In many ways covert stammering is the most complex and difficult form of stammering to manage. Most often, people with covert stammering only stammer very mildly and they may go for long periods without producing any visible (or audible) stammering symptoms at all. Consequently, it is relatively easy for them to hide the fact that they sometimes stammer—and this is where much of the problem of covert stammering lies. Having succeeded in hiding the fact that they stammer, covert stammerers frequently find that their lives that are then plagued by the fear of being found out, and they often suffer from significant feelings of guilt, shame, and inadequacy.

Although it is completely understandable that we may want to hide the fact that we sometimes stammer, if we have fallen into this trap of allowing our feelings of self-esteem and self-worth to become dependent on how well we can speak, our self-esteem will be damaged every time we get stuck and our fear of stammering is likely to grow out of all proportion.

If you have fallen into this trap, the best way to climb back out, is to study stammering and to learn about it in as much detail as is possible. By getting to know exactly what it is and how and why it happens, you will develop a firm and clear understanding that stammering is nothing to be ashamed of, you will understand that it is not in any way your fault that you stammer, and that, indeed, it is perfectly OK and natural to stammer mildly. Indeed, studies show that mild stammerers are sometimes better communicators than people who don’t stammer. The quickest way to arrive at this understanding is by working your way through the Cognitive Therapy & Mindfulness module and Understanding Stammering module. Having started to work your way through these modules, it is then a good idea to start the Jump module and learn to employ the Jump. Doing so will ensure that, on the occasions when you do get stuck on a sound or word, your stammering doesn’t hold you up for too long and doesn’t prevent you from continuing to move forward and therefore doesn’t elicit negative responses from your listeners.

Generally people with covert stammering do not need to learn or practice Orchestral Speech or any fluency-shaping techniques as most covert stammerers have already learned enough tricks and crutches to enable them to remain fluent if they need to.

In summary, if your stammering is characterized by covert symptoms, we suggest working through the practical modules of the course in this order…

1. Mindfulness & Cognitive Therapy Module & Understanding Stammering Module

2. The Jump

Before starting we suggest that you download the Stammering Checklist. You can access the modules and the checklist directly from the buttons below.

It is a good idea to print the checklist out so you can use it to keep track of what you have covered as you work through the course.

You can work through the course in your own time, moving forward at a rate that is best suited to you. If there are any bits that you find particularly difficult, you can go over them again and again, to ensure you have properly understood them.

If you get stuck, if you can’t understand something, or if you find that one or other of the techniques is not working for you, please do email us to explain what the problem is. It may well be that we have failed to explain something adequately. If so, your feedback will help us to remove any ambiguity or confusion in the text. Whatever the problem, we will do our best to help. Depending on how practical it is (in terms of time and numbers of people requesting help), we may be able to discuss some issues directly with you, over Skype or Zoom. But we cannot guarantee that this will always be possible.

<< go back to previous page: Online Course Overview

If your stammering symptoms are mild, probably you can often say exactly what you want without getting stuck. Nevertheless, there may be certain words, people, or speaking situations that tend to trigger your stammering, and because these words, people, and speaking situations are relatively predictable, you may have developed the habit of avoiding them.

Because most of the time you are able to speak without stammering, as a mild stammerer you probably will not want to employ a technique every time you speak, and it is not necessary to do so. Instead, it will benefit you greatly—and greatly reduce your fear of stammering—if you just learn a technique to get you moving forward again whenever you find that you have got stuck. The technique we teach which will enable you to do this is called the Jump.

The Jump is a block-modification technique, which you can only employ after you get stuck. So, in order to be able to employ the Jump you have to first of all allow yourself to stammer and to get stuck. Then, as soon as you have got stuck, you can employ the Jump to get started again.

In theory, the Jump is the easiest technique of all to employ, because it just involves missing out the sound or word you are stuck on—essentially, you just jump over the sounds you can’t say and carry on with the ones you can say.

