, but I omitted the name,
3405pretending that I simply forgot. Whatever transpired, ifI feared the name, often, I simply didn’t say it. (You’d be surprised how long you can talk
3406about yourself or someoneelse withoutever saying your or their name.) This is NOT a good solution. SinceI discovered my Crutches, one-byone
3407via the School of Hard Knocks (and I list them in Step Two), I have had ZERO problems saying names, ever . If you learn those
3408Crutchesand practice using them, youwon’t haveanymore problems with nameseither. I promise! My PWS-Matesand I work hard on this.All
3409ofthemnowenjoy saying names,and all of uscan laugh at that once big problem. Namesarethe bane ofmost PWS’existence, but it isa problem
3410for which thereare many cures. See Step Two.
341111.8 What Helps Most?
3412When Iask my PWS-Mates,“Whatspecifically, inmy book, helped you the most,”they answer variously
3413(1) “Reading aloud”;
3414(2) “Doing auto suggestions”, and,yes,
3415(3) “the Crutches/Tools” (contained in Step Two), Some mention one, two orallthree.
3416All should be used. It’s the cumulative ef ect of this one-two-three punch that knocks Satan Stuttering into his richly deserved grave,
3417cemented into his stonetomb.
3418For those who willwork at it, the book, especially the 2
3419nd Edition, gives sufficient instructions to enable many PWS to achieve their self-cure,
3420but, of course, working with another self—cured PWS will help a great deal . I do this now via Skype, one-on-one, but, as noted
3421elsewhere, my self-cured PWS-Mates hopeto createan online hangout where People Who Self-Cured (PWSC) give People Who Stutter (PWS)
3422a place to find and receive coaching fromthose who actually beat stuttering. I expect that we’ll have 10 such coaches by year-end 2017 with a
3423steadily growing number. I dreamof 100 in a few years, but I dreambig. It keeps me motivated. Death to Satan Stuttering in all of his grisly,
3424pernicious forms! Want to join us? See Section 17.
3425Skyping or any form of live coaching from a PWSC (Person Who Self-Cured) will be a tremendous help, and should expedite
3426your self-cure.
3427Skyping helps the PWS and the PWSC. It’s good to be able to see each other, the mannerisms, facialexpressions when speaking, etc. The
3428PWS also hears the PWSC’s fluent speech and the way that the PWSC makes a game of speaking . This is infectious. My Skypees seemto
3429enjoy Skyping withme and I certainly enjoy helping themprogress and watching their progress, and, before it’s over, we become friends, a winwin-win.
3430Of the 100+ withwhomI have communicated via emailand/or Skype, Facebook posts, messenger, text messages and/or phone, I can only
3431Skype with 10-20 per week , but I havealso learned alot by exchanging emails. I haven’t been doing any ofthis that long (aboutsixmonths),and
3432there are only so many hours in the day, but it is working; that is, in most cases, there is marked progress every single week . If we don’t
3433achieve that, we know that either the PWSC and/or the PWS aren’t doing their respective “jobs” wellenough. We set the bar high for ourselves
3434and for the PWS.
3435When my PWS-Mates don’t do the assigned homework, I can’t understand it, because I hated Satan Stuttering so much that I would have
3436devoted everywaking, idle hour to my cure, AND I DID. I just had no one to help me. I did three, 20-minute Self-Hypnosis Sessions (SHS) per
3437day plus short sessions (5 minutes here and there) throughout the day. I did this for years. No one spoon fed me the Crutches; I had to discover
3438them, one-by-one, over time. I didn’t realize how helpful reading aloud was until later; I was too busy discoveringmy Crutches, one-by-one; so,
3439my self-cure (SC)-process took around 15 years. Before that, I just suffered and got worse. After my SC, I was free of it, literally, because I
3440could knock-offthe occasionalFear withmy guns/Crutches;and I stillcan and do.
3441Bottomline:Can a PWS self-cure from the book alone? Absolutely, IF the PWS is a good student, a good reader, a hard worker and
3442willexert whatever level ofeffort he/she needs. Can Skyping (orany livecoaching by a PWSC)expeditethe process dramatically? To besure.
3443My belief is that, with the book alone, the average PWS will need six months to a year to self-cure. Those receiving live coaching by
3444a PWSC, however, should cut that time by two-thirds or more . I am also very supportive of all kinds of therapists for many purposes,
3445including speech anxieties, but, in my experience, a coach who cured his/her own stuttering best understands the problems and the solutions. It’s
3446not degrees in theory as much as battlefield experiencethat gives understanding oftheidiosyncraticand complexmentalagonies ofa PWS.
344711.9 PWS Chasing Rainbows
3448Many PWS seem to view themselves as being better speakers than they are, about one level better. For example, severe PWS tend to see
3449themselves as Mild; Mild see themselves as Very Mild; and Very Mild don’t think they have a speech problem(but theyDID read my book and
3450others on point and they do Skype with me). Their augmented view of themselves is a good thing for their psyche, but a bad thing for their selfcure,
3451as they aren’t willing to work at it as hard. Conversely, a minority view themselves a level lower, which gives rise to exacerbated, selfeffacing
3452thoughts, and a viewthat they are beyond help. If open to acureand willing to work it, virtually noneis beyond help. Sadly, far too many
3453PWS seemto need to be“at the bottomofthe barrel,”as Ms. Meadesaid, beforetheywillwork atacure.
3454Yet, most of us will go online and socialize for hours about our problem, complaining, asking advice fromPWS who have no idea how to
3455curethemselves, much less theinquirer ; thus, the blind seek to be led by the blind, almost hanging on everyword, looking fora Magic Cure.
3456It’s human nature to avoid work and seek easy answers. We chase rainbows, but, as we run towards them, they vaporize like the morning mist,
3457scattering themselves likein twinkling flickers untilthey are gone.
3458We hearabouta devicethatcan beimplanted in thetonguethatcures speech, ora newway of breathing that will do it, or sometrick with the
3459larynx, ora pillthatcuresall. Nonsense.
3460Thesooner that wefacereality; thesooner weshallfind asolution. Our speech issues werecreated in our minds, by our minds, minds left
3461uncontrolled, unsupervised, undirected, and theresultant speech issues MUST becured bythesame mind that created them.
3462My methods are aimed directly at the source of the problem, the mind, and that’s why my methods work . I attack the mind from
3463multiple angles simultaneously: (1) replacing stuttering-memories with fluency-memories, (2) inserting around-the-clock auto suggestions that
3464literally program and dictate my thoughts (as psychiatrist-Caprio urged), and, then, (3) until the foregoing two steps kick-in, I must use my
3465Crutches to automatically and instantaneously shoot-down every single Machiavellian stutter-fear that rears its ugly head, and I shoot each
3466BEFORE itcan evidence itselfin a stutter. This, dear reader, explains how I avoid being a DETECTABLE stutterer. Now and then, mymind still
3467wants to stutter, but I just won’t let it do it. Thelast laugh is mine. Itcan be yours, too.
3468They say that 1% (70 million) are stutterers, but severeANXIETYcases, I’llwager, exceed 10%, perhaps a half billion. Many of these selfcure,
3469eventually; others simply go quiet inwhatever degreeis needed to hidethe problem, for life. It’s really a mess, aspeech-wasteland out there,
3470readers,and thetragedy is thatall ofthis is so unnecessary. Wecan and should beat it.
347111.10 Why Reading Aloud Works
3472Over and over, PWS have told me that reading aloud has helped themreduce stuttering, as it once did for me. Throughout my book, I
3473urgethereader to “read this book aloud”, IF they can do so without stuttering. While notallcan (norcould Iat one time), mostcan, because the
3474words are already chosen for them; they do not plan them, and, as many know, it is the planning of the words-to-say that is the principle
3475cause of stuttering . I respectfully suggest that anyone who can read aloud without stuttering can converse without stuttering – as soon as they
3476can train their mind to accept this irrefutablelogic – and masterenoughCrutches to beat the PWS biggest challenge: the Feared First Word .
3477The key, clearly, is to learn to converse, just as we read, without planning. Simply reading aloud trains our minds to hear and accept our
3478voices without imposing a stutter-fear .
3479Here are my reasons forreading aloud :
3480(1) Creates Fluency Memories,
3481(2) Washes away Stuttering Memories,
3482(3) Practices focusing on your messageand not on your words,
3483(4) Practices speaking spontaneously and instantaneously, and
3484(5) Allows the PWS to ENJOY speaking and hearing thesound of his/her own voice.
3485Some have to do this in a whisper at first, as I once did, but whispered reading is recorded virtually the same in your Mind’s Memory Bank.
3486The mind “hears”thoughts, and the louder the thought, the better the Mind records it.) You can simultaneously create an enormous repository of
3487Fluency Memories, each of which willcrowd-out old Stuttering Memories, AND practice your Crutches at the same time. I taught myself to use
3488these Voice Tools/Crutches by reading aloud (or in a whisper or even under my breadth if in public). Reading aloud may be the closest thing to
3489having atherapist,especially if you do it beforeita mirror.
3490Now, I literally relish reading aloud to anyone, anywhere, anytime. I first read to myself, but, in time, I became sufficiently brave to read to
3491sympatheticlistenersand, eventually, to everyone who would listen. I loveclassic, metered, rhymed poetry, and I grewto relish sharing this gemor
3492that with others via my readings – whileeach reading added another stonethe bedrock of positivespeech-memories that werefloodingmymind. I
3493discuss the mechanics ofthesereadings inmore depth in Section 7, under the heading, “Get Lost inYour Message”, which, by itself, solvesa host
3494ofspeech-problems.
3495How often and how long you need to do this depends entirely on the degree of your stuttering-difficulty. You should keep reading aloud until
3496reading aloud becomeseasy and enjoyablefor you – and keep going until you areself-curedANDdon’t think about stuttering anymore(except to
3497help my PWS-Mates). “This could take forever,” you say, but I quite disagree. You could do it right now bywhispering (to such varying degrees
3498of softness as you wished), while interspersing normal voice pitch and using the various Voice Tools/Crutches, as desired. Try it. You’re in no
3499rush to finish this book;you are, however, in a rush to master its methodology and to self-cure your stuttering . The sooner you begin
3500heavy practicing, thesooner you’llmakestunning progress. The morethat you read aloud, the better.
3501One caveat about reading aloud . If your stutter is very mild (only occurs under extreme pressure), and you generally speak without
3502stuttering or blocking and are not detectable as a stutterer most of the time, you should not need to read aloud very much . Why? You
3503can practice fluency by simply talking extensively in situations where you are fluent , which would be most of the time for you. You should
3504then devote your reading-aloud time to Auto Suggestion or Self-Hypnosis Treatments and to mastering the Crutches (Step Two). Mild stutterers
3505can focus immediately on defeating each threatened stutter with a Crutch. It’s really not difficult. It just takes practice.
350611.11 AS & SH, the Greatest Aids of All
3507My PWS-Mates and I loveAuto Suggestion (AS) and Self-Hypnosis (SH), and all of us consider it to be the No. One Method that has enabled
3508us to self-cure and to avoid relapses. I won’t re-state the case for AS and SH again here. See Steps 5 and 6 for specifics plus references
3509throughout this book.
