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Why Don’t People Stutter When They Sing?

January 2, 2012 By Leave a Comment

singing, stuttering, One of the enigmas about stuttering is that most people who stutter when talking don’t stutter when singing. Actually, it is often thought that no one stutters when they sing, but I have observed a few exceptions. Of the thousands of people who I have either evaluated or treated, a handful have stuttered occasionally when singing, particularly when starting to sing. Nonetheless, stuttering is very rare when singing.

An acceptable theory of stuttering has to account for this phenomenon. Therefore, I am going to explain from the perspective of my theory why people who stutter don’t stutter when they sing and what the difference is between speaking and singing.

When singing, the subconscious intent is to produce a voice that contains a sequence of varied vocal tones. This sequence makes up the melody of the song. The melody of a song is developed in the brain. As this is done, the motor area of the brain sends signals to the muscles of the larynx so that they will vibrate with the right pitch and rhythm. If you want to see this for yourself, sing a song silently. If you become aware of what happens in your throat, you will sense that your vocal folds are prepared to vibrate, even though you want to remain silent. The brain sends these signals automatically whether you are singing silently or aloud. Singing is all about voice and melody. When the song contains lyrics, nothing changes. The speech sounds are formed automatically without any thought or effort. Singing works this way for almost all people.

For the fluent speaker, speaking and singing are created in a similar way from the same exact anatomical structures. The same signals to vibrate the same vocal folds are subconsciously sent from the brain. This creates intonation, the speech equivalent to melody. Intonation becomes speech sounds as the mouth moves automatically. This can happen because fluent speakers are not aware of the words they are saying. For people who stutter speaking and singing are done differently. When speaking, the focus of attention for people who stutter is the words. In one way or another, they are concerned with saying words and “getting them out”. Intonation takes a backseat as the brain tries to control word formation. Subconsciously, the brain is busy sending signals to lips, tongue, jaw, etc. Instead of the mouth automatically shaping the voice (intonation) into speech sounds, the voice becomes a vehicle for pushing out already formed speech sounds and words. For people who stutter the processes of speaking and singing are done very differently. For people who speak fluently, they are almost identical. During Dynamic Stuttering Therapy, clients begin to understand this difference between these 2 ways of speaking and they report a big difference in the ease of speaking when they do it in the way that it is don by normally fluent speakers.

Filed Under: fluent speech, nature of stuttering

Getting to the heart of the problem – why stuttered speech happens

September 5, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Now that summer (at least over here in the the northern hemisphere) is over, life is getting back to normal and I want to get back to my efforts to explore the validity of my theory about stuttering. Central to this theory is my belief that there is interaction between speech planning, beliefs, emotions, and the pre-motor and motor programs involved in speech execution. Speaking is meant to happen automatically, but when there is over control of planning words and how to say them, the result might be feelings of anxiety, as well as the wrong signals being sent to the mouth and vocal folds that need to keep vibrating if the speech is going to flow.

Now the question is can this hypothesis be validated through research? Not being a researcher myself, I was very excited to attend a lecture at the NSA Applied Research Symposium by Dr. Jennifer Kleinow of LaSalle University. Kleinow’ et al.’s research related to Smith and Kelly’s Multi-factorial Model of Stuttering, a model that I have referenced many times. The study she presented was designed to see if something in the internal monitoring system of people who stutter is different than in people who speak fluently. What Dr. Kleinow and her colleagues found is that stutterers showed heightened peaks in looking for errors, regardless of whether an error was actually committed. This supports the vicious cycle hypothesis that says stuttering results from over-monitoring the speech plan.

In addition, Kleinow explained that the part of the brain that tells you to stop and start all over might be the anterior cingulate caudate (ACC). This area is a kind of switchboard between the premotor, linguistic, cognitive, limbic system. It is active during speech production, apparently overactive in some people who stutter.

