Biggest teen group yet thanks to three new faces!

We started by talking casually about sports since it happened that two of the group members had played soccer against one another this fall.  This led to some talk about famous sportsmen who stutter like Tiger Woods, Shaquille O’Neal, and Darren Sproles.

We also talked about how interviews, presentations, and reading out loud can be tricky for people who stutter. Most said they do use tricks to talk around what they want to say, use a synonym, or change the word to avoid stuttering. One member said he doesn’t let his stuttering get in the way at all of saying what he wants to say, joking that he “doesn’t have time for that.”

Members had really insightful answers to the question about  why they are thankful for stuttering:  they are surrounded with a supportive group of friends as a result, it’s like a “rival” that keeps them going (even though sometimes they want to “shoot it in the face”), and they are more appreciative of fluency when they have it compared to people who don’t stutter.  After one member mentioned that the stutterers of the world aren’t exactly the kind of people who would threaten anyone in a dark alley, another member joked that’s because it would take too long to tell someone they’re being held up and they could just run away.  : )

Fantastic supportive group and looking forward to the next meeting on Jan. 8th– Happy Holidays!