3510I love SH, and, as I have repeatedly said, SH saved my life. I did three times daily, 20 minutes each, plus bonus short-bursts (a fewminutes
3511hereand there) inmy idle moments throughout the day, for many years. So, I’ll dieloving SH.
3512AS is muchmore user-friendly and isa piece ofcaketo use.Anyonecan doAS with zero training. Mywifecalls it“Talking to myself”. That’s
3513aboutall that thereis to it, but we need to beas relaxed as wecan be, and quiet, too, if possible, butanyAS is better than none. In recent years, I
3514have used onlyAS. I do it 30 minutes per day, at one sitting (usually while doing aerobics and/or in bed), plus I throw in “idle time”AST (Auto
3515SuggestionTreatments) fromthirty seconds to tenminutes, hereand there, whenever Ican.
3516Perhaps ofeven greater importance, it isAS and SH that have enabled me to improve my attitude, conduct, karma, character and the quality
3517ofmy lifeand haveenabled meto beableto repeatedly announce,
3518“Stuttering became
3519the greatest blessing of mylife.”
3520AS and SH don’t simply help us defeat Satan Stuttering and bury himsix feet deep, they teach us to train our minds, control our minds
3521and DICTATE most of our thoughtsand attack the negativethoughts when they appear.
3522So, dear readers, if you don’t get anything else fromme, get this:AS and/or SH willenrich the quality of your life many fold. Do one or the
3523otherevery day foras long as you live. Minimum: 30 minutes plus idletimere-enforcements.
352411.12 Crutches Prevent Word-Planning
3525MyCrutches (Step Two) havesaved and save meand my PWS-Mates, BUT some PWS, when they read about myCrutches, throwmy book in
3526thetrash and nevercontactmeagain.
3527They say,“You aretrying to controlspeech!”
3528I reply, “No, my Crutches are NOT used to control my speech; they do the opposite; they enable me to STOP word-planning in its
3529tracks; I literally block the stutter that my mind planned; and, thus, I control my mind, a huge difference. Crutches then defeat each
3530stutter-incident beforeit occurs , and I have trained myselfto use themautomatically, spontaneously and instantaneously. My Crutches
3531leap over threatened stuttersand eliminatestutter incidents.”
3532Anyway, somerefuseto use Crutchesand leave me, and that’s too bad, because, iftheywould allowthemselves to use Crutches temporarily
3533, they would soon see that Crutches are essential to to beat stuttering and to prevent relapse: They reduce the creation of new stuttermemories
3534to a level low enough to allow the self-cure to kick-in, and, once self-cured, Crutches enable us to shoot down stutter-threats
3535on an individual basis, and, thus, prevent relapses . The best news: Once self-cured, you won’t need the Crutches, except for what will
3536becomeincreasingly rareemergencies.
3537In the 1
3538st Edition of my book, I called them“Tools”; in this 2
3539nd Edition, I call them“Crutches”, which termI stole fromone of my PWSMates,
3540but thetermscan be used interchangeably,and I haveexpanded thelist (which, potentially,can be ofinfinitelength).
3541I viewmy ever-expanding list ofCrutches (Step Two)as bullets in guns that Ialwayscarry on both ofmy hips, with 6 bullets/Crutches in each
3542gun. When a stutter-Fear emerges (a speech “robber”), I SPONTANEOUSLYpull my guns and shoot it, dead. ANYone of those Crutchesbullets
3543WILL“kill”(dodge or defeat) MOST imminent stutters. I’mnot kidding, reader, listen up: THERE IS NO STUTTER THAT I CAN’T
3544BEAT/KILL WITHMY CRUTCHES-GUNS. I proveitevery day,and so do my happy, self-cured PWS-Mates.
3545Crutches explain why I HAVE NO FEAR OF STUTTERING, EVER . Why should I? I’mso good at using my Crutches that I can
3546avoid ANYand ALLstutters. I amsimply too fast on the draw for my stutter-Fears to win; they wear cement shoes; I wear cleats; they simply
3547can’t catchme. I WIN!!!You can, too. If you ever hope to cure, memorize the Crutches, practice themwhen you read aloud and in your mock
3548interviews in front of your mirror, and, then, USE THE CRUTCHES in pressured conversations. Youmust begin to reduce your stutter-incidents,
3549one-by-one. Each time you dodgeastutter-fear, you hang another stutter-scalp on your belt.
3550It is essential that I taught my mind to AUTOMATICALLYAND SPONTANEOUSLY grab the best suited Crutch (although many, and
3551possibly anyCrutch, willsufficeinmostsituations).
3552I’ll give you one, recent example: A couple weeks ago, I was on the dreaded telephone (a device that I used to hate and avoid like the
3553bubonic plague) trying to make an appointment with Doctor Diliusis (Dill-eee-ewe-sis); when I was about to say his name to the Appointment
3554Secretary, I just knew FOR SURE that I would BLOCK if I tried to say it. I had only two choices: (1) Try to say it, and BLOCK,
3555embarrassingly, and kick-off a cycle of stutter-Fears, OR (2) instantaneously grab a Crutch and avoid the stutter and keep my Fluency Cycle
3556intact inmy sensitive brain, which recordseverything and, then, makes melive withmymemories.
3557So, not being a masochist, I used Crutches; in fact, I MADEAGAME OF THE INCIDENT: First, I skipped his name altogether, saying
3558“Doctor Dih” and kept right on talking like nothing was missing . (Omissions are rarely even noticed). I then said it in different ways, each
3559time that it came up: “the Doctor”, “Doctor D”, “Doctor ill-ee-oo-sis” (dropping the first letter), and, finally, when I was on a fluency-roll, I
3560effortlessly said Doctor Dil-ee-oo-sis, like a pro, no problem. I’ll guarantee you two things: (1) If I hadn’t used Crutches, I would have blocked
3561and madeasceneand a ghastly stutter-memory (which I haven’t donefor 40 years), and (2) theAppointment Secretary had NO IDEAthat I had
3562just skirted a nasty stuttering “incident” (as I define it), nor did she detect me as a stutterer . Is this “controlling my speech”? Not by my
3563definition. I havetrained my mind to use Crutches as spontaneously as they grab words , when I permitmymind to do that.
3564Hopefully, this 2
3565nd Edition will do a better of job explaining why I and my PWS Mates accept the critical importance of Crutches to help
3566break through the initial heavy stuttering of severe stutterers and, later, for mild stutterers to use occasionally to prevent relapses. The choice is
3567yours. My PWS-Mates and I will keep doing what works for us. By the way, what is working foryou ?
3568As I’m“the new kid on the PWS-block”(a Johnny Come Lately-writer about stuttering and with unorthodoxmethods to boot), I’mviewed
3569with suspicion bymany, and no self-respecting “Doubting Thomas”willevercure viaanymethods that he/she doubts – or which have been poohpoohed
3570by speech professionals. So, I mustconsole myself byworkingwith those who will give my book, mymethodsand meachance. As I said
3571when I wrote my book, “If I can help one PWS self-cure, my book will be a “success” to me. On that criterion, I have already succeeded a
3572number of times over. It’s all gravy fromhere. The admirable PamMertzsays, “Make Way for Stutterers”, which I applaud, and I add, “Make
3573Way for Self-Cured Stutterers.”We’re going to becomean army! Upward and onward.
3574Section 12
3575Jump-Starting Your Self Cure
3576“Things won are done; thejoy lies in the doing.”
3577Wm. Shakespeare
3578The question becomes,“Howcan the PWS takethefirststep and say thefirstand next words withoutstuttering?”My answer is:
357912.1. Speak Where You Are Fluent
3580Most PWS can speak in some places or situations where they are fluent. See Section 11.6, Stutter Free Zones (SFV’s). In the early going of the
3581self-cure, speaking should be maximized in these SFV’sand minimized in high-pressuresituations.
3582If your Mind’s Memory Bank (MMB) is full of Stutter-Memories (SM’s), you need to replace as many SM’s as possible with FluencyMemories
3583(FM’s) – and, while you do that, you need to keep to a minimumthecreation of newSM’s. As you do that, stuttering fears will become
3584lessand less,and stutteringwill declinein direct proportion.
358512.2 Read Aloud
3586Most can create FM’s by reading aloud (if they do not stutter when doing so). The more hours the PWS reads aloud daily, the faster the rate of
3587stuttering decline; HOWEVER, ifthe PWS is talking and stuttering as many or more hours daily as he/she is fluently reading, he/she is still going in
3588reverse. For this reason, to get the stuttering-decline-snowball rolling, the PWS should minimize talking under pressure, thus reducing the number
3589of SM’sadded to the MMB daily. In other words, talk less when under pressure; takethe heat off yourself(your broken leg)and allowit to heal.
3590Suggested time:Minimumone hour;maximumfour hours (literally, for those who want thefastest possiblecure).
359112.3 Reduce Pressured-Speaking
3592Such blasphemy I utter! I know what you’re going to say: Lee is preaching “avoidance”, and 99% ofallstuttering books tell you NOT to avoid
3593speaking. I do agree with those books in general: Don’t avoid speaking, BUT NOT AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SELF-CURE .
3594(Note: I always say SELF-cure, because no one alive willever cure a PWS of stuttering; others may help, but only the PWS can cure himself. When otherscure you, you relapse.
3595So, how might you minimize your daily, under-pressure speaking, in which you add SM’s ? Just keep your answers as short as you can,
3596and don’t volunteer orexpatiate verbally, fora little while. This is nota happy solution, but it is temporary. (Many PWS cure (I believe) by simply
3597“shutting up” as much as possible for years; the less they talk, the less they stutter when they DO talk! Finally, the stuttering fades. This antistuttering
3598snowball (going quiet) works, too.) Get in the habit of asking people questions and letting themtalk; people love to do that anyway.
3599Suggested time frame: Increase talking to others gradually, as you feel the pressure/fear of speaking decline, with a corresponding decline in
3600stuttering under pressure. (It should decline noticeably after 30 days ofapplying the methods in this book.) Ifit doesn’t, you’re missing or not using
3601someimportantmethods,and you’re probably not reading aloud, doing yourauto suggestion treatmentsand usingCrutches, when needed.
360212.4 Be as Expressive as Possible
3603Crutch No. 6 in Step Two is “Voice Modulation; Be Expressive”. Voice modulation is a method/mechanic of being expressive. Being expressive
3604(concentrating on selling your thought, as doesany actor or salesman or othercompelling speaker)completely shuts down stuttering, for those who
3605can really concentrate on being expressive. (Even the most severe stutterer can yell“Fire” or “Look out”in an emergency, and that is expressive
3606speech in its purest form. Being expressive overpowers fear and leapfrogs stutters.) If you are concentrating on being expressive, you cannot and
3607will notstutter. This isafact. If you don’t believeit, get on Skype withme.
