Stuttering Online Therapy » gestalt http://stutteringonlinetherapy.com From Communication Therapy Institute Mon, 02 Jan 2012 12:41:41 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 Welcome to The Dynamic Stuttering Therapy blog http://stutteringonlinetherapy.com/2009/08/welcome-to-the-dynamic-stuttering-therapy-blog/ http://stutteringonlinetherapy.com/2009/08/welcome-to-the-dynamic-stuttering-therapy-blog/#comments Fri, 21 Aug 2009 08:13:13 +0000 Barbara Dahm http://stutteringonlinetherapy.com/wordpress/?p=169 Welcome to The Dynamic Stuttering Therapy blog. Here I will tell you my views of what stuttering is and the best way to treat it. My journey toward understanding stuttering has been a long one. Like many of you, I’ve hit blind alleys and dead ends as I looked for ways for overcoming stuttering. The first time that I ever had a person who stutters come to me for therapy was over 40 years ago when I first began working as a Speech Clinician. As an undergraduate, I had been taught that stuttering was a problem of personality dynamics. It sounded good, but I had no idea of how to change someone’s personality, so I looked to the textbooks for advice and in the meantime received a Master Degree from Boston University.  I tried everything: stuttering modification, desensitization, airflow, Gestalt therapy, fluency shaping and more. Unfortunately, I did not find that any of these approaches were the solution my clients’ desire to speak normally. During these years I met some people who were devastated because they stuttered. Although, at the time, I did not know how to successfully treat stuttering, I could not accept the common belief that my role as a clinician was to help my clients learn to live with stuttering. I became determined to find a way to help people who stutter speak freely. For the past 20 plus years that has been one of the main priorities in my life.

Today, I am a Board Recognized Specialist in Fluency Disorders. I have treated well over 2000 people who stutter of all ages. I realized many years ago that stuttering had many facets that had to be related. This lead me to look at it as a problem of how the speech production system functions. Through the years, with the help of my clients, researchers, other professionals in many fields, a bit of optimistic stubbornness, and faith, I am happy to say that I have unraveled many of the mysteries related to stuttering. Now when people come to me because they stutter, I do not have to guess what goals they need to achieve. Therapy is not a question of trial and error. I know for a fact that stuttering is treatable, and I can clearly see the cause and effect relationship between how the speech system functions and the ability to make both stuttered and fluent speech.

Today I am able to help people who stutter discover that they are capable of speaking fluently with ease and comfort.  I have the joy of watching so many of my clients gain confidence and enjoy speaking. I know I am looking at stuttering from a different perspective than most people. It is the perspective you will read about on my blog. I think you will find it enlightening. I look forward to your comments and hope you will enjoy mine.

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