ARTS Panel

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of speaking alongside other people who stutter about our experiences with Avoidance Reduction Therapy for Stuttering (Also referred to as ARTS). I sat on a panel with six other individuals who stutter and we discussed our experiences with ARTS, the successes we’ve had, and what advice we’d give to SLP’s (Speech Language Pathologists) using ARTS with their clients.

Did I ever think I would get up in front of a room of people and stutter while talking about stuttering? Absolutely not. But, alas, I’ve succumbed to the voodoo of this therapy and can’t seem to get enough of it. I love speaking on these panels (this isn’t my first rodeo) because I always meet new people, I leave feeling extra inspired to work on my speech, and it feels really good to be seen as an “expert” at something and teach it to a room full of aspiring SLP’s.

Some of the people I met at this panel included an FBI Analyst and a former Olympic Athlete (if an FBI analyst can spend an hour briefing the head of the FBI while stuttering, I should be able to fearlessly say my name at Starbucks while ordering my Earl Grey). These were great people that lightened the mood by telling some funny encounters they’ve had through this therapy. One guy shared a great story about a paradoxical speech assignment he did in order to desensitize to the feelings of shame that come with identifying as a person who stutters. He reluctantly wore a pin on the outside of his coat that said “person who stutters” while riding the metro to work.  What happened? No one cared or said anything! His first day wearing the pin was the hardest – he said  felt butterflies in his stomach every time someone sat near him or looked in his direction. After several days of no one saying anything, he became less and less self conscious, and wore the pin for so long he forgot to take it off! (I mean…could you imagine wearing a pin on your clothes that announced your biggest insecurity to everyone you saw? Yikes!) Stories like these remind me that, even though I feel like I get judged for my stutter constantly, the reality is that no one actually cares. And just like that guy, I’ve learned not to care (as much) about what other people think of me!

A common theme we all touched on during our discussion was the cognitive impact ARTS has left on us – it’s allowed us to feel more comfortable in our skin and with our own voices. 100% of the people I’ve met through these panels have grown to become incredible, confident communicators. Some of them have become SLP’s, others have taken on jobs that require a ton of public speaking, and some simply are more outgoing than they used to be. That’s pretty amazing in my eyes!  I’m not sure when my next panel is, but I’m definitely excited to participate!