I Have a Voice
How to Stop Stuttering
Bob G. Bodenhamer, DMin
Edited by Peter Young
Foreword to the paperback edition by
L. Michael Hall
Foreword by John C. Harrison
Contents
Title Page
Foreword to the paperback edition by Bob G. Bodenhamer and L. Michael Hall
Foreword by John C. Harrison
Introduction
Chapter One The Origins of Stuttering
Chapter Two Learning to Think Differently
Chapter Three Changing Points of View
Chapter Four Stories about Stuttering
Chapter Five Working with Stress
Chapter Six Techniques of Change
Appendix A Pioneers
Appendix B A case study by Linda Rounds with Bob G. Bodenhamer
How to contact the author
Acknowledgments
Bibliography
Index
Copyright
Foreword to the paperback edition
by Bob G. Bodenhamer and L. Michael Hall
Stuttering is in the shadows of public awareness and has been for years. But no more! Now there is a movie that is bringing it forth front and center. Sure, no one dies from stuttering, and it is not pervasive: only one percent of people stutter. Yet it is a malady that has not received a great deal of attention.
But no longer is it in the shadows. In November 2010, a movie brought stuttering to the world’s attention. The King’s Speech, a British historical drama directed by Tom Hooper and written by David Seidler made stuttering part of the public conversation. Moviegoers learned of the embarrassing pain that most People Who Stutter (PWS) suffer. But, even more than that, Lionel Logue, the speech trainer in the movie, brings into focus this shocking fact: stuttering is not about speech! It is about the “thinking” that is mostly unconscious and in “the back of the mind” of the PWS.
Positioned in the 1930s, the movie is about the young man who became the King of England just prior to the Second World War. It reveals the painful experiences that stuttering created for him. Logue, an Australian, who became the King’s speech trainer, used techniques to enable the King to gain more control of his stuttering in ways that were quite advanced for that time. Many things in this movie give support to the theories that you will find in the pages of this book.
So what did Logue do? Mainly and primarily he challenged the mental frames that created the stuttering. He knew that stuttering was not a problem of flawed neurology or genetics. He knew that it was a problem of the person’s attitudes and beliefs (mental frames) about stuttering. To create a good case of stuttering, there are certain belief frames a person has to adopt. The person has to believe such things as:
Mis-speaking is a terrible, horrible, and awful experience.
Mis-speaking means “I’m inadequate as a person.”
Mis-speaking means “No one will like me, want to be around me, value me, love me. They will laugh at me and reject me.”
Mis-speaking means “I have to stop myself from stuttering and pay attention to each and every word that comes out of my mouth.”
Mis-speaking means “It’s impossible. I can’t stop it. Trying to stop it only makes it worse. I must indeed be inadequate as a human being.”
Mis-speaking means “I cannot have a career nor can I ever marry – who would want to marry me?”
Mis-speaking is terrifying because of the meanings given to it. It is the meanings given to stuttering that this book addresses. The King’s Speech serves as a support for the radical views contained within this work. Indeed, we believe that stuttering is a phobia of mis-speaking, with the painful feelings being located in the throat and other muscles that are involved in speaking. If you do not believe this, look up the diagnosis of a panic attack in the DSM-IV1. Does the description of a panic attack not describe exactly what you experience when you are having a speech block?
Logue knew this as he so passionately tries to get the King to understand that stuttering is about a specific behavior, speaking, and not about who he is. Logue as much says, “Bertie, your brain isn’t broken. It is doing exactly what you instruct it to do. The problem is your mental frames about stuttering!” The mental frames listed above are the frames that create the problem. And that is why when you change those frames, the stuttering behavior changes.
In the movie, The King’s Speech, you see Logue’s actions as he assists Bertie, the King, in changing his mental frames. We have identified six key mental frames that were driving Bertie’s stuttering:
1. Demanding-ness – Logue challenges his frames about demanding-ness. “Bertie, call me Lionel; here we are equals.” This changes the context (which changes meaning). Later he says, “Say it to me as a friend.”
2. Exceptions – We have found out that most every PWS has exceptions – places, times, and people – with whom and where they do not stutter. When do you not stutter? Do you stutter with your dog? Do you stutter when you are alone? Do you stutter when among trusted friends? In the movie, Logue asks, “Do you stutter when you think?” “No, of course not.” Ah, so here’s an exception! So you do know how to think or pray or talk to your dog without stuttering! So if there’s an exception, what is the difference that makes a difference in that exception? If you develop that, you’ll have developed a powerful first step to a resolution.
3. Singing – In the movie, Logue asks Bertie to sing it. Find a tune that you know well and whatever it is that you are trying to say, sing it. “Let the sounds flow,” Logue explains. This accepts the experience and changes one element in it. The King thinks it silly, ridiculous, and refuses to do it at first, but then he finds that he can move through the blocking by using a tune and putting the words to the tune. Singing creates both rhythm and air flow, both of which aid the PWS in speaking fluently.
4. Judgmentalism – It takes Logue a long time, but eventually the King talks about being mercilessly teased