3608When you speak (initially in lowpressuresituations), tryto be asexpressive, convincing and entertaining asyou can be, as this focuses
3609your mind on your message and how you SAYthe message, and not on your words-speech issues. When you focus on your message, you are
3610focusing on thelistener(s). It’s helpful to think lessabout yourself(“poor me”)and moreabout others; your self-respect improves immediately. It’s
3611part of our“Healthe whole person”approach. The morethat we heal ourselvesand focus on others, theeasier our speech flows.
3612Also, your mind can only think ONE thought at a time. What will it be?Afear ofsome word OR how to stress this word or that syllable
3613to make it more interesting? Again, if you think hard enough about being expressive, you will never stutte r – just as those who stutter on
3614every work speak fluently in emergencies. When they focus on the message and on saying it as passionately as possible, they do not stutter. So,
3615start now: think about the other person and then emphasizetheimportant wordsand syllablesand de-emphasizetheleast important, by raising and
3616lowering your voice, drifting in and out of full whispers, half-whispers, regular voice, a bit louder voice, throw in some pauses, run some
3617unimportant words together; make a game of it. In this process, try to have some fun and enjoy being expressive, while you change yourself from
3618stutterer to one who focuses on the message (the other person)and, in the process, become fluentand even an excellent speaker. I did. You can,
3619too. It’sallaboutchanging your focus FROM wordsand yourself TO the message and the listener. Presto:You’re fluent. This is logic, not magic,
3620and other PWS are proving itevery day.
3621So, in sum, whichwords you speak rarelymatters much; it’s HOWyou saythe words . Don’t just babble. Inject feeling in your speech.You
3622can say it very fast or very slowly; bothwillwork, IF you concentrate on saying your messageas passionately as you can.
3623My last words will probably be, “STUTTERING CAN BE CURED, PERIOD!!!” I hope that you and every PWS in the world will hear
3624them. Millions (I’ll wager) cure themselves of mild stuttering every year, and I amnow witnessing one severe stuttering PWS after another cure
3625him/herself. Why not you? Don’t beafraid to try.
362612.5 Problems with First Words
3627Every PWS I haveever known, hasagreed with this statement:Most stutterers, IF theycan get past thefirst feared word of a thought, can
3628say the rest of the thought without stuttering . The problemis getting past the FIRST feared word (FFW) of the thought. AFTER you get
3629past the FFW, do NOT hesitate or slowdown; talk rather rapidly until you completethat thought. Hesitations beg for stutter-fears.
3630So, how do you get past the FFW? I have to tell you what I do, and what my PWS-Mates are doing. We are using the 12 Crutches from
3631Step Two:
36321) Skip first letter or syllable,
36332) Useasynonym, similar word or phrase,
36343) Skip the word entirely,
36354) InsertingAlternate Thoughts
36365) Using Pauses
36376) Voice Modulation (beexpressive)
36387) The Magic, Instant Cure
36398) Changetheentirethought
36409) Tellastory about the word
364110) Talk slower
364211) Talk faster – and immediately
364312) Talk less
3644I’mnot going to discuss themagain here, I’mgoing to refer you to Step Two and to Section 11.12 . Study them. I and my PWS-Mates
3645literally beat the pulp out of FFW’s. We crush them, by going around themto the left, and to the right, and under them, and over themand even
3646straight through them. Thereisn’tan FFW on the planet that wecan’t beat. Thereis no magicto it; you can do it, too. Study the Crutches; practice
3647using themas you read aloud and, then, in your conversations. They WILLbegin to work, and then they’llwork some more and more. If you get
3648good enough at the Crutches, they alone will result in a self-cure. Follow the instructions in this book and do it. You’llsoon feelmore and more
3649speech-reliefevery day, until, yes, you’refree ofThe Beast.
365012.6 Simulate Pressured Conversations
3651To learn to speak fluently under pressure, while youminimizespeaking-stuttering in pressured situations while you heal, it will be helpful to practice
3652speaking inmake-believe pressured situations , and the more the merrier. Simulating conversations (a/k/a mock conversations) provides an
3653excellent way to teach your mind to handle pressured-speechwithout stuttering. (We do nothing to “teach speech”; all of us know how to speak,
3654butsimulating conversations will help us remap our brains to train themNOT to planwordsand, hence,createstutters.)
3655Agood way to simulatea pressured conversationwithout feeling pressure is to talk to yourself in a mirror – provided that you do not
3656stutter when you do it. I used to interview myself, playing both the interviewer and the interviewee. I tried to ask and answer questions
3657spontaneously and instantaneously (at maximum speed). For example: Q. “What’s your name and what ethnicity is it? A. Lee Lovett, and it’s
3658Scottish. Q. Where do you live and how long there?A. NewYork, and I’ve lived there five years …”and on I went for tenminutes, keepingmy
3659eyes focused onmyself in the mirror, and the closer I sat to the mirror (as long as I didn’t stutter), the more pressure, and the better for my selfcure.
3660If I started to stutter, I shortened my Q’s and A’s until I didn’t stutter . Q. “Your age?”A. 27. Q. Eye color? A. Brown. Q. Favorite
3661sport?A. Tennis. Then, as I grewmore comfortable, I made my questionsand answers longer, and I concentrated on being fast/instantaneous
3662and being expressive (my favorite, fail-safe stutter-killer) , giving my brain two focuses:my message and a compelling delivery of it. When I
3663did that, I never stutter, period.
3664I also used to talk to photographs of people who made me nervous. I put themvery close to my face and carried on a mock conversation.
3665My nextconversationwith that person invariablywentmuch smoother.
3666Reciting memorized poetryand saying it to myselfin the mirror, helped considerably.
3667Some of my PWS-Mates won’t look me in the eye when they speak, because it increases the pressure on themand, hence, their stuttering.
3668They can help themselves by doingmock conversations,especially in the mirror,along thelines suggested above.
3669The more mock conversations that I had, the less fears I had during pressured conversations; as my fears diminished, so, ofcourse, did my
3670stuttering. Suggested Timefor Simulated Pressured Conversations: 5-30 minutes daily (as part of your reading-aloud sessions).
367112.7 Drills to Stimulate Spontaneity
3672I define “spontaneous”as “unplanned”. Speaking spontaneously is, as you now know, the way that fluent speakers speak. Unfortunately, PWS
3673havesystematically taught themselves to planwordsand, hence, to hesitate, stutterand/or block. Planningwords is self-trained mentalresponse. It
3674isa habit. Therefore, stuttering, theresult of planned words, is habitual . Habitsareengrained;so, we mustattack themfrommany sides.
3675Unfortunately, when we just tell ourselves to “speak spontaneously”, it doesn’t happen. To help my PWS-Mates break this habit of planning
3676words, I urgethemto speak IMMEDIATELY, i.e. with zero delay. Theimmediacyitself forces spontaneity.
3677In addition, I use mind training, mind controland learning to DICTATE thoughts (viaAST’sand SHS’) is likely THEmosteffective method of
3678breaking the stuttering-cycle and, thus, the stuttering-habit. I give myselfsuggestions on point:“I will not choose specific words before speaking.”
3679“I willspeak my thoughts immediately.”
3680But, but how can you train yourself to do that? I do spontaneity drills with my PWS-Mates. The drill has one objection: get an immediate
3681responsefromthe PWS.
3682Example: I ask questions to which I know that know PWS knows the answer without thinking. “How old are you? How tallare you? What
3683color are your eyes? Your hair? What is your mother’s first name? Your father’s? Have you a pet? What kind? Name?”and so on. If the PWS
3684delays answers, he stutters; if he doesn’t delay, he doesn’t stutter. After a few drills, he doesn’t stutter. This drill leads the PWS to speak
3685immediately, whichmeansand forces spontaneously – and that leads to fluency.
3686Example:I do word association drills. I pick thesimplest possible words, and ask the PWS give meanyword in response; thereis no right or
3687wrong answer; there is only one criterion:speed. Did he/she answer immediately? I tell the PWS that, if no word comes to mind, to say “Pass”
3688but say it immediately. Sample words (with possiblereplies in parentheses) might be:Up (down); top (bottom); in (out); to (from); right (left); door
3689(window); tall(short); dumb (smart);ceiling (floor); read (write); good (bad); yes (no);AM (FM); radio (TV). The words don’t matter nor do the
3690replies; only speed matters. If the PWS is too slow responding, I stop and start again. Speaking quickly is very, very hard for a PWS; so, lots of
3691work may be needed here. Speed may killin acar, but itcan belife-saving (stutter-avoiding) fora PWS.
3692Any instantaneous response will be “spontaneous”. By responding quickly, the PWS learns how it feels to speak spontaneously and how
3693fluency results.
3694Another Drill:When in conversations with your family, practicespeaking INSTANEOUSLYand SPEAK FAST, running your words together
3695a bit. It is impossibleto stutter whenwetalk as fastas wecan, becausethe mind is given no timeto plan astutter.
3696These drills teach something else: Even the worst stutter can usually do these drills with no or very little stuttering, and this proves what I have
3697made my life’s motto:
3698If Ican say ONE word anywhere, anytime,
3699Ican say ANY word anywhere, anytime.
3700This is pure logic, ofcourse, but, when the PWS proves it to him/herself in these speed drills, he/she begins to realize that stuttering is selfimposed,
3701word-by-word, and that there are ways ofavoiding it: By remapping the brain not to think stuttering and by using Crutches to duck,
3702dodge, leap over and go around stutter-fears one-by-one all day long. As the PWS succeeds at this, even in small increments, the black StutterCloud
3703begins to lift. “I stuttered alot less this week. Hmmm.”The one-two-three punch (building fluencymemories,AST’s/SHS’sand Crutches in
3704pinches) is working. Imaginethat.
370512.8 “Perfection” NOT the goal
3706One ofthefirst things that I learned fromthe psychiatrist, whomI sawinmy twenties, was that“Perfectionismiscommon among stutterers.”Most
3707PWS strive to be as “perfect” as possible, and, when they bungle their speech, mockery follows, embarrassment explodes, and stutter-fear is
3708launched, which causes the mind to think defensively: i.e., to try to plan the words and thus provide “perfect” speech. Of course, the reverse
3709occurs,and the Satan Stutter Snowballis launched.
3710Nothing on this terrestrial ball is perfect, and my speechwillcertainly never be, BUT that is not to say that I cannot or should not try to make
3711my speech (and therest ofme) the best that Icanmakeit. Perfect? No. The best that Icanmakeit?Yes. So, we-PWS seek to destroy our Satan
3712Stutter Snowball.
371312.9 Preventing Relapses
3714Never stop practicing the principles in this book. Never quit doing your AST’s or SHS’ . And, usethe Crutches, as needed , but the need for
3715themwill diminish steadily forever, but they will always be there to prevent any threatened stutter. I almost never use them– a few times in
3716one conversation, then none for a week or month or longer. I never think about stuttering, except to help my PWS-Mates, and that’s sheer
3717pleasure and helps reinforce my ability to keep Satan Stuttering in the sarcophagus where I buried that malevolent monster so many decades ago.
3718:)
3719Section 13
3720SevenCardinal Sins of PWS:
3721Things Not to Do
3722“Shefeared no stranger, for sheknew no sin .”
