Types of Stuttering

[scott123]

Hello everyone this is a bit random but im just curious to know what "type" of stutter people have and which is the most common e.g. prolongations, repititions and blocks.

i myself suffer from nearly 100% blocks and sometomes but very rarely repititions. What is the most common stutter from your experience as im wondering if people get blocks like i do because sometimes i just totally freeze and struggle to breathe...but that unfortuneatly is life

[squiggles]

When I scan ahead and know I'm going to stutter I block.
Which is 95% of the time for me.

But when I'm more spontaneous with my speaking I tend to get a couple sound repetitions. Probably because I'm not thinking about the stutter untill it happens. Then it tends to be in a more raw form.

[KevinEvans]

I often have repatitions during the beginning of the word... but i sometimes have complete blocks >_> i hate those!

[ricardo]

When I scan ahead and know I'm going to stutter I block.
Which is 95% of the time for me.

But when I'm more spontaneous with my speaking I tend to get a couple sound repetitions. Probably because I'm not thinking about the stutter untill it happens. Then it tends to be in a more raw form.

Same for me

[scott123]

like you i scan ahead and i subconsciously know i will stutter on a certain word. ive found that scanning ahead makes the blocks worse as i get more and more anxious waiting to speak

[Stamr]

I agree. If you think too much about what you're going to say, your anxiety level goes up which then causes you to panic.

I tend to obsess about my stuttering, days before or days after (depending on how embarrassing it was) By obsessing I mean... I'll repeat the situation in my head that could come up where I would have to speak (social gatherings, etc.), and I think about what questions I could be asked, and how I will answer them... THIS leads to major anxiety and panic. I've tried to stop myself from doing this, but it's almost uncontrollable. I'm not sure but this may be a form or OCD :S

Also, not many people actually know that I do stutter...because I hide it by switching words, or coming off as a 'shy' individual when really I'm not shy at all. I stutter around people I'm more comfortable around, and less around people I don't know (however it's a lot more tense for me when I'm around people I don't know because I'm constantly word switching) I stutter a lot on the phone too... at one point i wouldn't even use a phone :S lol

SO, I think with stuttering comes a crap load of anxiety... OR anxiety causes the stuttering to happen o.O

[Violet]

97% of my stuttering is blocks, although when it is REALLY bad i get pronlonged sounds, so i'm blocking midway through the production of sound.. those are the worst :(

[chris2112]

My stutter is all silent blocks about 1-3 times per sentence/statement? lol. its very situational, I'm completely fluent when I read or talk alone and stutter only when talking to people. The blocks can be very short and mild or can be very long, usually depending on the situation.

[GoodGuy]

Yup, I block. I rarely repeat sounds. And yes, I think everything is entirely situational. There are times when I have complete temporal fluency, but they never last. Like, for five minutes, I'm suddenly Martin Luther King or something, then afterwards it's just normal old me. As I'm in my teens, the anxiety is always through the roof. Social gatherings and oral presentations kill me, literally, and I know for sure that going off to college and university will just be social homicide for me. I just don't know how the hell I'm going to survive when that time comes. <_<

[mufaa]

I block. The word does not come out, leaving my chin, lips or the jaw shaking for a few seconds before the word comes out. I am also left short of breath because of it, and that causes me to stutter on every word of the sentence until i realise i am doing bad and take a pause to breath. The realization part comes really late, as my brain's processor is running on 100% load, unable to start another thread without delay. :p

[DKoz]

I get blocks, mostly and bad ones at that. Also, get prolongations such as words that begin with "s".

[ahmed]

i have problem in the begining of words and my name will make me creazy

[Thecoherentman]

I stutter around people I'm more comfortable around, and less around people I don't know (however it's a lot more tense for me when I'm around people I don't know because I'm constantly word switching) I stutter a lot on the phone too... at one point i wouldn't even use a phone :S lol

SO, I think with stuttering comes a crap load of anxiety... OR anxiety causes the stuttering to happen o.O

Stamr, it looks like your stuttering is yet superficial (not yet developed deep) and you have a better chance of recovery than most of us. The fact that you stutter more with family means that you are sensitive to small inhibitory impulses and they are enough to create stuttering in the absent of excitement. Practice with your family and give total freedom to your inhibitory impulses. Give enough time to inhibitory impulses to run their courses, do not rush to say the words. Behave anti-authoritative (sassy.) Talk in your terms without fighting internally and pushing.