So here we have some support that stuttering is not just a linear problem of blocks, rate of speech, breathing or voice production. It is most likely a problem of system function and is effected, at least in part, by over control of speech planning. There may be other areas of control as well, but this study related to the monitoring of phonological errors before they happen. It is my hope that learning about this connection might encourage those of you who stutter to be aware that planning what you are going to say gets in the way of what you want – the ability to speak without effort.

Filed Under: dynamic stuttering therapy, fluent speech, nature of stuttering

Understanding the Dahm Theory of Stuttering

July 6, 2011 By Leave a Comment

If my theory of stuttering is valid, it must be able to explain the variable nature of stuttering. There are some people who stutter in almost all conversations, but this rare, and even these people do not stutter on every word. Most people have times, or situations during which they report that they don’t stutter. Sometimes people can predict when they will stutter, but sometimes it just seems to happen without any warning.

According to my theory both stuttered and fluent speech is the outcome of the way the brain functions when speaking. Brains are dynamic. Therefore, while there is a preferred neural network for carrying out a specific task, different neural networks can kick in at different times according to the circumstance, health, thoughts and feelings of the person, or environmental cues. Let’s take the task of writing. The letters we see on the paper are the outcome of a neural network that we develop as we learn to form letters to express language, and do this repeatedly. After a while our handwriting becomes automatic and individualized. However, over time it changes. It also changes if we are relaxed/excited, happy/sad, distracted/concentrated, and, according to graphologists, as our personality develops. The same is true of speech. Fluent or stuttered speech is the outcome of a neural network that we develop as we learn to verbally express language, and do this repeatedly.

One of the factors that I believe affects the way the brain functions is the degree of conscious control that the speaker exerts over how to move the mouth to form words. More control equals more stuttering and less control results in better fluency. If you are speaking to myself, to an animal or small child, you are probably not at all concerned about speaking. In fact you might even be oblivious of the fact that you are speaking. What you are doing is simply giving expression to your inner thoughts. You are not thinking at all about talking, let alone trying to be fluent. Here is a situation that will not trigger the control mode of speaking, the mode that helps to create stuttering. Different situations can be linked to different modes of speech production. In later blog, I will explain the neurophysiological speech control network and why it creates stuttering.

Of course, there are people who also stutter in the situations that I’ve mentioned. Maybe they stutter less than when speaking before an audience or telling a joke, but they do report that their speech is not completely fluent. According to my theory, the network may have become so hardwired that even when not trying to control fluency, it is the default program. You might say it is basically the way the brain functions.

I invite all of you who stutter to see if there is a connection between your trying to speak fluently, articulately, or just trying to talk and the degree to which you stutter. When you totally forget that you are speaking, as in swearing or making asides, such as “I-I-I b-b-built a mmmm-mmmm-mmmm (aside: ‘This word is not coming out’) mmmmodel airplane,” do you have some spontaneous fluency? After you look into  this, I invite you to share your experiences. You might just find out why “chasing fluency” is so very unhelpful.

Filed Under: controversy, dynamic stuttering therapy, fluent speech, therapy approach Tagged With:

Confusion surrounding stuttering – and your questions

June 12, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Understanding stuttering would be much easier if we knew what we don’t know. We think in a certain way, so we are not aware of the possibility of thinking differently. This seems confusing, but what is very clear is that by thinking the same way we thought before, keeps us in a state of confusion.

Today people who stutter are confused. If you stutter, you have probably asked yourself, “What made me stutter this time?” or “Why can I speak in one situation, but not in another?” Wouldn’t it be great if there were a theory that would explain the why and how of stuttering, and how people who stutter can speak with ease and comfort?

So far there is no widely accepted comprehensive theory of stuttering. Furthermore, there never will be one, if we keep thinking about stuttering from the same perspective. By opening our minds and realizing that there is more to know and many different ways of looking at stuttering, we may be able to put crystal clarity on a condition that has until now been surrounded by a cloud of confusion.

