A readers asked me how drinking affects my stuttering. I had a very clear answer. I am a teetotal and I just don't know! ,-)
Generally two things happen. You
can get more relaxed, you think much less about what
other people think about you, and your motor control goes down. So I expect moderate drinking to ease stuttering, and severe drinking to let you loose motor control.
To be honest, I am not sure about research findings. People taking any drugs (psychoactive substances) report changes in fluency, but it seems to be different for different people.
So share your experience with us! Any drug is allowed! ;-)
9 comments:
I (kind of) stay away from alcohol for this very reason, i relax and can speak much more fluently. With addiction in my family, I worry that I could definitely get used to speaking easier with the aid of alcohol. My mom who stuttered said she smoked pot for many years as it calmed her stuttering.
Prescription methylphenidate didn't worsen my stammering, although it's said to cause tremors and spasms in some individuals. I did the Del Ferro training a couple of years ago and the instructor insisted no one would use alcohol or drugs, as they would reduce control of the diaphragm (important for speech and breathing).
For me: zero difference. Which is no surprise, since stuttering is a language disorder--not an emotional disorder. Anxiety is a reliable stuttering "trigger" in the same way that a butterfly flapping its wings in Malaysia is a reliable "trigger". Just this morning, relaxed with my slippers on, I was telling an anecdote to my lovely wife, in absolute tranquility, and GASP... I stuttered. I stutter when I am elated, relaxed, nervous, bored, intrigued, angry, and every other feeling from the emotional spectrum. And, as a moderate stutterer, I am fluent under those--prepare yourself--exact same conditions!
"I did the Del Ferro training a couple of years ago"
Say no more. I sure hope you didn't spend any money--unless, of course, you are masochistically comfortable giving donations to crackpot pseudo-scientists.
From http://www.stammering.org/ferro.html:
"The Del Ferro method is based on diaphragmatic breathing, and participants were told at the outset that stammering "is nothing in your brains. It just has to do with the training of the diaphragm. So you are going to push with your hands on the ribs so that the diaphragm will move fluently up, and it pushes the air out.""
This was in 1997. Is this organization still around? If so, it should be sued/shamed out of existence.
for me a day or two after drinking I notice deterioration in my speech which can last for up to a week. I've tested it few times with same results. My theory is related to b1/b6 or other vitamins which alcohol has an adverse affect on.
alcohol has only made my stuttering alot worse. After the peak high of MDMA and shrooms ive notice my speech to become more fluent than normal.
Anonymous
Wednesday, 15 February 2012 16:45:00 CET
If Del Ferro is still around? They have just celebrated their 25th anniversary! They're getting a fair share of attention in the media. Their business is better than ever. What strikes me is that some people are very negative about Del Ferro. And others cure their stammering for good with the method. So it seems to me Del Ferro is not unlike other alternative therapies out there. Not a magic bullet, but put your back into it and and you can definitely improve.
Spending money is the downside when it comes to Del Ferro, it is expensive. I spent at least €3000 because you have to stay in Amsterdam... Good news is I got the money back ;-). And my stammering has finally improved very much!
@Pascal NL:
No therapy results in "curing stammering for good". Not a single one. That's misinformation--a false claim, plain and simple. You are wrong, as is the Del Ferro method for claiming this.
Comments like yours (and "therapies" like the Del Ferro method) are just one more reason why many types of stuttering treatment and attitudes are still stuck in the dark ages.
Methylphenidate (Ritalin) reduces my stuttering by about 90%. I take it every four hours for ADD and rarely forget a dose because my stuttering returns after three and a half hours. This not scientific by any means, but it is my experience after five years on this medication.
Post a Comment