In practice, employing the Jump can be a little more difficult than that, because most of us have developed a strong habit of going back and trying over and over again to say the sounds we can’t say until we feel like we’ve said them well enough. So it may take a bit of perseverance to develop the habit of keeping on moving forward regardless. But once you’ve developed that habit of keeping moving forward it can quickly become your normal way of speaking, and it starts to feel completely natural. Indeed, it is not really a “technique” it’s just a normal carefree way of speaking. People who don’t stammer regularly jump over sounds, especially when they are talking quickly, and most of the time their listeners understand them perfectly well. Indeed, most of the time their listeners don’t even notice that they’ve jumped over a sound or two.

Although the Jump works really well in the majority of speaking situations, there will be some times and situation where it doesn’t work well enough. The most common such situation is when you jump over a sound you are stuck on and your listener then fails to understand what you have said. So having learned how to Jump, you will also need to have a back-up method for those times when it doesn’t work. There are lots of back-up methods you can use at such times—the most straightforward involve repeating the problem phrase using the fluency shaping technique that we teach called “Orchestral Speech”.

Alongside learning to employ the Jump and Orchestral Speech, right from the start it will be useful for you to start working your way through the Understanding Stammering module—because the more you understand about stammering the less you will fear it and the more empowered you will be to deal with any difficulties that may arise.

In summary, if your stammering is characterized by mild overt symptoms, we suggest working through the practical modules of the course in this order…

1. The Jump

2. Orchestral Speech

3. Integrating Orchestral Speech and the Jump 

4. Mindfulness & Cognitive Therapy

In addition to (alongside) these 4 modules, we suggest that you also work your way through as much of the Understanding Stammering Module as you can.

Before starting we suggest that you download the Stammering Checklist. You can access the modules and the checklist directly from the buttons below.

It is a good idea to print the checklist out so you can use it to keep track of what you have covered as you work through the course.

You can work through the course in your own time, moving forward at a rate that is best suited to you. If there are any bits that you find particularly difficult, you can go over them again and again, to ensure you have properly understood them.

If you get stuck, if you can’t understand something, or if you find that one or other of the techniques is not working for you, please do email us to explain what the problem is. It may well be that we have failed to explain something adequately. If so, your feedback will help us to remove any ambiguity or confusion in the text. Whatever the problem, we will do our best to help. Depending on how practical it is (in terms of time and numbers of people requesting help), we may be able to discuss some issues directly with you, over Skype or Zoom. But we cannot guarantee that this will always be possible.

<< go back to previous page: Online Course Overview

If your stammering symptoms are severe, you are likely to frequently fail to get your messages across fast enough and clearly enough to successfully communicate what you want to say, and you may frequently elicit negative responses from listeners. Such experiences can be traumatizing, and as a result, you may well also regularly experience debilitating anxiety and stress when you need to speak and where you anticipate that you will stammer.

If your experiences are like this, the highest priority is to reduce the severity of your symptoms to the point where they no longer prevent successful communication and no longer elicit negative listener responses. The easiest and quickest way to reduce the severity of your stammering symptoms is to start by learning to use a “fluency shaping” technique called “Orchestral Speech”

In common with all fluency shaping techniques, if you use it correctly, Orchestral Speech will substantially reduce the frequency with which you block and will substantially reduce your overt secondary symptoms. However, it will not reduce your underlying fear of blocking. Nevertheless, by making your blocks less frequent and by making your secondary symptoms less severe, it can provide you with a valuable window of opportunity during which you can then start to tackle the root causes of your stammering—through developing a better understanding of the disorder.

Orchestral Speech helps greatly with getting the first few phrases out when you first start speaking to someone. It is also excellent for reading aloud, for giving talks and lectures in situations where there is time-pressure and in situations where you already know exactly what you want to say. But because it requires you to focus on maintaining your intended forward flow of speech, it can be harder to employ in conversations where the subject matter is complicated and where you need to choose your words more carefully. So, once you’ve learned to use Orchestral Speech, we recommend you learn a block-modification technique called the Jump for use in such situations.

