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From: SSG Howard Hodges
Date: 10/9/03
Time: 3:43:07 AM
Remote Name: 152.163.252.4
Thanks for the question, Judy! No one told me that I was no longer a "stutterer." In fact at Shady Trails Camp, I had heard the phrase "once a stutterer, always a stutterer." Even though I rebelled against that, I knew what they were trying to say: Relax..deal with it...and don't be concerned about labels. In my case, it just "happened." One day -- or actually over a period of time -- I realized, "Hey, I'm not sta-sta-stuttering anymore!" (Then of course I'd "block" and stutter the next day.) So, yes, while I don't have frequent speech blocks -- I have either the residue of a secondary mannerism to overcome my stuttering (or it's just my personality, so to speak)and I now talk really, really fast sometimes -- esp. when I'm deep in a conversation with a friend. I guess Shady Trails Speech Camp was right: we'll always be dealing with our speech problems throughout our life...no matter on what level of fluency we "think" we're on. I'm still learning and dealing. And you?