November (SLP Meeting) Recap

After several months of increased interest from SLP’s (Speech-Language Pathologists) and SLP’s in training to join our meetings, we held our first-ever second meeting of the month. The meeting was geared towards opening the dialogue between professionals in the field and People Who Stutter. This included asking and answering important questions, exchanging stories and ideas, and sharing resources. There was a high turnout, with 30 people in attendance, including 15 professionals, and 15 People Who Stutter.

Two outstanding chapter members, Chani Markel and Hector Perez, facilitated the meeting. They started the night by sharing their stories, after which they handed out index cards for the SLP’s to ask questions to the people in the group who stuttered. The questions included finding out about the effectiveness of stuttering therapy, the hereditary components of stuttering, the role of acceptance in stuttering, and the role the NSA plays in a Person Who Stutters life. Each question was followed by an interactive and engaging conversation, during which new and old thoughts, sentiments, and ideas were shared.

The topic of education and advocacy came up several times throughout the night, and the importance of them was discussed from the perspective of the PWS’s and the SLP. We especially talked about the tremendous opportunity SLP’s have to educate the public and advocate for PWS. We shared the websites of support organizations, including the National Stuttering Association, FRIENDS: National Association for Young People Who Stutter, and SAY: The Stuttering Association for the Young. Other resources, such as the Stuttertalk podcast, stuttering therapy resources, and The Stuttering Foundation’s website were shared as well. 

The meeting ended in high spirits, with lots of gratitude and eager anticipation for more meetings to come.  Several people headed over to Juniper’s to share a few more good laughs and connecting moments before returning to the hustle and bustle of the week ahead.

We are always looking for new ways to expand our horizons as a chapter. If you have any ideas that could move our chapter forward, please reach out to us and share at midtownstutters@gmail.com. We are excited to hear them!