3723JohnDryden, (Poet, 1631-1700)
3724Fromobservingmyselffor 25 years and too many PWS to count (lately), I have come to realize that we-PWS do things that snare us in our own
3725traps. These prompt me to forewarn you of some Cardinal Sins, mistakes that we-PWS make that tend to compound our speech
3726problems . Theseincludethefollowing:
372713.1 Never Say, “I’m Sorry”
3728To paraphrase the most famous line in a classic 1970 book/movie (“Love Story”, starring Ali McGraw and Ryan O’Neal), “Never say, ‘I’m
3729sorry’.”(In point offact, theactual line was, “Love means you never haveto say, ‘I’msorry’.”) Similarly, yourand my errors in speech should not
3730be punctuated by the words,“I’msorry.”
3731Far too many PWS interrupt their stutters with the words “I’m sorry,” and some say it literally every few seconds. The PWS says a few
3732words, then, “I’msorry.” He/she makes a few noises and injects “I’msorry.”It becomes another formof“holding pattern”, like “ahh”, “ummm”
3733and such noises to filltime. Why is this so ill-advised?
3734(1) Any listener with any heart at allalready sympathizes with the stutterer and feels some level of pain anyway. Repeated assertions of“I’m
3735sorry”compounds the discomfort of the listener. (2) Saying “I’m sorry”further delays an already delayed conversation. (3) Listeners know
3736that the PWS is sorry, and saying it simply states the obvious, violating an old cliché, “Never state the obvious.” (4) Saying “I’m sorry” adds
3737nothing whatsoever to the conversation. (5) Most important of all, by saying “I’m sorry”, the PWS simply underscores, reinforces and
3738increases the level of stuttering and the memories of it . Saying “I’msorry”is the opposite of positive Auto Suggestion/Self-Hypnosis. It is
3739going in the opposite direction of a self-cure. It is public, self-flagellation. It is layeringmorestuttering-negatives in your mind. Do NOT do it .
374013.2 Don’t Repeat Stuttered Words
3741Some PWS make a habit of backing-up and attempting to re-say and thus correct a stuttered word or words. Stuttered words cannot be
3742corrected; theymust beignored. Why?
3743(1) Itemphasizes and doubles the same stutters, making thestuttering twice as bad . (2) Inmost cases, despite the stutters, the listener did
3744get the general idea ofwhat is being said, and thelistener wants to move on . (3) No one wants to listen to the same stutters multiple times. (4)
3745For the PWS, repetition of stutters multiplies the PWS’ Stutter-Memories , and injects an even worse Stutter-Memory in the PWS’
3746Memory Bank, theverything that the PWS is striving to avoid.
3747It is much better to keep talking; rephrasethe messagea bit, but keep moving FORWARD, rather than double-up thelaststutter.
374813.3 Don’t Try to Hold the Floor
3749By “hold the floor”, I mean “keep talking and thus prevent others fromtalking”. This is a bad policy for fluent speakers and is an evenworse one
3750for a PWS. Since a PWS stutters on some words, to hold the floor, the PWS will repeat unnecessary words endlessly (such as “like”, “you
3751know”, “ahhhh”) or they make sounds (like clicking, ticking, panting). In Step Two of this book, the value of PAUSES/Crutch 5 is discussed.
3752Listeners prefer somerelieffromtheassault of brokenwords (fromany speaker, fluent or PWS). Yes, the
3753PWS may lose the floor, but that reduces pressure on the PWS. Until the PWS can eliminate most stuttering, he/she should never try
3754to hold thefloor . Talk less, when under pressure, and thus put the pressure on the listener. As your stuttering fades, youwill be able to hold the
3755floor with fluentspeech.
375613.4 Don’t Announce Your Stuttering
3757I have discussed this withmany PWS. The consensus or“conventionalwisdom”seems to be that PWS should announce their speech issues, and
3758that it shows self-confidence to do so, and that they somehow “owe”it to the listeners to share this problem, and that it lessens the problemfor
3759listenersand leads to helpful discussionsand better understanding ofthe problem. I disagree. This is not only not“wisdom”; it is folly.
3760Discussing speech problems is something that I recommend, under certain circumstances, such as with family members and other intimates.
3761See Section 4, “Discuss the Problem”, but I suggest this onlywith listeners whomyou knowaresympathetic. Most peoplesimply don’t care and
3762don’t want to hear about it or discuss i t, and theywill only hold you even loweresteemfor forcing themto discuss it, and wasting their valuable
3763time. This soundscold and harsh; it is, but it is reality.
3764More importantly to the PWS, the PWS already spends most of his/her (his) waking hours thinking about stuttering (ugh), and the PWS is
3765striving valiantly (through reading aloud, AST’s, etc.) to train his mind NOT to dwell on stuttering; so, to make it a practice to keep raising the
3766subject with disinterested listeners (as 95% ofall non-intimates will be) only re-enforces the Stutterer’s problems in the PWS’ Mind’s Memory
3767Bank, thusconstantly undoing the good that the PWS isaccomplishing by diligentapplication ofthe methods in this book.
3768Whether you/I/welikeit or not, our speech speaks for itself , for betterand worse. Let it do so. Why?
3769(1) By announcing this, you arestating the obvious;so, why bother.
3770(2) It makes thelistener focus on the mechanics ofyour speech rather than on your message.
3771(3) Yourannouncement ofit reinforces your stuttering in your mind, thuscontradicting your Auto SuggestionTreatmentsand other things that you
3772are doing to self-cure. Yourannouncement ofit begs to makeitaself-fulfilling prophecy.
3773(4) Thereis no positivereason and no advantageto announcing the obvious: that you stutter. (If yourstuttering is sporadic and is
3774not then in evidence, it is doubly ridiculous to cause the listener(and yourself) to think about an apparently irrelevant negative.
3775(5) Some PWS trash job-interviews with such an announcements. Don’tever do it.
3776Example: One PWS told me that he was not stuttering in four different job interviews, and the interviews seemed to be going well; then, he
3777volunteered that he stuttered, and the interview began to go south, and he didn’t get any of the jobs. In sum, announcing your speech issues
3778creates negatives and gains nothing for anyone and well mayjeopardizeyour relationship with thelistener to whom you discloseit .
3779Always remember that most people are far too consumed with their own problems to care a whit about your stuttering. Some will pity your
3780speech; many simplywon’tcare; butalmost no one(who doesn’t love you) wants to talk about your speech problems, and none ofthemwill have
3781any suggestions that will help you, becausethey can’tcomprehend the problematall. Just work on your self-cureand forget trying to make others
3782understand it. They never will. (There may bearareexception, but don’t waste your time, or the majority’s, by searching for thoseexceptions.)
3783It does not make you a better person to be candid about your speech issue or any other negative in your life, and, worse, it will tend to
3784compound your stuttering , because, when you verbalize it, you validate it, underscore it, and perpetuate it . You want to self-cure?
3785Stop telling the world that you can’t by announcing your speech problem.YouUSEDto have one; it is growing lessevery day; youARE going
3786to beat it. You are doing many things that will lead you to a self-cure. Do not sabotage your efforts by talking about your old speech problems.
3787Again, NO ONECARES EXCEPTYOU(and your loved ones). Get over it. It willsoon be part of your past.
378813.5 Don’t Create More SMs Than FMs
3789This is not easy, but it is the condition precedent to a self-cur e. In the finalanalysis, the PWS must create more fluency-memories (FMs)
3790than stuttering-memories (SMs). This explains the need to Read Aloud and talk EXPANSIVELYin allsituations where the PWS does NOT
3791stutter (e.g., to children, animals, in unison, singing, whispering, etc.) and why we try so diligently to reinforce our FMs via dailyAuto Suggestion
3792Treatments or Self-Hypnosis Sessions.
3793One way or another, to self-cure, the PWS MUST CREATE MORE FMs THAN SMs. When I was having “a bad day”, I used to shut my
3794trap most of the day, avoiding many setbacks. Then, when I relaxed a bit, I talked just fine, and added many positives. If I had too many such
3795shut-downs, I increased my reading aloud, my ASTs/SHS, and used more Crutches . I was determined to win the war with Satan Stuttering,
3796and logicscreamed at methat thelarger the difference(favoring FM), thefaster would betheself-cure. Thisessentialfact is thereason for the next
3797“Don’t”.
379813.6 Never Publicly Wrestle a Stutter-Block
3799Most PWS, when they first Skype withme, wrestle with stutters and especially with blocks. Some PWS insist on publicly wrestling with blocked
3800words, no matter how long it takes or howmuch physical violence it takes to utter the word. Inmany cases, these blocks occur only in one word
3801hereand thereand rarely in consecutive words (likely becausethe brain is so intensely focused on the one, big pre-planned word).
3802By “publicly wrestling”, I mean contorting the face or rolling the eyes into the forehead or bobbing the head or weaving the torso, and/or
3803makingmotions with hands or legs or other peculiar physicalmovements. This is most unwise and unnecessary. Why?
3804(1) Aserious block cannot be overpowered. The block always wins,evenwhen the PWS isableto spit-grunt-yell out the word. The price paid
3805equals a victoryfor the block, not for the PWS .
3806(2) Forcing a block createsa very embarrassingmoment for thelistener. Itmakes themwant to fleefromthe PWS.
3807(3) Forcing a block burns an indelible, ghastly new stutter-memoryinto the PWS’ Memory Bank, onethat overshadows many positive FM’s.
3808EachBlock-Wrestling-Match createsan indelible negative memory,compounds stuttering fearsand, thus, is self-perpetuating and tends to multiply
3809the problem. Wesimply cannot do this to ourselves. Itsets the PWS way too far back.
3810(4) Block-wrestlingmatchesare unnecessary because, the PWS could and should usea Voice Tool/Crutch (as discussed in Step Two),and
3811avoid the problemaltogether. Seethe 12 Crutches in Step Two. Any one Crutch and sometimes ALL Crutchescan defeat most blocks,
3812and thereis areseveral that will defeat ANY block. So, for heaven sakes, why havea public wrestlingmatchwith a block?
3813In short, at allcosts, all wrestling matches with blocks must be avoided! Go over them, under themor around them, but don’t assault them
3814head-on. For example: pause and grab a synonym; or drop the first letter or syllable; or skip the word entirely; or slur or blur the
3815word; or say it in a whisper or half-whisper; pause and insert other words in front of it; or change the message, or even shut your
3816trap. Most anything is better than having a public wrestling match with a block .
3817This I promise you:After you begin REFUSING to publicly wrestle with blocks, and you avoid 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, etc. of those blockthreats,
3818guess what? Less and less and less stutter-fears will occur. They willslowly stop assaulting you. That’s a fact! However, as long as you
3819keep welcoming them, by publiclywrestlingwith them, they’re going to staywith you and probablymultiply.
