My name is Bobby, and I live in the state of Washington. I have stuttered since I was 3 or 4 years old. My father also stuttered growing up, but overcame it in his college years. I went to speech therapy for a few years in elementary school, without much help. My speech was at its worst in middle school. I dreaded class presentations, roll call, and talking on the phone. As I got older, I found ways to “manage” my stuttering habit. However, my speech was always in the back of my mind, and held me back from aspiring to go outside of my comfort zone.
In the past couple years I have tried to challenge myself more, and step out of my comfort zone “bubble”. I was hired by a law enforcement agency in Washington a year ago. A large portion of the job is talking to strangers on a day to day basis. Another part of the job that challenges me, is talking on a portable radio to a dispatch communication center.
Knowing that I needed to improve in these areas, I looked for solutions. I started seeing a psychiatrist last fall. Without much success, I stopped seeing her, and started seeing a speech therapist. They each didn’t truly understand my problems. I was a very situational stutterer, and had no problem talking with them fluently in each of their clinics.
I stumbled upon Lee Lovett’s book while looking for self-help stuttering books on Amazon. Eagerly I started reading the book in late spring. After two weeks I had finished the book, and started skyping with Lee two weeks later. The best part about the book was knowing that I’m not alone with this problem, and people in my shoes have overcome their speech disability.
I have found the crutches to be a tremendous help while in pressured situations. My favorite crutches are extreme pronunciation and skipping the first syllable or letter. Both auto suggestions and self-hypnosis have also helped immensely. As a result, I have been more relaxed and have extinguished my negative speech thoughts.
Skyping with Lee has helped keep me motivated on my journey to fluency. He has a unique skill of connecting with each of his “mates”. You can hear me speak here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-3NPgoq1HM&t=2s.
I haven’t had a speech disabling incident in over two months. Now that I have reached the first milestone with my speech, I am not stopping. Next, I want to get to the point with my speech where I love to speak. Lee’s methods work. Why don’t you beat it too?
BOBBY, Washington State, August 2019