For the past quarter of a century, I have been asking myself what is it about stuttering that I don’t know. Trying to find the answer to that question lead to observations that lead to another question. Through this process, I eventually found myself with the beginnings of a theory of stuttering. In this blog I want to check out this theory, but I will need your help. You see, if my theory can be proven to be true, it has to be able to explain all of what you know now about the characteristics, and nature of stuttering and fluency inducing factors. It also has to explain the speech behaviors, attitudes and feelings of people who stutter and how stuttering begins and develops. If my theory is valid it has to be testable and applicable to all people who stutter. It also has to be able answer all your questions or at least generate questions for research that can answer your questions. This is where you can help. In the weeks to come, I am going to explain my theory and see if it is plausible. So please post your questions below and let’s get a dialogue going. Let’s see if together we can get to know what we don’t know.

To get started, I will give you a basic overview of what I think stuttering is. As I comment on your questions and comments, I will explain it in more detail, but for now, it goes like this:

Stuttering is a condition in which the normally automatic way the brain transforms thoughts into language while producing a voice that is automatically shaped into speech sounds comes under too much control. Instead of all the elements of speaking working simultaneously, the speaker pays attention to words and then tries to get them out.

All the symptoms we see in people who stutter, such as blocks, repetitions facial and body tension, a lack of breath, fear of speaking, discomfort and so much more are the result of the malfunctioning neurological system that involves speech planning and production. Genetics, learned behavior, misconceptions about speaking, attitudes, reactions to outside stimuli and emotions can affect and may be affected by the way the system functions.

I look forward to explaining this theory further and to being stimulated by your questions.

 

Filed Under: fluent speech, general information, history, nature of stuttering, therapy approach

Taking Stuttering Therapy Beyond the Clinic Setting – All About Transfer

February 16, 2011 By Leave a Comment

People who stutter often say that they are able to speak fluently in the clinic, but find that their fluency disappears when they leave. This is a serious problem and I believe the solution lies in rethinking the issue of “transfer.”

One problem in “transfer” is, of course, that people want to transfer fluency. Anyone who has been following my blog knows that I don’t believe that fluency comes and goes by itself.  It is how the person’s brain functions that results in either stuttering or fluent speech. So if you are trying to be fluent and disregarding process, the results will be very disappointing.

Another problem is that people jump too quickly from being able to process speech in a way that results in fluent speech to wanting to use this way of speaking all the time. When I was a young and inexperienced clinician, I used to be happy when clients would say, “This is a wonderful way of speaking, I’m going to speak this way from now on”. Today, I realize that this is unrealistic. It takes time for the brain to accept a new way of functioning. This acceptance happens only after a period repetitive focused intention that enables the network of neurons in the brain that is now firing together to become wired together. When this happens the way of speaking becomes part of the self.

My advice to clients who have learned to process speech normally during our sessions is not to expect that because you know what to do it will happen automatically. Also, I do not want them to go and try to use this process when they are feeling anxiety and trepidation. Instead of going off into life and “trying” to speak this way, I encourage them to use the process alone and in non-threatening situations again and again and again. I want them to use this process of speaking for their own fun and enjoyment. I want them to see the relationship between process and results and I want them to get the sense of how peasant and easy it is to speak this way. As a matter of fact, I tell them not to even think of using it in any situation until they can’t wait to start using it, until it feels like the preferred thing to do. When that happens they will not be trying to do something they fear they cannot do. They will be confidently doing something they love to do. Under this circumstance, transfer will not be a threat it will be a pleasure.

Filed Under: dynamic stuttering therapy, fluent speech, speech control, therapy approach, treatment results

Results Are the Problem with Stuttering Therapy

February 3, 2011 By Leave a Comment

People who stutter can become fluent speakers. However, this will never happen by trying to speak fluently.

This might seem like just one more of the many paradoxes related to stuttering, but it is actually common sense. That is, it is common sense if you are talking about playing tennis, dancing, skateboarding, writing, cooking, constructing a chair, or even a sand castle. In all these activities people understand that there is a way to carry out these activities effectively. They know that results depend upon the process that goes into doing them. When results are not as they want them to be, the natural tendency is to think, “Hmmm… What do I need to do differently?” i.e. feel the music, hold my body differently, add more flavors, cut the wood straighter, etc.