382013.7 NeverRefuse to Cure
3821The worst “sin” of all is to refuse to try to cure. Many PWS simply refuse to try to cure or give up trying after many failed therapies. Dear
3822reader, many have cured and are curing using the methods in this book. They are not that different fromyou, and, I’llwager, some of the PWSC
3823(People Who Self-Cured) had much worse speech problems than you do! We have already witnessed self-cures of some of the most extreme
3824cases on the planet! Youmay even beableto meetsome ofthem. See Section 17.
3825Still, many PWS simplywon’t have anything to do with our methods ofself-curing. Their refusals take many forms:(1) Theywon’taccept the
3826book, because“Stuttering isan incurable disease,”and they refuseto consider mounting evidenceto thecontrary. Many PWS resolutely remain in
3827denial – and someeven call us“quacks”,“charlatans”and “despicableliars”for stating thetruth about our own self-cures. Their loss. (2) Some will
3828accept my book, oreven buy it, but do notaccept the offer in the book to contact meand receive help. (3) Still others write meemails praising the
3829book, but refuse all offers of free Skype-coaching. (4) Some willread the book, applaud it inwriting, and then Skype withme once or twice and
3830then disappear. I callall four of foregoing “Refusers”. (Still others advise that, while they like our methods, they are working on other therapies
3831which they prefer. Weapplaud them. There wellmay be many roads to The Promise Land,and we heartily support ALLmethods that work.
3832Interestingly, many of the above, types of Refusers are very active online in myriad online stuttering groups (on Facebook especially). These
3833Refusers expend considerable time most days chit-chatting in long posts with fellow PWS about the problems of being a PWS and sharing PWS
3834stories, but they have no timeto work on their own cure. Ifthey spentafraction ofthat time working on aself-cure, they could cure.
3835The purpose ofthis book is not to attempt to psychoanalyzeany ofthereasons for refusal to cure; the purpose hereis to definearoad to SC.
3836Hopefully, this 2
3837nd Edition (being almost twice the length ofthe firstand containingmuchmore specific advice – as learned fromself-cured PWS)
3838willlead to self-curesevenwithout free Skype-coaching; I hopeso, but we willcontinueto offer such freecoaching as wecan.
3839In any event, I must list“Refusal to Cure”as the Seventh Cardinal Sin ofstutterers, because it is a very real problemthat is going to keep
3840many PWS fromself-curing . It’s so sad.
3841Reader, this applies to you, too. IF you simply thumb through this book or even study it, but, then, put it on a shelfand don’t do the work to
3842apply the methods herein and forget the book, youwon’tself-cure,and you should accept thefact that you arein this group of Refusers.
3843I hope that you won’t live in the past. The dispositive evidence is in: The earth is not flat. The earth is not the center of our solar system, the
3844nearestmountain is nota God,and stuttering is NOT an incurable disease!
3845Life is too short to spend it stuttering. I and my PWSC-Mates are not aberrations or freaks. We must stay current with the progress in
3846stuttering. It’sa NewDay. Don’t resist it;celebrateit. Join usand launch your self-cure.
3847Section 14
3848Mild SpeechAnxiety
3849Iamconvinced thatat least one quarter of young adultsand a good ten percent of olderadults (a half billion people or more) sufferaformofmild
3850speech anxiety (MSA). That is, they avoid speaking in many situations, especially to groups, even as smallas a handful of people. This anxiety
3851manifests itself in a wide range of speech issues, ranging fromheavy breathing to heavy sweating to hesitations to stutters to blocks and far too
3852often to chronic avoidance ofspeaking. I refer to these victims of MSAas People with SpeechAnxiety or simply as “PSA’s”. They occupy the
3853“space” between PWS and fluent speakers. Hard-core stutterers may scoffat MSAand PSA’s, but the problemis very realand disturbing to
3854those who haveit.
3855Most PSA’s seemto dealwith the problemby avoiding pressured situations. Theymay thus be very quiet, in groups, but, over the years, since
3856they do notexperience ongoing stuttering or blocking, their Mind’s Memory and Image Bank (MMIB) remains largely devoid ofstutter-memories
3857and is daily filled with fluencymemories. So, many of these PSA’s very gradually overcome the problembut in widely varying degrees and some
3858degree oflifelong-avoidance may underpin their solution. Some of themdo contact me and seemto welcome my book and working on this on
3859Skype.
3860My mother suffered MSA, although she served as president of enough women’s organizations in her day to land her in Who’s Who in
3861American Women (the then pre-eminent registry of prominent women). She was deathly afraid of public speaking. Although she never showed
3862signs of any form of stuttering or blocking, she could freeze; grow faint, loose her train of thought, and the like. Whenever she was forced to
3863address a large group, she practiced the simplest announcements for long periods (often under the tutelage of my articulate attorney-father), and
3864thisenabled her to speak publicly, while masking an almostcatatonic-level offear. Over the decades, her problemgrewlessand less, becauseshe
3865kept at it and experienced no disastrous speech moments, any of which might have catapulted her into the stuttering world. (Her youngest son,
3866yours truly, picked up fearand joined thestuttering-ranks.)
3867Inmy dealings with PWS, roughly ten percent ofsamearereallyMSA’s. They do not stutterat home, or with friends, in casualconversations,
3868BUT, when then facea group (ofwhatever sizes triggers their fears) they feeland manifestsomesymptoms of verymild stuttering.
3869There is no reason for these MSAto take the risk ofa debilitating incident that creates a stuttering-snowball. The problemcan be addressed
3870and treated by the same methods that I outline for PWS: My six Steps. The MSA will soon see which methods benefit them the most, and
3871concentrate on using those methods. Frankly, simply memorizing and mastering the Crutches would provide an arsenal of ways to defeat
3872anyembarrassing speech moment for them.
3873Mild SpeechAnxiety, like stuttering, can be converted into an asset , and, ofcourse, much easier and faster. The PSA’s might well set
3874goals not only to eliminate anxiety but to convert that anxiety into a drive to become the best speaker in his/her peer group. Turn the proverbial
3875lemon into lemonade! Make a decision to attack and defeat the problemand make it your asset. This is manifestly achievable, because so few
3876people work really hard on anything. The MSA’s should take public speaking and debate in school; volunteer to talk in class and most anywhere
3877else; joinToastmasters; volunteer to do projects that require you to make publicannouncementsand talks. Fly in theface ofthe problem; use daily
3878auto suggestion and/or self-hypnosis sessions to affirm your love of speaking and your excellence at it, especially giving yourself short such
3879treatments just minutes before speaking publicly. If any stutter-threat appears, use a Crutch, eliminating risks of stuttering entirely. As your
3880confidence builds, the MSAproblemwillevaporatelikethe morningmist.
3881In allevents, mild speech anxiety is a much, much larger issue, in terms of the number of people afflicted, than is stuttering or blocking, and,
3882while it is fairly readily curable, it is generally not treated, and the end result for many is a formofspeech and/or socialwithdrawal. Inmy humble
3883opinion, high schools and colleges should attack this problem by requiring public speaking courses and activities, as an integral part of English
3884courses.
3885Section 15
3886Healing the Whole Person
3887“The wound is the place wherethe Lightenters.”
3888JalaluddinRumi, Persian Poet (1207-1273)
388915.1 More ThanOur Speech Needs Help
3890Common sensetells us thatstuttering, like most problems, is a symptomand a cause of other problems . The mostevident stuttering-related
3891issues are extreme shyness, verbalsilence, inferiority complexes, reclusiveness, and escalating anxiety, boredomand depression, and, in the most
3892extreme cases, an indifference to life-itself. (I experienced that cycle. Which of them affect you?) The stuttering-trigger(s) that spin us out-ofcontrol
3893varywidely. Tragically, many PWS begin thisemotionalrollercoaster between ages 3-5, a daunting introduction to our socialworld. Once
3894stuttering digs in, itcreatesand/orexacerbates other problems.
3895As wecannotcure one part ofan infection unless wecuretheentireinfection, wecannotcure our speech issues withoutaddressing therelated
3896causesand effects that surround and feed our stuttering. Ourattitudesabout ourselvesand about our lives must beexamined, and, ifweever hope
3897to gain areasonable degree ofcontrol oftheseinter-related problems, we must do all in our power to takecharge of our minds, thesteeringwheel
3898of our thoughts, words,actionsand lives.
389915.2 A Psychiatrist’s Encouraging Words
3900Icommend to you theencouragingwordsand wisdomofmy late psychiatrist, Frank S. Caprio, M.D.,asexpressed in the Dedication ofthis book:
3901“Most of us go through life
3902knowing only half of ourselves..,
3903So, we use only half of ourabilities …
3904Wesuffer –
3905because wearestrangers to ourselves …
3906We havefreechoice:
3907to accept or reject thoughts.
3908Nothing compels us to think anything,
3909except our own desires.
3910Use YOUR mental switch
3911to DICTATE your thoughts …
3912Believethat you can improveand youwill.”
3913Frank S. Caprio, M.D.
3914Helping Yourself with Psychiatry
3915(Emphasesadded.)
3916Theaboveshould be posted prominently on ourcell phones, PC desktops, laptops, bedsidetablesand then re-read endlessly until burned into
3917our memoriesand psyches.
3918Mind-training and mind-control, Dr. Caprio admonished, can be found in self-hypnosis (SH), to which I, and others, have added auto
3919suggestion (AS), as discussed repeatedly throughout this book. See Steps 5 and 6 in particular. (Yoga and meditation are used bymany, and I,
3920too, tried themand applaud them, but I did not find themsufficiently directionalized to give me the mind-control that I so desperately needed,
3921and still need for non-speech issues.) Thus, IFYOU, dear reader, will only accept the need for mind controlas“Gospel”and act on it (by adding
3922a daily regimen ofAS or SHto your life), youwill be well on the way to healing yourselfand, so, your speech.
392315.3 The “Normality” of Mental Malaise
3924There can be little question that most of us, fluent and PWS alike, suffer frominferiority complexes (frommild to severe) throughout our lives,
3925even therich, famousand the most beautiful.All humanscreatetheir own forms of“Hell”, nowand then, if notcontinuously. We may feelsuperior
3926(or, at least, wellaboveaverage) in this way or that, but thereareareas (and, for most of us, quiteafewareas) where wefeelinferior. This is nota
3927crime. It is normal. To recall my earlier comment, my very able psychiatrist, the late Frank S. Caprio, M.D., with whom I had six life-saving
3928sessions in my mid-twenties, once observed, “Most of us contemplate suicide at some point in our lives.” When I first heard this disquieting
3929revelation, it gave mecomfortand still does now– notcomfort in the malaise of others but, rather, in the knowledgethat Iamnotalone!
3930Now, turning to us-PWS’, it is obvious that we, morethanmost, have reasons for depression. Yes; we have reasons – but no excuse. As a
3931long life has led meto understand, not even a stuttering-af liction gives us an excusefor wallowing in self-pity,as I havesometimes done,
3932much less for throwing away the most precious gift of all: LIFE. I have been delighted to observe so many positive comments by PWS on
3933Facebook, such as those who blog on the upbeat and helpful blogsite of Pamela Mertz (“Make Way for The Stuttering”;
3934https://stutterrockstar.com/author/stutterrockstar/ ), which stresses self-acceptance and pride in “the whole man/woman”. That’s the kind of
3935positivethinking that we need.
