My name is Terri and I currently reside in Canyon Country, California. I am and have been a Probation Officer for approximately twenty years. Getting into law enforcement was literally a surprise, considering I had planned on being a Children’s Social Worker.
Being in law enforcement actually turned out to be exciting , fulfilling and very rewarding. Having a speech impediment as a Probation Officer hasn’t hindered my career, but I have experienced some embarrassing moments, relating to my speech impediment. An example would be , one time during a training at work, I was instructed to read a paragraph and during the reading, I “blocked “ and immediately someone tried to “correct “ me and say the word. I’m sure they thought I didn’t know the word. This “mishap“ caused me shame and embarrassment.
At the age of fifteen, I experienced a very traumatic incident, that somehow caused my “speech” to change. I soon started to “block” or I couldn’t get the word out, when I wanted to say it . This change in my speech caused me to go within and become withdrawn. My personality shifted. I had been someone who would always volunteer to “speak up” in class to say the answer, or I would volunteer to read out loud.
Soon afterwards, because of the speech trauma that ensued, I became “fearful “ of reading out loud, not only in school to my teachers and peers, but I was afraid to read to others , or even say my name. It was so embarrassing. I thought I would remain a stutterer or “blocker. I felt trapped and doomed for life . But, somehow, deep down inside, I knew there had to be a better way! I felt that speech therapy in general would not help me.
Stuttering was said to be “incurable”, and I had never encountered a person who had been cured from stuttering by going to Speech Therapy.
One day, I decided to go on the internet to see if anyone had “actually “ been cured from this “Stuttering Demon” as the author, Coach Lee calls it in one of his books. Low and behold, I soon ran across one of Coach Lees videos and in the video, the person stuttered profusely. Soon after, because of Coach Lee’s book and methods, this individual became very fluent in his speech. Afterwards , I read several comments where people who stuttered, highly recommended the book “How to stop stuttering and love speaking” by the author, Lee Lovett, who also happened to be a former stutterer who not only wrote the book, but no longer stutters and hasn’t stuttered in over forty years. I was immediately taken aback! I felt “hopeful “ for the first time. I soon ordered the book and followed the “3” main strategies to the road of fluency or being fluent.
The strategies are reading for at least an hour a day and repeating Affirmations on a daily basis, at least 20 times each and doing this twice a day and utilizing some Crutches (ways to avoid stutters), which are like your little helpers. For example, if I may have had “challenges “ saying my first name, which I did , as many stutterers do, I can now say it with ease, by omitting the first “feared “ letter and then pronouncing my name, which becomes less “fearful “ to say. Trust me , it works. I have utilized that crutch many times.
After adhering to the methods for at least a month, I noticed a change in my speech. I became more fluent, and not “blocking “ as much. The more I practiced the three strategies listed in Coach Lee’s book, the more I became confident in not only my speech, but in literally everything I did in life. I did fall off track a couple of times, but I would definitely get right back on track. I could see progress transpiring right before my eyes. I could now say my entire name to others on the phone, without blocking. I knew to now say my name in a “tonal “ manner (holding the tone through the word to avoid hesitating, fearing a word and forcing it. Who would have thought that holding a tone (which is like singing without a melody), or not saying the “first feared letter “ could make such a huge, positive difference.
Sometimes change isn’t easy, but in cases where one can “see” the change working, literally in front of your eyes, is utterly remarkable.
I now feel like my life is where it should be. In all honesty, I never would have thought I would be fluent in speaking and reading to others “out loud without any fear. Coach Lee, the (PWSS) Therapists and WSSA’s stuttering mobile app, have changed my life in such amazing ways.
I pray and hope that every person who has stuttering issues, will read Coach Lee’s great book , “How to stop stuttering and love speaking” because this book will change their life for the better . It changed mine.
Terri, California, February 2025