For some reason stuttering doesn’t cause people who stutter and those who would like to help them think with that same kind of logic. Perhaps this is part of human nature because it has been going on for centuries. People seem to want to change speech fluency without considering the process of speaking. They want the speech to be smooth by trying to make the speech smooth. They want to get words out fluently, even though words are not a thing to get out, even if you want to get them out gently. They wonder why a person who stutters can speak fluently when alone, but not in front of a crowd. However, they don’t come to grips with how thoughts directly affect speech production, and they don’t focus on how to change both.

The belief that stuttering is a thing, not the result of a process, is so firmly and indelibly planted in peoples’ minds, that it is hard to accept that stuttering doesn’t come and go. It is not a thing that happens to you. It is a challenge for people to accept that stuttering is the brain using an ineffective network for the activity of producing speech. We know from the latest research that people who stutter use a different brain process for producing speech, but in treating stuttering this fact is so often ignored. People still think that you can change stuttering by changing the speech, i.e. speaking rate, number of pauses, levels of tension, etc. The result is frustration, because these techniques only occasionally and only inadvertently cause changes where changes need to be made – in brain processing.

I know many people will not agree with me when I say that people who stutter can become fluent speakers. This is because these people are focused on results (fluency and stuttering). I have seen again and again that people who stutter can change the way their brain functions to produce speech. It takes time, repetition, changing thoughts and awareness. It is not a quick and easy change, but people who stutter can do it, and when they do, naturally fluent speech is the natural outcome.

The greatest breakthrough for people who stutter comes when they say, “Hmmm.. I blocked on my name today. What was I doing that I can change? What were my thoughts and how can I change them?”

Filed Under: controversy, dynamic stuttering therapy, fluent speech, therapy approach

Whose Fault Is It? Part Three

January 4, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Several weeks ago I started a 3 part series in which I talked about whose fault it is that so many people who stutter are disappointed and dissatisfied with their treatment experiences. In part 1, I discussed that the approaches for treating stuttering need to be revised. In part 2, I talked about the inability of professionals to change the paradigms that they were taught and trained to believe are the best that can be. Today I am focusing on the people who are being treated, the people who stutter.

First I want to say that I strongly believe that everyone who comes to therapy wants to “get rid of the stuttering”. Furthermore, I think that most clients put their trust in their clinician and are willing to work hard to become fluent speakers. To some extent, while they are doing their absolute best to do what the clinician asks of them, it is this trust that is part of the problem. I believe that there are some clients who need to take a more proactive role in the therapy process. When they are asked to use a technique, they need to question how it is meant to help. Also, if they have honestly tried to do what was asked of them and found it to effortful or difficult to do, they have the responsibility to say that the technique is not working for them and, together with the clinician, explore where the problem lies.

Speech is one of the neurophysiologic systems of the human body that is meant to work automatically. It should not be an effort to speak. If it is an effort, something is wrong. Clients should not accept directives and goals that add layers of cumbersome controls. Clients who come to therapy without questioning what is being asked of them are at fault when they don’t get what they want.

It is very understandable that clients need to be encouraged to investigate the logic behind what they are being asked to do. This is why Dynamic Stuttering Therapy explains the process of normal speech production and is so centered on self exploration. I don’t want clients to do something because I say so; I want them to do what makes sense to them. Some clients do begin therapy thinking that I can make them fluent without their help. They do not want to be bothered with the details. Explanations and discussions are of little interest. During the initial intake it is normal to want to know results of therapy. However, during therapy clients who continue to believe that change comes by osmosis do not make the change that is necessary for a successful therapy experience.

Clients who expect that therapy is a quick fix cause their own disappointment. Therapy is a process of self-change. To be honest, speaking naturally is not a difficult process to learn. However, learning the process is only part of what therapy entails. I sometimes see clients who after 3-4 hours of treatment begin speaking with a degree of ease and fluency that is unfamiliar to them, even during their more fluent moments. In their joy, they expect to go off into their lives and their speech will remain fluent. This expectation is unrealistic. Developing a normal speech production system requires developing or at least strengthening the specific neurological network that results in fluent speech. This can only be done, with intention, mindfulness and repetitive experience.

