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From: Peter Howell
Date: 06 Oct 2011
Time: 07:23:55 -0500
Remote Name: 128.40.97.201
Anne-Marie Simon wrote in her article A survey on traditional treatment practices for stuttering in Sub-Saharan Africa wrote, “Animism is the idea that souls or spirits exist not only in humans and animals, but also in natural phenomena, like rocks and geographic features, as well as other entities in the natural environment. Humans are assumed to have souls that exist apart from their bodies before and after death. There is a triangular relationships between humans, animals, and the saintly. Because of the widespread belief in animism, people who stutter in Africa may be considered to be damned, bring bad luck to the community, and to be possessed by evil spirits. These people are often excluded from their community. Stuttering is regarded in a different way, compared to the Western world. Treatments are preceded by rituals, magic spells and formulae that have been passed down from father to son. There are many different treatment approaches to stuttering in this area. Perhaps the most striking such treatments involve cruel and unusual practices, such as, starvation, strangulation, cutting, and burning.” Hope that helps define "traditional treatment".