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Category: Research
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Published: Friday, 30 April 2010 19:06
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Written by Lisa Wilder
This article is a summary and review of the following:
Article: Effect of the SpeechEasy on Objective and Perceived Aspects of Stuttering: A 6-Month, Phase 1 Clinical Trial in Naturalistic Environments
From: the Journal of Speech and Hearing Research, Vol. 52, April 2009
Authors: Ryan Pollard, John B. Ellis, Don Finan, Peter Ramig, University of Colorado at Boulder
This article studies the effect of the SpeechEasy under extraclinical conditions, and compares the findings with the results of previous studies.
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Category: Research
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Published: Friday, 30 April 2010 19:02
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Written by Bernie Dobrucki
This article first appeared in the Spring 2008 issue of the CSA Newsletter.
SmallTalk by Casa Futura Technologies is the latest reincarnation of the Edinburgh Masker. Thanks to 21st century technology, the unit is a little smaller than an iPod and with the Bluetooth earphone and speaker is almost inconspicuous. The device could easily be mistaken for a cell phone.
For those of you unfamiliar with electronic anti-stuttering devices, they utilize a technology called Altered Auditory Feedback (AAF) which relays the speaker’s voice back to them in an attempt to block or ‘mask’ their voice. The theory goes, we as stutterers are better able to speak fluently when we can’t hear our own voices.
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Category: Personal Commentary
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Published: Friday, 30 April 2010 18:59
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Written by Lisa Wilder
This Review first appeared in the Fall 2009 issue of the CSA newsletter.
A review of the Poetry Performance of Jordan Scott and the Sounds of the Element Choir, Thursday, May 21, 2009 at the Music Gallery in Toronto, Canada.
There was a mystical quality to Jordan Scott’s performance at the Music Gallery in May of this year. The venue, St. George the Martyr Anglican Church, was built in 1844. Although partly burned down in the 1950s, the church retains its stone structure and stained glass, reflecting its original purpose as a place of worship. This is appropriate for the shows put on by the Music Gallery, experimental and unconventional performances that encourage thoughtful reflection in the listener.
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Category: Research
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Published: Friday, 30 April 2010 19:04
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Written by Lisa Wilder
This article first appeared in the Spring 2008 issue of the CSA Newsletter.
I am a lifelong PWS who became interested in the Speecheasy device a couple years ago.
This device is an “auditory feedback” aid that fits on or in the ear like a hearing aid and reduces stuttering in some people. Most people who stutter have probably heard of this but may not be sure if they can benefit from it and afford it.
First of all, I had to be tested to be sure that I would benefit from the technique. During the test my stuttering reduced considerably while I spoke with the device that fed my own voice back into my ear with a slight delay effect. Because of the positive results in the test situation, I decided to go ahead with it, and was fitted for the device.
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Category: Book Reviews
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Published: Friday, 30 April 2010 19:01
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Written by Lisa Wilder
This article first appeared in the Spring 2009 issue of the CSA Newsletter.
This is a review of the on-line paper “Letters to a Desperate Stutterer” (called “Letters...” in this review). This text is promoted on the website, www.desperatestutterer.com, by Bob Bodenhamer, and he writes an introduction to the paper. “Letters...” is the correspondence written by Linda Rounds who claims to have cured her stuttering by methods very similar to those of NLP. It is a series of letters from Linda to a young man known as Dan, after he wrote to her for help with his own stuttering. The letters describe what she calls her personal journey to cure her own stuttering.
Whether you agree with her or not, Linda’s personal initiative and determination in mapping out her own recovery is remarkable. Stuttering, she determines, has more to do with a communication and relationship problem than a physical impairment. This is, of course, a controversial notion.
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Category: Personal Stories
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Published: Friday, 30 April 2010 17:15
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Written by Lee Heard
The following is an edited version of the presentation Lee Heard gave at the 2007 CSA Conference in Toronto, and also appeared in the Spring 2008 CSA newsletter.
Lee Heard at CSA2007
The Oxford Dictionary defines fear as “an unpleasant emotion caused by the threat of danger, pain, or harm.” This describes what we ordinarily feel when entering speaking situations with a stutter.
Our fear is not so much caused by danger, but by the expected emotional pain or harm to our self esteem that could be caused should our speech not go the way we planned. While fear lies just below the water in Russ Hicks’ Iceberg Anthology of stuttering, many of the emotions below it are enabled by giving into the fear. This is why in order to be free to live our lives as we choose we need to leave this fear behind.
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