The Jump provides you with an easy method to get re-started when you find yourself blocking on a sound or word. In comparison to Orchestral Speech, the Jump allows you to take your time. However, it only works well for mild stammering, hence the need to start off with a fluency shaping technique if your stammering is severe.

Alongside learning to employ these two techniques, it will be useful for you right from the start, to begin working your way through the Understanding Stammering module.

In summary, if your stammering is characterized by severe overt symptoms, we suggest working through the practical modules of the course in this order…

1. Orchestral Speech
2. The Jump
3. Integrating Orchestral Speech and the Jump 
4. Mindfulness & Cognitive Therapy

In addition to (alongside) these 4 modules, we suggest that you also work your way through as much of the Understanding Stammering Module as you can.

Before starting we suggest that you download the Stammering Checklist. You can access the modules and the checklist directly from the buttons below.

It is a good idea to print the checklist out so you can use it to keep track of what you have covered as you work through the course.

You can work through the course in your own time, moving forward at a rate that is best suited to you. If there are any bits that you find particularly difficult, you can go over them again and again, to ensure you have properly understood them.

If you get stuck, if you can’t understand something, or if you find that one or other of the techniques is not working for you, please do email us to explain what the problem is. It may well be that we have failed to explain something adequately. If so, your feedback will help us to remove any ambiguity or confusion in the text. Whatever the problem, we will do our best to help. Depending on how practical it is (in terms of time and numbers of people requesting help), we may be able to discuss some issues directly with you, over Skype or Zoom. But we cannot guarantee that this will always be possible.

<< go back to previous page: Online Course Overview

Traditionally, in the West, therapy for stammering has been considered to belong to the domain of “speech therapy” and has been carried out be speech therapists—who have tended primarily to teach their clients techniques and ways of speaking that increase the ease with which they can get their words out. It has, however, long been known that stammering has a strong cognitive component and that both the severity of stammerers’ symptoms and also the degree to which stammering affects and interferes with their lives are strongly influenced by their beliefs and understandings about the condition—and about themselves. So for example, if a person believes that his stammering is a sign of a weak or inadequate personality, or if he believes his stammering is his fault, then each time he stammers, he is likely to experience feelings of inadequacy, shame and guilt. In contrast, if a person believes that his stammering is caused by an inherited neurological abnormality or by a neurological injury, he may feel angry at his stammer or frustrated by it, but is less likely to feel guilt and shame. On the other hand, if a person believes that stammering has some positive advantages, and that for example, it enhances his ability to communicate with other people, then he will probably feel quite good when he stammers and will not be afraid of it.

In recent years, perhaps spurred on by increasing body of evidence that in older children and adults, speech therapy alone does not generally provide lasting relief from stammering, there has been a general trend for therapists to look for ways of helping their stammering clients’ break free of their unhelpful beliefs about their stammering.

In this module, we explain the basics of two stammering therapy approaches that should help us arrive at more realistic and more helpful understandings and beliefs about our stammering: Mindfulness practice and Cognitive Therapy.

Mindfulness practices can help us gain more control over our focus of attention and can help us to learn how to focus our attention in ways that are more helpful to us.

Cognitive Therapy teaches us how to identify the beliefs that we currently hold and how to test them—to see if they are accurate and beneficial, and how to discard them if they are not. If you stammer, then learning about the nature of stammering is itself a form of cognitive therapy—inasmuch as it can help you arrive at new understandings and beliefs that are more accurate and more helpful than those which you previously held. Thus, working through the contents of our “Understanding Stammering” module itself constitutes a form of cognitive therapy.

Although all people who stammer can benefit greatly from cognitive therapy and from developing a deeper understanding of their stammering, these approaches are absolutely essential for therapy for people whose stammering is covert and for people whose stammering has become associated with negative emotions—and in particular with feelings of shame and guilt.

Similarly, although mindfulness practice is of benefit to everyone who stammers, it is an essential component of therapy for people whose stammering is associated with extreme emotional response and also for people whose stammering is associated with trauma and traumatic stress.