[stutteringgirl4]

I block and I hate it. If I could I replace my blocking with repititions, I would in a heartbeat. To me repititions would be alot better than struggling to get the words out. I can read aloud fluently which is awesome! I try to read as much as possible.

[GoodGuy]

I just hate the way stuttering works in general. It just likes to takes the piss, as it works in mysterious ways. For me, speaking to my friends is quite easy for me. 80-90% of the time my speech is fluent. But speaking to my parents, specifically my mother, I block ALL THE TIME. Often, when I'm struggling, I just stop and just stay silent for a while, just going on in my head about how everything is so messed up in my life. Stuttering is a real kick to your groin.

[Thecoherentman]

But speaking to my parents, specifically my mother, I block ALL THE TIME. Often, when I'm struggling, I just stop and just stay silent for a while, just going on in my head about how everything is so messed up in my life. Stuttering is a real kick to your groin.

GoodGuy, please try this with your parents. Ask your parents to play a game with you. They must sit in front of you and read your lips. You say a word without sound (not using the vocal cords) The one who recognizes the word correctly first gets a point. For wrong words one point is subtracted. Make sure that your parents try to get quick in reading your lips. You will be training them. You will be the trainer and they will be the trainees. They failed to teach you how to speak with them. Now you teach them how to read your lips. I am sure you will be totally surprised how fluent you will get with them.

[Geoff]

I'm also mostly blocking. It's the most awkward in my opinion too. Word switching doesn't always work because often you can't think of a suitable to word to replace the original which leads to an uncomfortable silence, or I'll speak the original word in a strange way (prolonging the first syllable or just uttering a strange noise or jerking my body) to get it out.

[mawilliams]

Mostly for me it's blocking, which like most say are the most embarrassing. However I do repeat every now and then, but I tend to find I can easily control those, by stopping, starting again and slowing down. I think sometimes it's because I'm rushing my words out and am not taking it nice a slow. I also think sometimes I become lazy and if I tried harder could control the repetitions more. It's the blocking that I find harder to control.

[emily445455]

I have about the same amount of blocks, repetitions, and prolongations it seems.

[stutteringgirl4]

Often, when I'm struggling, I just stop and just stay silent for a while,

I do that too! My mom always gets mad at me when I just stop talking. Shes like "would you finish your sentence?! what were you going to say??" Haha it drives her crazy :)

[jamesm]

Blocks are definitely the problem with me. I have very few repetitions anymore. But If I feel a block, then I usually "clutter" my words with "likes, uhs, or ums". I feel like I can control the repetitions too like mawilliams. But blocks SUCK!! I'm pretty good at anticipating blocks I feel and thats why I word switch a lot or just say an um or like and then I'm able to come out of the block. Prolongations have never been a problem.

[BenLZ]

Almost all blocks, but with this new approach in speech therapy I've been taking my teacher has basically said avoid blocks at all costs, so I've been doing more prolongations (stretched speech) and repetitions.

[Thecoherentman]

I do that too! My mom always gets mad at me when I just stop talking. Shes like "would you finish your sentence?! what were you going to say??" Haha it drives her crazy :)

It takes a lot of courage to be silent some of the times. Your courage reminds me of that of a little 5 year old boy I met once. He stuttered severely but he was so happy to meet new people. He was so conscious of surprising people with his blocks, but nevertheless talking was everything.
We can never escape the fact that we are sensitive to people's expectations. Instead of reeling because of not meeting people's expectation we can adopt the role of a person exercising spontaneous will to speak or not to speak. This way we eat our cake and keep it also. We are the stutterers who have the liberty to speak the way we will. And we expect people to expect only this role from us which is harmonious and honest. We still surprise people, but our role is exactly to have the liberty to surprise.

[stutteringgirl4]

It takes a lot of courage to be silent some of the times. Your courage reminds me of that of a little 5 year old boy I met once. He stuttered severely but he was so happy to meet new people. He was so conscious of surprising people with his blocks, but nevertheless talking was everything.
We can never escape the fact that we are sensitive to people's expectations. Instead of reeling because of not meeting people's expectation we can adopt the role of a person exercising spontaneous will to speak or not to speak. This way we eat our cake and keep it also. We are the stutterers who have the liberty to speak the way we will. And we expect people to expect only this role from us which is harmonious and honest. We still surprise people, but our role is exactly to have the liberty to surprise.

Thanksss :) It does take alot of courage to be silent. You know, your very insightful.