A simple earplug improves speech

[ATRIANACPA]

Hi. I am new to the forum but wanted to share something that has worked for me and would like to know your thoughts. I discovered that by using a silicone earplug (Mack's) and molding it to cover the ear canal, I was able to hear myself differently and internally. I was able to hear myself even in a loud place. I was able to hear my internal voice thru a principle called "occlusion effect" in hearing aid terminology. My voice sounded louder and with a lower pitch. It also had a booming effect. The earplug was left with a small gap as to be "ported" like a speaker enclosure. A very tight earplug would make you feel clog and will not produce this booming sound.

All this has improved my fluency and I would like you to place your finger covering your left ear and speak and see if this changes your fluency as well.

[Bobby]

Wow, such a simple idea with so much potential.

I cant believe I never thought of this myself, I use ear plugs to sing live as it lets me feel when I'm in tune, not just hear.

Thanks for posting this.

[grantM]

If it works for you and others then great. Thanks :) Experiment folks. Hopefully it is long term in effect and not short

[jak]

I have used this method while using the phone in the past and it does help ,tends to slow you down also ,you can get the cheap foam ear plugs and roll them to the desired thickness in your ear then put the phone in the other ear ,I think a teacher told me this years ago

[ATRIANACPA]

The ideal earplug is one made from silicone such as Mack's sold in Walgreens in the USA. You want to use half the earplug material to make your mold so that I is not too noticeable since all you need is a mold just covering the outside of the canal. You need to play with the sealing a little bit so that it produces the booming sound or becomes "ported".

If one day you have no plug then use your fingers and cover one ear.

This is based on true science. The brain finds a disconnet between your altered voice and your mouth/articulatory muscles. This disconnect causes you to become less conscious and abort the stuttering.

However, under high self conscious situations you still need to use fluency shaping techniques to pull out of the blocks. This technique is an enhancer but not a cure. It works on the same principle as Speecheasy except that it is practically free!

[Bill Hargis]

Whatever works , use it. I have had other people tell me that they had used earplugs and it helped. Good luck

[grantM]

As far as I know though for a big majority of people such devices and techniques are very short term in nature and wear off after you adjust to them and they become a crutch that is haphazard. But all is worth a try and for you it may be the pot at the end of the rainbow.

[ATRIANACPA]

GrantM, You are from quite an exotic place at least by Miami standards. I always wanted to go to Australia. The choice of what a crutch is can be very dificult to reconcile. I wear my earplug mainly for phone only and at work. The earplug has many advantages

1. Tunes noise out and makes you believe that your voice is the center of attention. People stutter more if the environment is loud and if you feel that your voice will not be heard as well.

2. Changes the pitch of your voice and this actually changes how you feel your tongue, etc because the voice comes from inside the head and not directly from the mouth.

3. Makes you hear your own voice louder thus you auto compensate by actually speaking lower in volume. A low volume puts less stress in the articulatory muscles and creates less pressure. Increase air pressure will make you block harder.

4. Allows you to talk in very loud places such as discos and loud restaurants.

5. You should consider this as an enhancer since you could still block severely using it if the self conscious level is high enough. I will speak normal and then auto switch to fluency shaping if a blocks approaches and then auto switch back to my normal self after the tension is gone. Self consciousness is important because it affect the breathing pattern which triggers the stuttering. Before you even know it, the breathing has frozen and you can actually sense the block coming before it even happens. Typically this type of block is most common although there is also the vocal cord block which prevent vowels from being pronounced.

[thatCALIdude]

Hi. I am new to the forum but wanted to share something that has worked for me and would like to know your thoughts. I discovered that by using a silicone earplug (Mack's) and molding it to cover the ear canal, I was able to hear myself differently and internally. I was able to hear myself even in a loud place. I was able to hear my internal voice thru a principle called "occlusion effect" in hearing aid terminology. My voice sounded louder and with a lower pitch. It also had a booming effect. The earplug was left with a small gap as to be "ported" like a speaker enclosure. A very tight earplug would make you feel clog and will not produce this booming sound.

All this has improved my fluency and I would like you to place your finger covering your left ear and speak and see if this changes your fluency as well.

how much does it cost? im willing to try anything at this point.

[thatCALIdude]

GrantM, You are from quite an exotic place at least by Miami standards. I always wanted to go to Australia. The choice of what a crutch is can be very dificult to reconcile. I wear my earplug mainly for phone only and at work. The earplug has many advantages

1. Tunes noise out and makes you believe that your voice is the center of attention. People stutter more if the environment is loud and if you feel that your voice will not be heard as well.

2. Changes the pitch of your voice and this actually changes how you feel your tongue, etc because the voice comes from inside the head and not directly from the mouth.

3. Makes you hear your own voice louder thus you auto compensate by actually speaking lower in volume. A low volume puts less stress in the articulatory muscles and creates less pressure. Increase air pressure will make you block harder.

4. Allows you to talk in very loud places such as discos and loud restaurants.

5. You should consider this as an enhancer since you could still block severely using it if the self conscious level is high enough. I will speak normal and then auto switch to fluency shaping if a blocks approaches and then auto switch back to my normal self after the tension is gone. Self consciousness is important because it affect the breathing pattern which triggers the stuttering. Before you even know it, the breathing has frozen and you can actually sense the block coming before it even happens. Typically this type of block is most common although there is also the vocal cord block which prevent vowels from being pronounced.

would you consider yourself a severe stutter or mild?

[ATRIANACPA]

I am a mild stutter in most circumstances but can become severe in certain circumstances such as job interviews and anything important to me that involves talking on the phone.

The earplug does not cost much. They sell it at Walgreens under the Mack's brand name but any silicone type earplug would work. You need a piece of square silicone material that you could then use to make a mold of the entrace of the ear canal. The beauty of silicone is that it can be molded.