I have discussed the three factors that are at fault for the failure of therapy to bring the understandably desired results. At the same time, I have touched on how these three factors can improve the situation. The poor outcomes that are traditionally associated with stuttering therapy need not be allowed to perpetuate. Open minds on the part of clinicians and clients will enable more people who stutter experience effective treatment and the ability to speak with ease and fluency.

Filed Under: controversy, dynamic stuttering therapy, fluent speech, nature of stuttering, therapy approach

New Year Wishes

December 24, 2010 By Leave a Comment

During this special time of year, I want to wish all of you who are celebrating Christmas a very Happy Holiday. I hope Christmas will be a meaningful day for you and that you will have the opportunity to celebrate with family and friends.

While you are celebrating, I want to wish you the opportunity to speak freely and to resist the all too natural tendency that people who stutter have to avoid speaking. We all know that effort to avoid stuttering increases the frequency and severity of stuttering. For this reason it is far better to speak without concern of whether or not you will be able to say this word or that one.

Giving up trying to avoid stuttering is not easy.  However, a good 1st step toward doing this is to start talking more openly about the subject of stuttering. This helps, because once the subject is out in the open, the fear of having your stuttered speech heard is somewhat reduced.

This Christmas holiday as you are sitting around the table or visiting with friends and relatives, it will be easier than ever to bring up the subject of stuttering. All you have to do is mention having seen, or not having seen yet the new movie, “The King’s Speech”.  For anyone who has not yet heard about or seen this movie, it focuses on the effect of stuttering on the life of King George VI of England and his speech therapy.  What a wonderful icebreaker for the subject of stuttering!

As the New Year approaches, this is also be a good time for new beginnings, for looking at stuttering in a new way, for making 2011 the year that you make the changes that make it easier for you to speak. During the coming year I am planning to continue sharing my thoughts about stuttering, my knowledge about how to treat stuttering effectively and some of the experiences of my clients as they actually make these changes.

I wish you all a very Happy New Year!

Filed Under: fluent speech, general information, therapy approach Tagged With: , , ,

A sample activity to supplement treatment – sub vocal speech

August 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment

I often get emails from people who want me to give them a quick tip on how they can become fluent speakers. I certainly understand their desire. However, I’m also certain that no one really believes that there is a simple trick or one piece of advice that will instantly transform a person who stutters into a fluent speaker.

Nevertheless, people who stutter can go through a process of helping themselves to become fluent speakers. This process starts with discovering how fluent speech is produced and comparing this to what you do to produce speech. So for those of you who want to take an active role in this process, I thought that it would be a good idea to give you an activity to do.

The activity I am describing here is meant to show you that speaking does not involve thinking about what you want to say and then trying to get it out. So let’s explore….

Activity: Discovering how language develops in the brain i.e. developing internal (sub vocal) speech

Step 1: Write an email to some one. While you are doing this, become aware of how language automatically develops in your head. This is your internal or sub vocal speech.

Internal speech automatically develops in your head when you are writing, figuring out a math problem or simply talking silently to yourself. Language is meant to develop in the exact same way when you are talking to all people in all situations. Developing internal speech is speaking and there is really nothing else that you need to do. Doing anything less, or anything more, will very likely lead to speech blocks. I suggest you look at these fascinating links related to sub vocal speech. It will help you understand the power of this inner speech.

Step 2: Speak silently as you become aware of how language develops automatically when you are not thinking about the words that you are saying or planning to say.

For most of you, this will be natural under the condition of silent speech, but for others, you might find that even in silent speech you have a tendency to preplan your thoughts or choose your words. If this is the case, you can try giving up all control by experiencing automatic internal speech while counting or saying the ABCs. Later you can move on move on to spontaneous speech.

Step 3: Once you are speaking naturally in your head, continue to do this as your mouth simultaneously moves along with the internal speech.