393615.4 Acceptance vs. Self-Curing
3937We must accept ourselves, BUT that does not mean that we should not strive to make ourselves better in all ways. So, I part with some PWS,
3938however, when it comes to curing; that is, I could not “accept”my stuttering; I loathed it, and I had to fight it. I could accept myself, but I had to
3939battletheinfirmity stuttering.
3940Through the process ofself-curing, Iconverted stuttering into a life-improving disability: that is, onceI no longer needed to fight stuttering
3941on a daily basis, Iaimed my then, newly acquired mind-controlat the rest ofme (issues ofanger, boredom, depression, self-discipline, my karma,
3942which still needed lots ofwork and willalways need some)and this led to a much better me.
394315.5 Mind Training as a Way of Life
3944So, I became and remain a proponent of training our minds to DICTATE our thoughts , which needs to be done daily in a regular
3945regime, as discussed in Steps 5 and 6 ofthis book, reAuto Suggestion and Self-Hypnosis. In fact, even duringmy self-cure ofstuttering, I began
3946to expand myAS and SHto attack morethan stuttering. I began to ask myself, “Howcan Ichange my thoughts to make myselfa better person?” Well, no surprise, I needed to start thinking more about other people and less about myself . This very basic effort immediately helped my
3947speech. The morethat I thoughtabout others,especially as I spoke, theless difficulty I had withmy speech.
3948I needed to spoon-feed my mind with positive thoughts of all kinds. As I began to do that, it became easier and easier to speak without
3949impediments. I became, in general, more calm, more loving, better disciplined, more given to laughter. I was healing the WHOLE man,
3950although I didn’t really know it, and, as I did, mytonguerelaxed ever more.
395115.6 Leaving Our Minds to Chance
3952Whenwe do not havea daily, mind-training regimen, weleave our minds to chance, to “the Environment”(theaggregate ofallminds in our sphere,
3953our teachers, coaches, family, friends, acquaintances, the media, TV, the list is endless). We effectively abrogate control of our Mental Gardens
3954and hopethat the Environment/others will plant for us the good seeds, pull the weeds, water, fertilize, harvestand replant like good gardeners, but,
3955ofcourse, our Environment operates helter skelter, by chance, by dint ofaccident. The Environment is chaotic (the universal law of“entropy”) by
3956its very nature. Confusion, discord and violenceareits driving forces. Should weallowtherandomforces ofthe Environment to rule our mindsand
3957dictate our thoughtsand thus our futures?
3958When we leave our minds to be controlled by the Environment (as so many do), our prognosis is dimto bleak. At the very least, we will be
3959underperforming;at worst, we will lead lives ofabject despair. The pricethat we pay forceding control of our minds to the Environment is far too
3960great. Whenweleave our minds to chance, weleave our lives,and our speech, to chance.
396115.7 Taking Responsibility forOurThoughts
3962Weare our thoughts, and our thoughtsare our lives. Our thoughts become our words; our words become our deeds; our deeds become our being
3963and our destiny. We must take responsibility for our thoughts, and, hence, our lives. Unless we are endowed with congenitally positive mindsets,
3964we must implant themand nurture and manage them. As we take control of our minds, mental peace will emerge, and we will heal the
3965whole person, and everything in our lives will fall into place – including peaceful, fluent speech .
3966Certain principles helped me healmy speech problem. They are principles ofclear thinking thatcreate an optimumenvironment for self-curing
3967stuttering. Consider theseadmonitions that follow, which I maketo my PWS-Mates.
396815.8 LifeIs What We MakeIt
3969To “make a successful life”, bymy definition, I simply need to give my besteffort, and, ifI amaverage (plus or minus a tad), my effortalone shall
3970enable me to achieve enough (self-sufficiency and enough to cover my basic needs and to help those who rely on me), and, by so doing, I shall
3971have had “asuccessful life”. This is not so much to ask, noteven of“my lowly self”(that inferior soul that I oncethought that I surelywas). Bottom
3972line: If I won’t give my best, I have onlymyself to blame; so, I will give my best, and I WILL“make it”. Being the best that I can be, ofcourse,
3973includes making the best ofmy speech.
397415.9 LifeIs Perception
3975Life is how we perceive that we made or are making it. All the old sayings are true; that’s why they’re stillaround. My favorites, on point, are,
3976“Do you see the donut or the hole? And, “Do you see the glass half full or halfempty?”You can see either; it’s totally your choice. The happy
3977person sees the positives. Which are you? Your very life hangs in the balance.
3978At times inmy earlier life, I sawthe donut;at other times, the hole. I didn’t’“dictate my thoughts”. It was a choicethat I had to make. Then,
3979sometime long, long ago, I decided to see the donut and the glass half full, and I began usingmy dailyAuto Suggestion or Self-Hypnosis sessions
3980to trainmymind and to dictate my thoughts, and, guess what?I becametransfixed on the donutand the glass halffull. The holeand the halfempty
3981glass vaporized like morning dewatop the grass. Icount my blessing regularly as well, and Iask my PWS to makealist oftheir blessingsand read
3982themto me. As go thelyrics ofthat old song , “I go to sleep counting my blessings,” literally. Tryit. It works. It heals the whole person –
3983and that includesyour speech .
398415.10 Life Is a Game
3985Life is a game, and it should be fun. Life really isn’t a game against competitors; it’s a game against ourselves . It’s Lee vs. Lee and You
3986vs. You.
3987To win this very personal game, only one thing is required: Your best ef orts . If you give your best, your 100%, regardless of what
3988you accomplish or don’t, YOU WIN. It’s all that you can do, and it IS sufficient – especiallywhen you choose to view itas such. Most of us are
3989average, more or less, inmost things, but very, very few of us exert our bestefforts consistently, and that’s what makes the difference. As Edison
3990(theinventor oftheelectriclight) said, “Success is 99% perspiration and 1% inspiration.” The“winners”, more often than not, are“Thelittleengine
3991who could,” the child’s story about the little engine that just kept puffing and trying until it reached the top of a very long hill. Success is
3992accomplishing any positive goal , regardless ofits size.
3993No matter what I do or write or say on Skype, some ofmy PWS-Mates fall by the wayside, before they begin to experience the bliss ofselfcuring,
3994many stickingwithmethods thataren’t working for them. I firmly believethatevery one ofthemcould self-cure, ifthey keptat the methods
3995that work so well for me and my PWS-Mates, but some just don’t want to do it. Some of themdon’t want to do specific parts ofmy methods,
3996and so it’s hard to help them. It hurts, because mywee band of People Who Self-Cured and I want to help as many as we can touch, as noted in
3997Section 17.
3998So, dear reader, in the finalanalysis, to self-cure, we need to heal the whole infection, the whole human-disease, and, thus, the whole person.
3999It’s a much bigger job than self-curing stuttering, but it’s worth it; believe me; it’s worth all the effort that we can make. Why should we waste
4000precious minutes and hours every day worrying about stuttering, ifwe can avoid it? We only have one life on this planet, as best we know; it’s a
4001shame not to makeit the very best that wecan. I’ll do that, or I’ll dietrying. I hopethat you’lljoinme – trying, not dying.
400215.11 A Healing Book
4003Trying to keep ourselves on track to be“the best person that wecan be”isa daunting, daily, endless but richly rewarding challenge. Weeding and
4004feeding our minds is the onlyway to keep ourselves reasonably “healed”. Many ofmy PWS-Mates havefound healing “medicine”in thechapbook
4005(short book), Happiness in Seven Steps, which I wrotetwo yearsago for my progeny. That book states the principles that helped me healmyself
4006and mold myself into a better person. It describes my post-stuttering goals and rules for life. I incorporate those principles into my daily Auto
4007Suggestions, and they continueto sustainme, and help me keep mymind on track, “on the wagon”and as far removed fromthe mental gutteras I
4008can put it. That little book is onAmazon.
4009Section 16
4010Final Thoughts
4011“Without goals, we have no willto live.”
4012IvanTurgenev (Author, 1818-1883)
401316.1 Charting OurCourse
4014Goals motivate us to action – and to life. Moreover, it’s difficult to hita desirabletarget, if you’re notaiming at one.Asa very youngman, inspired
4015by Franklin’s pricelessly instructive Autobiography, I used to fix five-year goals; then, based on those, I set goals for one year, six months, one
4016month, one week and, finally, for one day. I rarely reached a goal on time, but I reached and surpassed many ofmy goals. Having goals or targets
4017helped me moveforward on allfronts.
4018As you know, to many stutterers, stuttering seems incurable – as many peers and some therapists constantly affirm. As such, many are not
4019willing to try to cure.As I, this book and itsadherents have demonstrated, self-curesareachievable, and they’re not that hard for diligent workerbees.
4020Although stutter-thoughts still come and go in my mind, no one can catch me stuttering, because I have too many ways/Crutches to beat
4021stutter-fears, and, hence, avoid stuttering. Any stutter-fears that pop up, I delight in picking-off like clay pigeons at a rifle range (with the bullets
4022frommy “guns”full ofmyCrutches).
4023I don’t need to read aloud or do AS or SH (for speech reasons). Except when I’m coaching a PWS, I virtually never even think about
4024stuttering, which is why I call myself“98% Stutter-Free-Lee”. I allow 2% for randomstutter-fears, and I delight in crushing any stutter-fear that
4025appears. That is precisely the way that YOU can be, if you’ll dedicate yourself to learning the methods to beat it and to work on it for a few
4026months, and, if you need it, get some Skype-coaching fromsomeone who has beaten it (one ofmy PWSC’s) using the methods in this book. See
4027Section 17.
4028I did a video on all this, which is on the International Stuttering Association’s website, and I captioned it, “Stuttering Became the Greatest
4029Blessing inMy Life”. I meant that, and I still do. The verywork and techniques that I used to defeat stuttering helped me solve many, many other
4030problems in my life, and they saved my life when I fell into life’s abysmal nadir. Yes, for me, stuttering has been a blessing in disguise, and I
4031sincerely believethat itcan becomea blessing for you. The broken leg becomes strongestat the point ofits break; so, too, does healing our minds
4032ofstuttering equip usand our minds to overcome many other mental problems.
4033The divine poet, Alexander Pope (1688-1744), wrote, “Hope springs eternal in the human breast,”and, indeed, it does. There is hope in all
4034things, forallconditions, in allseasons, forall of our dreams. So, let us have hope, and let that hopelead us to concrete actions . I mustend
4035whereI began, withwords frompsychiatrist-Frank S. Caprio, M.D.:
4036“We havefreechoice:
4037To accept or reject thoughts.
4038Nothing compels us to think anything
4039except our own desires.
4040Use your mentalswitch
4041to dictate your thoughts.
4042Believethat you can improve
4043and youwill.”
404416.2 Recommending Therapy & Therapists
4045Repeatedly, throughout this book, I have extolled the virtues of therapy and therapists for many purposes, always mentioning the extraordinary
4046benefits that I received frommy six sessions with psychiatrist-Frank S. Caprio, M.D.,and here, once again, I recommend therapyfor all .