Further reading

Cognitive approaches to therapy for stammering

The Jump is a “block modification” technique designed to reduce the severity and the duration of the symptoms that occur during moments of stammering. And as the severity and duration of your physical symptoms reduce, your tendency to block and your fear of blocking should also reduce.

In order to be able to employ the Jump, you need to be willing to ignore any desire that you may have to hide the fact that you stammer, and you need to be able to allow yourself to stammer openly in front of other people.

Unlike traditional block modification techniques, which require a lot of self-control to employ them in real-life situations, and which slow you down quite considerably, the Jump takes very little effort to employ and does not slow you down at all. And compared to traditional block modification techniques, the Jump also sounds and feels more spontaneous and natural. It is therefore much easier to employ in real-life speaking situations.

This module starts with an introductory slide-show (see below) in which we explain the rationale behind the Jump, and provide instructions on how to employ it.

Before continuing on to the practical exercises, we recommend that you first read the following online article which provides a somewhat more detailed account of The Jump… The Jump: A powerful new technique to get out of blocks and overcome fear of stuttering

And then watch this interview in which Sanjog Sandhu speaks of his personal experiences of using the Jump

Personal experiences of using the Jump

Then, when you are ready, work your way through the practical exercises by following the links below…

Learning to use The Jump while reading aloud

How to use the Jump with words beginning with vowels

Using the Jump when reading and speaking to other people.

Make sure to read through these questions and answers about the Jump, on which are discussed issues that have arisen for people trying to employ it.

And finally, if you have already completed the module on Orchestral Speech, we strongly suggest that you now work your way through the module on how to integrate the Jump with Orchestral Speech and other techniques…

Combining the Jump with Orchestral Speech and other techniques 

Introduction
Fluency shaping techniques are techniques that temporarily suppress the symptoms of stammering. They are particularly useful in situations where it is important not to stammer. When employed properly they result in an immediate substantial reduction in your tendency to block and to stammer.

Although they reduce stammering, most traditional fluency shaping techniques take quite a lot of effort to employ and they sound quite unnatural. Aware of this problem, the Stammering Self-Empowerment Programme has developed a new fluency shaping technique called “Orchestral Speech” which does not sound so unnatural and which one can feel more comfortable employing in real-life speaking situations.

To get a fuller grasp of what Orchestral Speech involves and how it works, listen to the following slideshow

The link below contains a transcript of the slideshow, and also some extra detail…

Orchestral Speech: A technique for when you really need to be fluent

Then, if you would like to give Orchestral Speech a try, start to work your way through the Orchestral Speech practical exercises by following the links at the bottom of this page

Note that the questions and answers page of this module contains answers to some of the more frequent questions that students have asked. There is also an email link on that page, through which you can contact us with any questions.

If you would like to know more about the theory behind Fluency Shaping approaches and Orchestral Speech and how Orchestral Speech was developed, there are some more slideshows on this in the Theoretical module (under the “Speech therapy for Stammering” tab).

Although it is not strictly necessary to work through all of the theory in this module, we do suggest that you try to work through as much as possible, as doing so will help you to understand how and why Orchestral Speech, the Jump, Cognitive Therapy and Mindfulness can help you and will make you better able to solve any problems that may arise while you are putting them into practice. Certainly, if possible, try to complete the first two topics before commencing the modules on Orchestral Speech and The Jump.

Bear in mind that the more you understand about stammering, the more easily you will be able to adapt the various therapy methods to suit your own unique needs. So, getting to grips with the theory is every bit as important as learning the therapy techniques.

This module is a work-in-progress and we will continue to add more material to it, so do re-visit it from time to time to see what is new.

In this module, we describe the following aspects of theory (click on the links below to go to the corresponding pages)…

1. What is stammering?

2. What Causes stammering?

3. The development of secondary symptoms and changes in stammering with age.

4. The cycle of remission and relapse

5. How and why moments of stammering occur: Possible mechanisms behind the production of stammered dysfluencies.

6. How speech therapy may help people who stammer

7. How psychotherapy and mindfulness may help people who stammer