Some of you might have been doing this already in steps 1 & 2. If not, do it now. If you are using automatic articulation, you will hardly feel that you mouth is moving, even though it is. Also you will be able to speak without any effort.

Step 4: Talk silently and then talk aloud. See if there is any difference at all in the way your internal speech develops and the way your mouth moves.

Being aware of whether the process of speaking silently and aloud is the same, or even slightly different, is the prerequisite for changing how the system works.

Filed Under: dynamic stuttering therapy, fluent speech, speech control, therapy approach

Whose fault is it?

August 22, 2010 By 2 Comments

Have you been through a therapy program hoping to improve your speech fluency and in the end didn’t see much change? If you have, you are not alone. This is too often the case, even after years of treatment. Why? Who is at fault? Is it you, the client? Is it the clinician? Is it that fluency in real life is not possible? Or is the treatment approach that is not adequate? In my next few blogs I will discuss where I think the fault lies from the all these angels.

Before I begin, however, I want to say that looking for the responsible source i.e. “fault” is not the same as placing blame. There is a big difference between where the responsibility lies and the need for blame or guilt. For instance, once most people died from pneumonia. Was the doctor or patient guilty? No. Was the treatment at fault? Yes, and the reason was the lack of knowledge about bacteria and how to kill it. Therefore, at that time we could not blame or place guilt on the part of the people involved. Today, we have the knowledge of how to treat most cases of pneumonia, so a doctor could be blamed for not recognizing the signs of pneumonia (as my doctor failed to do 3 years ago when I had it); a patient could be blamed for not going to a doctor when feeling sick, or not demanding better tests and treatment when the condition is not improving (as I did when I wasn’t getting better), or not taking the medicine that was prescribed. Nevertheless, I would prefer to search for source, because blame and guilt are not constructive in a search for solutions.

So let’s get back to stuttering. If we are going to look for whose fault it is that so many people do not achieve the long-term ability to speak fluently, I think that the first place to look is the treatment approaches being used. Simply stated, I believe that the major cause for the failure of treatment is a lack of knowledge of how to treat it. Most treatment approaches focus on fluency or try to modify the moment of stuttering. However, it is obvious to anyone who has tried it that you don’t become a fluent speaker by treating the stuttered speech and trying to make your speech non-stuttered.

Speaking is a neurological activity in the brain of a person who has thoughts, feelings, intentions, genetic tendencies and memories. We have seen through various types of brain scans that the brain works differently in people who stutter. Therefore, changes in the brain need to be made in order to create fluent speech.

Not only is speaking is an activity of the brain but for the most part it is an unconscious activity. People are not meant to think about how to speak; how to get words out; which words should be said. People are not meant to preplan their speech before speaking. Why then should stuttering therapy train people to monitor and control how they breathe, how to hold or relax the muscles of the mouth, how to say sounds more gently and smoothly, how to change the way you stutter? Stuttering represents control of a system that is meant to function subconsciously, so why ask people who stutter to develop speech controls and “tools”? Tools and controls are not part of normally fluent speech.

Managing stuttering by way of speech controls has been the long-standing method of choice. It’s time to try a different approach, one that has eluded too many clinicians and clients for too long. We have to keep our minds open to a new perspective that incorporates research findings and clinical observations. This is the 21st century. Strides are being made in the understanding and treatment of human conditions that only a short time ago were not understood or treatable. The old paradigms that have been the driving force of stuttering treatment until now do not fall in line with current research and do not explain all that is known about the nature of stuttering. Until stuttering therapy helps people use their brain the way it is meant to function in order to produce speech, the ability to produce normally fluent speech will continue to elude clients and clinicians alike. Change is a reality of life. Now is the time to rid ourselves of the concepts that have not lead people who stutter in the direction that will give them a successful treatment experience. Now is the time for developing a treatment approach that will lead clients to speak with ease and freedom from control.

Filed Under: controversy, dynamic stuttering therapy, fluent speech, therapy approach, treatment results
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