Spencer is an outgoing and sociable boy who had learned to live with stuttering. He has lots of friends and is active in school activities. Nonetheless, his speech did hold him back from meeting new people and he hoped to be able to speak fluently. Spencer received speech therapy both in elementary and middle schools, but he didn’t feel that these therapy experiences were very helpful to him. After hearing about Dynamic Stuttering Therapy, Spencer was not convinced that therapy would really help, but he was ready to give therapy another try.
After 18 hours of treatment with Barbara Dahm, Spencer explains how he learned to speak naturally. For the first time he realized that there was no need force words out. He learned to produce speech easily and without effort . He was pleased not to have to learn, memorize and practice techniques.
Spencer’s ability to speak fluently was in no sense of the word a magic cure. In therapy he experienced a natural way of producing speech. During the therapy process, Spencer saw that his new way of speaking was more effective than his previous way. That motivated him to do the practice activities between sessions and to gradually begin to incorporate this way of speaking in his daily life. Spencer was never told that he had to speak in the new way all the time. However, he soon realized that there is a cause and effect condition. When he tried to force words out, he stuttered. When he produced speech by generating his natural voice without trying to control what he was saying, his speech flowed naturally. For the first time he felt that therapy had a positive effect on his life.
