Broad smiles and loud applause are expected when a baby takes a first wobbly step or proudly speaks a new word. Success at these accomplishments breeds confidence as most babies grow into toddlers who learn to walk, run and eventually to speak with ease.
Confidence may falter, however, if a child begins to stutter, a condition that occurs most often in male children and begins between the ages of 2 and 5. It is a problem that affects about 1 percent of the population nationwide, according to Jane Fraser, president of the Stuttering Foundation of America, based in Memphis.
Speech therapy, especially if begun at a young age, can help children learn to cope with or even reverse stuttering, Fraser said. Speech therapy also can benefit adults who stutter, but the likelihood of completely conquering the disorder is greatly diminished because the speech pattern is so ingrained.
Although a support group is not a substitute for speech therapy, it is a place where adults who stutter can practice language skills, discuss their fears and frustrations and build self-esteem. Such a group meets monthly in a wood-paneled conference room at Oak Forest Hospital.
Hal Thinglum of Richton Park, the hospital’s director of speech and hearing, organized this support group eight years ago.
“We wanted to create an atmosphere of peer support where people can feel free to stutter and express their feelings about stuttering,” said Thinglum, who also is a stutterer.
As they gathered around a long table, the attendees, usually numbering about 10, ranged in age from their late teens to their 60s. Everyone is invited to talk, but it is not required.
The embarrassment and frustration of years of stuttering have made some reluctant to talk in nearly any setting, even at this support group.
All around the table, hands shot into the air as Thinglum asked how many had experienced painful feelings as a result of stuttering.
“I used to view myself as less intelligent than people who don’t stutter,” said Fred Ricks of Country Club Hills, a welfare case worker for the federal government. He said he sometimes has difficult, unpredictable moments when he stutters, such as when he greets clients at the office.
“I can practice and practice a client’s name as I’m going to the waiting room, but then I get there and all of a sudden I have a big block (of hesitated speech),” he said.
Ricks may once have believed himself less intelligent than people who speak normally, but nothing could be farther from the truth. According to Thinglum, stutterers often have higher-than-average intelligence. Famous stutterers include Winston Churchill and James Earl Jones.
Mark Allen, an Evanston-based speech therapist who works only with stutterers, said there is a physiological basis for stuttering.
“When a child is experiencing a burst of language development, it can put extra pressures on the physical system,” Allen said. A wide range of external pressures also can contribute to the problem for a child who is predisposed to it.
“It could be anything from the birth of a (sibling) to going to preschool. Or it could be from an internal source, where a child really wants to do well (and puts pressure on himself),” Allen said.
However the condition begins, it has a broad impact on how stutterers live, support group members agreed.
“I kind of hold back from situations. I hide,” said Jim Zerlantes, 32, of Oak Lawn. “In social situations, there may be some people I want to talk to, but I don’t.”
Until last year, Zerlantes lived with his parents. “Moving out was a big move for me because it meant I couldn’t depend on my mother anymore to make my phone calls,” he said.
This was Zerlantes’ first time attending the support group. Explaining why he decided to come, Zerlantes said, “I’m trying to get better and cope with the stuttering.”
The decision to cope with his stuttering is one that Ron Brown, 61, of Chicago made many years ago. He has attended the support group for seven years.
“I’ve always enjoyed the freedom (of the support group),” he said. “And I’ve felt more confident to talk here. I’m not afraid to stutter here. It’s a real safe environment, but not a totally safe environment.”
That’s because Thinglum uses the support group as a way to help people improve their speaking skills. For example, he will videotape people as they stand before the group to speak.
Brown recently found the courage to teach adult computer classes, and he belongs to a public speaking group.
“I’m not content with the fact that I stutter. And I’d like to reduce it,” Brown explained. “But it’s something that I do, and it doesn’t interfere with my ability to communicate with anyone. I’ve come to the idea that it’s the listeners’ problem. It’s taken me years and a lot of effort to reach that.”
Coming to terms with stuttering and acknowledging the painful feelings it can generate may even help people to reduce stuttering, Allen said.
For example, stuttering is more likely to occur when people feel stressed, such as when they are put in a situation where they stuttered previously and felt embarrassed.
“In a self-help group, you can talk to other people and process those feelings that you have about stuttering.” Allen said. “If you find out that someone else has difficulty going into a restaurant and placing an order, then that can help defuse the power of those emotion-packed feelings,” Allen said.
Group members can also learn about techniques others use to address stuttering. For example, Jim Clauter of Oak Lawn said he often tells people that he stutters.
“I’ve told people that I’m going to stutter, that it is something I do and that they shouldn’t be shocked,” Clauter said. “It puts them at ease.”
Indeed, there are many things stutterers would like other people to know. For example, it is not physically painful when they appear to be struggling to get a word out. And they do not generally appreciate it when other people rush to finish their sentences or tell them to relax or slow down.
“And we are just as able to hold a meaningful conversation as anyone else. Some of us are outgoing people,” said another group member, William R. Johnson of Country Club Hills.
Some of those meaningful conversations take place at the monthly support group meetings, where stutterers find understanding and encouragement from others.
With a smile, Brown told the others that Zerlantes recently had spoken before a large group at a convention for stutterers that both had attended.
It was the first time Zerlantes had ever done any public speaking. “I almost went into cardiac arrest,” he said with a laugh.
“Yeah. But you did it. And doesn’t it feel good?” Brown asked as Zerlantes nodded.
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For information on stuttering, contact the Stuttering Foundation of America at 800-992-9392 or the support group at Oak Forest Hospital at 708-633-3360.