I use fluency shaping techniques combine with rythm to my speech combine with alter auditory feedback of the earplug. You have to attack stuttering with all forces depending on the tension level. Remember that stuttering is circumstantial and never behaves exactly the same. Get a good night sleep since this will help you as well.

[thatCALIdude]

I am a mild stutter in most circumstances but can become severe in certain circumstances such as job interviews and anything important to me that involves talking on the phone.

The earplug does not cost much. They sell it at Walgreens under the Mack's brand name but any silicone type earplug would work. You need a piece of square silicone material that you could then use to make a mold of the entrace of the ear canal. The beauty of silicone is that it can be molded.

I use fluency shaping techniques combine with rythm to my speech combine with alter auditory feedback of the earplug. You have to attack stuttering with all forces depending on the tension level. Remember that stuttering is circumstantial and never behaves exactly the same. Get a good night sleep since this will help you as well.
i brought some and their too big, we'll see how it works for me.

[ATRIANACPA]

Hi. What you need is the earplug silicone material so that you can mold it to your size. I usually cut it in half. Below is the link to the product.

http://www.macksearplugs.com/pillow_soft_silicone_earplugs.htm

[grantM]

Over here you can buy like a box of 100 for $10 or so

[thatCALIdude]

i tried it today, didnt have much success. i'll try for another couple of days, its hard to get used to.

[ATRIANACPA]

You need to play with the sealing to the ear to get the maximum booming effect. The more your voice sounds altered, the better. Remember that you need fluency shaping to pull out of blocks. The altered voice effects only makes you less conscious so that less blocks are triggered but if a block is triggered your speech will fall apart like a house of cards if you do not have a way to pull out. This is the same mistake people make with Speecheasy thinking that the device alone will solve their speech. These methods of AAF are enhancers but you really got to work at that fluency shaping and rythm to your voice. It works like this for me: a. core fluency shaping b. mind control (zero thoughts, turn off forward looking stuttering scanner, anticipatory stress.) c. fluency enhancers ( DAF, AAF, ). d. Pagoclone

At the basic level, you need to survive with core fluency shaping alone then add the rest as needed.

AAF = Altered Auditory Feedback DAF = Delay Auditory Feedback.

[Be YOURSELF]

I tried and it helps a lot. I need something more un-noticeable though as most people think i'm listening to music and not paying attention. I was using one of those inner earphones which blocks out all external sounds.

Preferably, I would want to be fluent without relying on any devices.

[Berbatov]

You need to play with the sealing to the ear to get the maximum booming effect. The more your voice sounds altered, the better. Remember that you need fluency shaping to pull out of blocks. The altered voice effects only makes you less conscious so that less blocks are triggered but if a block is triggered your speech will fall apart like a house of cards if you do not have a way to pull out. This is the same mistake people make with Speecheasy thinking that the device alone will solve their speech. These methods of AAF are enhancers but you really got to work at that fluency shaping and rythm to your voice. It works like this for me: a. core fluency shaping b. mind control (zero thoughts, turn off forward looking stuttering scanner, anticipatory stress.) c. fluency enhancers ( DAF, AAF, ). d. Pagoclone

At the basic level, you need to survive with core fluency shaping alone then add the rest as needed.

AAF = Altered Auditory Feedback DAF = Delay Auditory Feedback.

Many thanks for sharing your expericance, friend. Pardon my understanding but do you apply the earplug to both ears or is it just one ear? I did place my finger in one ear and after adjustments, you can have the 'booming' effect.

Thanks again.

[ATRIANACPA]

Ideally biaural sound works best but if you cover both ears then you will not be able to hear anything. So, you have to make it work with one ear covered only.

In laboratories, people are given headsets that introduce DAF/FAF in both ears and then a mike boom for them to talk. This is the perfect scenario but in real life only one ear is practical.

I am glad that you are getting success with this technique. It is basically a home grown FAF approach which to a certain degree changes your fluency.

[thatCALIdude]

You need to play with the sealing to the ear to get the maximum booming effect. The more your voice sounds altered, the better. Remember that you need fluency shaping to pull out of blocks. The altered voice effects only makes you less conscious so that less blocks are triggered but if a block is triggered your speech will fall apart like a house of cards if you do not have a way to pull out. This is the same mistake people make with Speecheasy thinking that the device alone will solve their speech. These methods of AAF are enhancers but you really got to work at that fluency shaping and rythm to your voice. It works like this for me: a. core fluency shaping b. mind control (zero thoughts, turn off forward looking stuttering scanner, anticipatory stress.) c. fluency enhancers ( DAF, AAF, ). d. Pagoclone

At the basic level, you need to survive with core fluency shaping alone then add the rest as needed.

AAF = Altered Auditory Feedback DAF = Delay Auditory Feedback.

thanks i'll keep tinkering with it

[hafidmetal]

thanks for this info... i covered one ear with my finger and i notice a posisitve change in my speech,i covered them both and it was great,,this shows that this earplug can improve our speech..

[ptw]

Hmm good idea. When I'm singing I sometimes do this, I think it could work with speech.

[freeflow918]

Great find I will pick up those Mack silicon ear plugs. This plus medicine might do the trick for me. Blast stuttering with everything i got!

[Benhoor]

I went to an audiologist few months back and he said this exactly that if I put my fingers into my ears, I would suddenly become very fluent.

I bought speacheasy but now I think it could even do with a simple earplug.

I don't wanna know if later it might stop working; now it works :)

[rony]

yah i started using the earplug this week and gotta admit it works....i m not all fluent but it has reduced d stuttering through some extent....thanks for sharing ..really appreciate that!!

Benhoor how is speecheasy working out for ya???