Practical Thoughts Blog

Stuttering Therapy Resources created an image of tally marks with title of "Counting Stutters is a Waste of Time."

Counting Stutters Is a Waste of Time!

When assessing stuttering, counting stutters does not reflect the overall experience of the person who stutters.  Speech pathologists can stop counting stutters because listeners cannot observe stutters that a person experiences, the nature of stuttering is that it is always variable, some people who stutter can appear fluent by altering their communication in unhelpful ways, and stuttering is a complex communication difference, and cannot be...

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Stuttering Therapy Resources Guest Fluency Verbal Diversity Image

If stuttering is Verbal Diversity™, then is it still a disorder?

Stuttering is a disorder and a difference. Stuttering is a disability if the person who stutters experiences negative impact because of their stuttering.  Confusion regarding specific terminology in the neurodiversity era provides us an opportunity to clarify some of the terminology that can be confusing for clinicians and caregivers alike. These discussions about terminology can enhance our understanding of the life experiences of those who...

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Remembering Our Dear Friend, Dr. Bob Quesal

Remembering Our Dear Friend, Dr. Bob Quesal

Many of our readers recognize Bob as the co-author of the OASES and the Minimizing Bullying program. Bob’s contributions to the field are truly groundbreaking [see several links below]. Throughout his career, he championed the voices of people who stutter, from his earliest writings that reminded speech-language pathologists not to forget people who stutter, to his longstanding studies on the life experiences of people who...

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If I don’t count stutters, how can I qualify people for therapy?

If I don’t count stutters, how can I qualify people for therapy?

You’ve probably heard that our field is moving away from using stuttering frequency counts as a way of measuring stuttering. In our opinion, this is a very good development—it is something that we have been encouraging for quite a while now, and it is increasingly important as we come to view stuttering as an example of Verbal Diversity™. (For more discussion of stuttering as Verbal...

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Shifting Perspectives About Stuttering

Shifting Perspectives About Stuttering

In the era of expanding our understanding of neurodiversity-affirming stuttering therapy, a first step is to make certain we, as speech-language pathologists (SLPs), are approaching assessment and therapy from the perspective of the person who stutters. Their experiences inform our therapy planning. There are reasons why our past professional practices were based upon the listener's observations of stuttering, and there are three major reasons why...

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Stuttering Therapy Resources Verbal Diversity Blog Post

What is Verbal Diversity?™

The Emergence of Verbal Diversity™ Before we delve into the concept of "verbal diversity," it's essential to understand the background of stuttering in society. In brief, stuttering has historically been viewed as a flaw, a burden, or something that needed to be "fixed." People who stutter have been subjected to therapies aimed at eliminating their disfluencies. This type of therapy has frequently led to frustration, low...

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Illustration of clinician at a crossroads with question marks

What do people who stutter want from stuttering therapy?

The best way to learn about what people who stutter want from stuttering therapy is to listen to them. This post highlights the importance of learning from people about their personal journeys with stuttering so that SLPs can ensure that we are aligned with our clients true goals and desires for therapy.

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Virtual Reality for Speech Therapy? SOON!

Virtual Reality for Speech Therapy? SOON!

Virtual reality for stuttering therapy? Our guest blogger, Gareth Wilkom is working on it! He tells his "whys" and shares his excitement for the potential of using VR to help those who stutter learn to handle speaking situations outside of therapy and into the real world!

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Person with bullhorn and caption "Let's talk about...no more focus on fluency

Stop using the word "fluency" when talking about "stuttering"

For years, speech-language pathologists have used the word "fluency" when talking about people who stutter. In this series of vlogs, Seth Tichenor, Christopher Constantino, J. Scott Yaruss, and Nina Reeves challenge viewers to rethink the use of the word "fluency" when talking about stuttering.

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