4047Stuttering is not an isolated problem; it is one manifestation of multiple mental-physical issues (most of which are common to non-PWS as
4048well). As such, to self-cure stuttering, we need to address and heal the whole person, and such efforts are aided greatly by the counsel of those
4049trained to do so, ofwhich Iamnot one.
4050It is, thus, my firmbeliefthatevery human can benefit materially bycounseling frompsychiatrists, psychologists, speech pathologistsand
4051others trained in related fields. I urgeyou, dear reader, to seek such help .
4052This does notalter my conviction that thecure ofstuttering, in thefinalanalysis, must beaself -cure. Otherscan help, but onlythe PWS can
4053ef ect a cure . It isn’t that difficult for the average PWS, nor does it need to take years, not for those who will work diligently at the methods
4054detailed in this book (or some other disciplines, unknown to me, that work for the reader). Notwithstanding any of the foregoing, my Self-Cured
4055PWS-Matesand I have proved thatself-curesareachievable by using the methods in this book.
405616.3 Communicate with the Author
4057Before I go, I ask you to WRITEMEand make me your friend on Facebook. I so very much want you to succeed, and I would love to hear
4058reports of your progress, or your wont ofit, as you apply the methods herein. Justemailme at info@leeglovett.com. I can’t guarantee to reply to
4059everyone, but I’ll do my best.
4060Again, if youwant some help applying the methods in this book, Iand some ofmy self-cured PWS-Mates do individualstuttering-counseling,
4061as a labor of love, via email, Skype and FaceTime, with as many as time allows. None of us has professional speech-training, but we do
4062understand stuttering and the ways thatmymethods led to our self-cures. Our“payment”is your self-cure. Join us. See Section 17.
4063Good luck, but, if you do your part, you’ll make your own luck. You WILL become fluent and even the best speaker in your group – and
4064more:You, too, will beableto say,“Stutteringwas the greatest blessing ofmy life.”
4065Thisauthor, who believes inYOU, bids you adieu.
4066Lee G. Lovett,a PWSC
4067PersonWho Self-Cured
4068info@leeglovett.com
4069Section 17: Post Script
4070ANNOUNCINGFORMATION OF SPEECHANXIETYANNONYMOUS
4071ANon-Profit Charitable Organization
4072Where Self-Cured PWS Help Other PWS
4073- - -
4074“If Ican say ONE word anywhere, anytime,
4075Ican say ANY word anywhere, anytime.”
4076Lee G. Lovett
4077It is with great pleasure that I announce the formation ofmy dreamcharity-organization, “SpeechAnxietyAnonymous”(SAA). Ahandful ofmy
4078intrepid, self-cured PWS-Matesand Iare nowcreating SAAfor you and PWS worldwide.
4079SAAwill be a non-profit organization, which charges PWS nothing and does not accept donations. It will be open to all PWS worldwide.
4080SAAwill hold open, online-forumsand intends to offer:
4081• Videos ofself-cured PWS
4082• Liveinterviews ofsame
4083• Livecoaching sessions
4084• Q&Afromparticipants
4085Any PWS in the world can join simply byregistering .You can register nowand leave yourcontact information, and, as soon as SAAis
4086up and running, it willlet you and allregistrants know.
4087SAA hopes to launch its periodic Online Open Forums bylate 2017 , whichwill be held as often as demand justifies.
4088To make sure that you receive all updates and free information, and to put yourself in the queue for free Skype sessions to help you advance
4089your self-cure, go to SAA’s preliminary “underconstruction”websiteand REGISTER:
4090www.speechanxietyanonymous.org
4091Iconcludethis postscript with a quotefromJames Allen’s little masterpiece,“As AManThinketh”:
4092“The human Will , that force unseen,
4093The of spring of a deathless Soul,
4094Can hew a wayto any goal ,
4095Though walls of graniteintervene.”
4096P
4097a
4098r
4099t
4100I
4101V
4102Ot
4103he
4104r
4105B
4106o
4107o
4108ks
4109&
4110R
4111e
4112s
4113o
4114urc
4115e
4116s
4117Comments about Other Books
4118During my 25-year battle with stuttering, I never read any book on the subject, as I knew of none that then existed. My only
4119“therapist”was the psychiatrist (withwhomI spent six, one-hour sessions in late 1950’s). I then read books on hypnosis and psychiatry and tried
4120assiduously to apply them. My initial attempts to self-cure were (1) to build my vocabulary, a very slow process, but which helped my career
4121immensely, and (2) to become proficientat self-hypnosis, which provided substantial, immediaterelief, and then Iadded all ofthe other methods in
4122this book, which led to my self-cure.
4123In 2015, after being prodded by some of those whom I had long ago helped, I decided to write this book. I then went online looking for
4124booksabout stuttering, and I found a plethora ofsame, most written long after the peak ofmy personalstuttering crisis. I ordered dozens ofthese
4125books, but I decided not to read them until after I finished my book on the subject , because, for better or worse, I wanted to present my
4126story ofmy stuttering journey and my self-cures, unvarnished, which I had forged and which had worked,and stillwork, for me.
4127After finishingmy book, I then read or speed read the books by others on this subject, and I list many ofthemin the Bibliography that follows.
4128These books were most interesting and informative, and, I’m sure, have helped others, but most of them seem more directed towards
4129therapists than stutterers, and, even those directed to stutterers seem to spend far too much time analyzing stutterers and theorizing
4130about the mysteries of stuttering,and far too littletime defining and describing steps to takethat will lead to cures and avoid relapses .
4131Still other books present complex suggestions, pages ofcharts, graphs, vowels, breathing methods, vibrating techniques, etc., none of which
4132appealed to me, as I sawthe cure in very differentapproaches. Ofall the methods that I read, “elongatingwords”was the most usefulsuggestion,
4133and it works, but only in very small doses, lest one’s speech sound unbearably labored. After publishing my book in the spring of 2016, various
4134PWS pointed meto some other, more helpful books, which I discuss below.
4135Frommost of my readings, I was struck, and saddened, by the many ruefully negative “bottomlines” of those books, most of which were
4136written by compassionate and erudite people, who were also stutterers and Ph.D.’s, often in speech therapy! Regardless, most of them are
4137careful not to claim to be cured , but, rather, only to be “adequate speakers” but, clearly, still detectable as stutterers. (Agood many of the
4138PWS who Skype withmeassert that they are“verymild stutterers”, when, in fact, they border on severe. They have grown so used to their plight
4139and so accepting of it that it seems diminished to them. This may be a blessing ofsorts, but I prefer to face abject reality and assault the problem
4140with a determination to beat it.
4141One of my favorites among these touching books, A Stutterer’s Story, by Frederick Pemberton Murray (published by the Stuttering
4142Foundation, Publication #0061) literally brought tears to my eyes. Clearly, a learned, kindly and long-suffering man, who spent his long adult
4143lifein therapy,atclinics, seminars,etc., allseeking a solution that nevercame, wrote,
4144“I have never seen acompletecure…Therapy has not been lastingly helpful.”(See his pp .15 and 35, respectively.)
4145I learned today on Google that Mr. Murray may still be alive (in his 90’s). I intend to contact himand introduce my self-cured PWS-Mates
4146and myselfto himvia Skypeand showhimhowbreakthroughs have beenmade. I knowthat he will delight in it,as nearly all do.
4147One of the best known and most respected stuttering-therapists ever, Charles Van Riper (1905-1994), a severe stutterer himself who
4148counseled thousands ofstuttersaccording to his Wiki bio, wrote,
4149“… I still have hope that others will fulfill the vow that I made [to cure my stuttering]…Meanwhile, I wish to testify that it is
4150possibleto livea happy and usefullifeeven though you areastutterer.”
4151I so admire his resolution. (See Self-Therapy for the Stutterer”, by MalcolmFraser, published by the Stuttering Foundation, #0012, at p.
4152169.)
4153This general denouement can be found in many of the other books. For example, see Stuttering, A Comprehensive New Approach, by
4154WilliamD. Parry,aspeech-language pathologist, who writes,
4155“Most stutterers try severalforms oftherapy beforethey either find relief or give up on therapy altogether,”adding that only about onethird
4156of stutterers in therapyreceivesubstantial or somelong termrelief . (See his p. 171.)
4157Quite of few of the authors ofstuttering books are not stutterers, but offer therapy at their clinics, offering one week, two week, etc. courses,
4158costing thousands (in onecase, $5,000 foratwo-week courseand $2,000 forarefresher). Some ofthese did claimthata high percentage oftheir
4159patients achieved fluent speech, but, when I Googled their reviews online, I found the reviews a bit at odds with the claimed-successes. In the
4160books by these clinicians, which I read, I was unable to find any steps to a cure; theysimply generalized and urged the reader to come
4161to theirclinic.
4162Interestingly, I did not find, in these other books, anything like thespecific Six Steps to self-cure that are delineated in my book. While some of my methods (for example, auto suggestion and hypnosis) were mentioned in other books, they were cursorily dismissed as not
4163effective,although thereasons for their dismissals were notmadeclear.
4164After publishing the 1
4165st Edition of this book in spring 2016, I began to hear fromPWS. By the time this 2
4166nd Edition was released in spring
41672017, almost 2,000 PWS had found me on Facebook, and I was in communication with 100+ stutterers (by email, text messages, Facebook,
4168Messenger, Facetime, Skype-chat, Skype video and even telephone, and I was actively Skyping with 10-20 PWS weekly. It is what THEY
4169taughtmethatcompelled meto writethe 2
4170nd Edition.
4171Amongmany other things, PWS have pointed meto some other books. Theseincludethe writings ofRuth Meade, John Harrison and Dr.
4172Bob Bodenhamer . I just read Ruth Meade’s excellent “Speech Is a River” before writing this 2
4173nd Edition, and I found so interesting that I
4174devoted new Section 10 to it in this 2
4175nd Edition. While I have not yet had time to read John Harrison’s or Dr. Bodenhamer’s books, fromwhat
4176Ruth Meade wrote and from the comments of my PWS, I suspect that all three of these of the authors have many views in common :
4177Namely, that speech must be spontaneous, and that, whatever methods we use, UNplanned speech is the goal. Indeed, in my opinion, planning
4178words to say is the core cause of stuttering. Recognizing this is vital; how to stop planning words IS the problem. My methods achieved that
4179goalfor meand are nowdoing so for others.
4180To the best ofmy knowledge, otherauthors have notapplied or recommended most ofmymethods, much less in the ways that I have, or with
4181my practice techniques (which are tantamount to ongoing sessions with a therapist) nor did they employ anything remotely akin to my Steps 5 and
41826, which provide continuing daily self-therapy nor my 12 Crutches (to prevent relapses) as long as the problempersists, and therein may lie the
4183primary differences betweenmy book and theirs.
4184My goal is to extinguish as much stuttering as us possible, worldwide. My goal is not to “own” my methods or to profit financially
4185from them . I will never accept one dime for my efforts for PWS. It is my hope that my methods will catch-on; and that other authors and
4186therapists willembrace themand spread themand bring a long-overdue end to the life-threatening curse that stuttering is. I ask only that others,
4187who chooseto use mymethods, do notcharge PWS for them.
4188Even if others ignore my book and methods, I shall persevere, helping all whom I can via my writings and Skype-sessions and, hopefully,
4189enticingmy self-cured PWS, who growin numberseverymonth, to help me help other PWS self-cure. This isallthat I knowto do and can do.
4190No cure, self-cure or therapist-cure, will last unless thestutterer is willing to practice and treat him/herself daily, to theextent needed
4191to defeat stuttering and keep it at bay. As my Steps 5 and 6 suggest, taking and maintaining control of one’s mind is a lifelong process which
4192far transcends theexigencies ofstuttering.
4193In sum, virtually allthe other stuttering-related bookscan help to some degree. So,as your time permits, do read them.
4194The Bibliography below begins by listing books on (1) Auto Conditioning/Self-Hypnosis, (2) Mind Related books, and (3) Self-Help. I
4195strongly urge you to read these, as all of themwill help you use my Steps, which willexpedite and improve your progress in defeating stuttering,
4196and, asa bonus, they’ll help you becomea much better person, and, therefore, willelevate your karmaand your life. Iclosethe Bibliographywith
4197alist ofStuttering-related books,and I have highlighted thosethat I found most helpful.
4198I then close with a list of stuttering organizations and some online blogs of interest. In no way is my list complete. I amnot generally familiar
4199with stuttering organizations, because, sinceI self-cured some 40 yearsago, I have given zero thought to stuttering – at least untilI wrote my book
4200about it in 2015.
4201BIBLIOGRAPHY AND
4202RESOURCES
4203Auto Conditioning/Self-Hypnosis
4204*****A Practical Guideto Self-Hypnosis, Melvin Powers***
4205Audio version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dh6RXbQQeo
4206Helping Yourself with Self-Hypnosis, Frank S. Caprio, M.D.
4207Mind Related
4208*****The Brain That Changes Itself, NormanDoidge
4209Helping Yourself with Psychiatry, Frank S. Caprio, M.D.
4210Hidden Persuaders, Vance Packard
4211The Power of the Mind to Heal, JoanBorysenko Ph.D.
4212****The Biology of Belief, Bruce Lipton, Ph.D.
4213***Use Your Brain, DanielAmen, M.D.
4214The Power of Your Unconscious Mind, Dr.Joseph Murphy
4215Self-Help (all 5 Stars, with mine not rated)
4216Acres of Diamonds, RussellConwell
4217As A Man Thinketh , James Allen
4218Happiness in Seven Steps, Lee G. Lovett
4219Looking Out for Number One, RobertJ. Ringer
4220The Magic of Believing, Claude Bristol
4221The Power of Positive Thinking, NormanVincent Peal
4222Think and Grow Rich, NapoleonHill
4223Stuttering-Related Books
4224(I have not read Bodenhamer’s or Harrison’s books but notethat others highly recommend them.)
4225***** “Speech Is A River”, Ruth Meade, http://www.freestutteringbooks.com/free-stuttering-books.html
4226Dr. Bob Bodenhamer Talks About Stuttering; samelink;
4227Transcending Stuttering, JohnC. Harrison;samelink.
4228See Free Books About Stuttering; samelink.
4229The following I have read but decline to rate.
4230A Stutterer’s Story, by Frederick PembertonMurray, Stuttering Foundation Publication #0061. 160 pages
4231Ef ective Counseling in Stuttering Therapy, Stuttering Foundation Publication # 0018, 108 pages
4232From Stuttering to Fluent Speech, Ronald L. Webster Ph.D., Hollins Communications Research Institute, 215 pages
4233How I Raised Myself from Failureto Success in Selling, by Frank Bettger, Prentice Hall, 276 pages, nowavailable onAmazon
4234Self-Therapyfor the Stutterer, byMalcolmFraser, Stuttering Foundation Publication #0012, 192 pages
4235Speech Correction Principles and Methods, byCharles VanRiper, Prentice Hall 1947, 470 pages
4236Stuttering, A Comprehensive New Approach Based on the Valsalva Hypothesis, WilliamD. Parry, 2013, 308 pages
4237Stuttering: Straight Talk for Teachers, Stuttering Foundation Publication #0125, 30 pages
4238Stuttering Therapy: Transfer and Maintenance, 2
4239nd Edition, Stuttering Foundation Publication #0019, 100 pages
4240Stuttering: An Integration of Contemporary Therapies, Stuttering Foundation Publication #0061, 78 pages
4241The Genius of Dean Williams, Stuttering Foundation Publication #0425, 102 pages
4242Therapyfor Those Who Stutter, Stuttering Foundation\Publication #0010, 109 pages
4243Vocabulary :
424430 Days to a More Powerful Vocabulary, Dr. Wilfred Funk/NormanLewis
4245WORDS You Need to Know, Lee G. Lovett
4246Some Stuttering-RelatedGroups
4247If youGoogle“stuttering help”, youwillfind many groups who work with stutterers. Some ofthe most prominentare:
4248TheInternationalStutteringAssociation
4249Aguideto allstuttering organizations
4250http://www.isastutter.org/
4251Stuttering Foundation ofAmerica
4252P O Box 11749
4253Memphis, TN 38111-0749
4254Tel. 800-992-9392
4255NationalStutteringAssociation
4256119W. 40
4257th Street, 14
4258th Floor
4259N.Y., N.Y. 10018
4260Tel. 800-WESTUTTER
4261American Speech-Language-HearingAssociation
426222000 ResearchBlvd.
4263Rockville, MD20850
4264And now launching:
4265SpeechAnxiety Anonymous
4266Where Self-Cured PWS Help PWS
4267info@speechanxietyanonymous.org
4268https://speechanxietyanonymous.org/
4269Some Online Activities of Interest
4270Pamela Mertz
4271Make Roomfor the Stuttering
4272https://stutterrockstar.com/author/stutterrockstar/
4273Facebook’s:
4274Stuttering Community
4275stutteringcommunity.com/
4276https://www.facebook.com/StutteringCommunity/
4277StutteringHangout
4278https://www.facebook.com/groups/stutteringhangout/
4279StutteringTherapyAlternatives
4280https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=stuttering%20therapy%20alternatives
4281M
4282About the Author
4283ost books related to stuttering have been written by speech therapists of one kind or another, most of whomeither never stuttered or still
4284stutter. The author, Lee G. Lovett, has self-cured his own stuttering, and he has helped, and continues to help, others find self-cures. He
4285defines “self-cure”as a reduction of Satan Stuttering to a level that is no longer detectable by strangers. Mr. Lovett has given away his book to
4286countless PWS (People Who Stutter). Hesimplywants to share his“secrets”with as many othersas possible.
4287Since publishing the 1
4288st Edition of this book in spring 2016 (one year before publishing this 2
4289nd Edition), he has been “found” by some 2,000
4290“Friends” on Facebook, virtually all of whomare PWS, and he communicates (by email, messenger, Facebook, phone, etc.) with 100+ ofsame
4291and Skypes weekly (no charge) with 10-20 PWS. Heis nowfounding acharity to help stutterers (“SpeechAnxietyAnonymous”), where his selfcured
4292PWS-Matesand he will offer help to PWS worldwideat no charge. Their lofty goal? To remove Satan Stuttering fromthe planet.
4293Lee G. Lovett becameastutterer in hisearly teensand asporadically severestutterer (suffering full blockagein the mostcrucialsituations, such
4294as trying cases in court) in his twenties, at which time he began a desperatesearch foracure.After ten years ofallowing stuttering to morph into a
4295life-controlling demon, it then took another 10-15 years to discover and implement the self-cures, which he divides into six, user-friendly Steps in
4296this book. As such, the author’s battle with situationalstuttering raged for roughly 20-25 years. He admits that errant, sporadic fears ofstuttering
4297still raise their ugly heads, but he flatly states that he has not been detectable as a stutterer by anyone for decades now, and he offers, as proof,
4298Skype-interviewsand theaudible version ofthis book, which he has read in itsentirety.
4299Before practicing law and co-founding roughly 100 businesses, Mr. Lovett held many jobs (waiting tables, driving a cab, delivering ice,
4300working as a laborer in a steel plant, working in the U.S. Senate as a clerk, doorman, and managing the Republican Pages (and operating a then
4301dreaded switchboard) in the U.S. Senate, followed by door-to-door selling and then a year as National Sales Manager for a Boston-based,
4302burgeoning electronics’manufacturer). He then became an attorney and authored several books on communications law, and was an Editor ofa
4303Law Journal, but he devoted most of his time to co -founding over 100 radio, cable TV, cellular telephone and other businesses, most of which
4304werelong ago sold and/or later merged into publiccompanies butstill operatetoday. For moreabout Lee, see http://leeglovett.com/about/ .
4305Long retired, Lee remains a devoted family man, married to Lynda Barnes Lovett (a gifted pianist, songwriter and singer, lyndalovett.com ),
4306and he has four sons, 13 grandchildren and one great grandchild. Aonce dedicated runner, biker, skier and weight-lifter, his primary avocations
4307are reading roughly a book a week most of his life. “BookAWeekMan”is his nomde plume for his book reviews online, although hundreds more
4308of his reviewsare posted on his websiteat http://leeglovett.com/books/ ).
4309Lee has written many essays (on such topics as Anger, Boredom, Life as Perception, Persuading Others, Self-Acceptance, Serenity, and
4310War), which he refers to as “Observations”, as he views himselfas “a work in progress”; so, he attempts to observe rather than preach. See this
4311link to his website: http://leeglovett.com/observations/.
4312Although he cannot guarantee his ability, Mr. Lovett now consults, no charge, by email, Skype, Facetime, phone, etc., with any and all
4313stutterers, individually orcollectively. Hecan bereached at info@leeglovett.com.
4314Lee’s OtherBooks
4315NowonAmazon-Kindle :
4316Happiness in Seven Steps
4317WORDS You Need to Know
4318&Facts You’re Embarrassed Not to Know
4319The Watergate Rhymes
4320OtherBooks by Lee G. Lovett
4321Interpreting the Rules and Regulations of the Federal Communications
4322Commission s (1965, 1967, 1969,
4323Tab Books/McGrawHill- no longer in print)
4324INTERNETLINKS :
4325Lee’s Website : http://leeglovett.com;
4326http://leeglovett.com/my-life-as-a-stutterer/
4327International Stuttering Association link to Lee:
4328http://isad.isastutter.org/isad-2016/papers-presented-by-2016/stories-and-experiences-with-stuttering-by-pws/no-more-stuttering-lee-lovett/
4329Facebook link to Lee:
4330https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100011737520783
4331SpeechAnxiety Anonymous
4332(The Charity formed byLeeand his self-cured PWS-Mates)
4333https://speechanxietyanonymous.org/
4334Lee’s MusicalWifecan befound:
4335https://lyndalovett.com/wp-admin
4336THIS ENDS THE BEGINNING OF YOUR SELF-CURE