SLPs Who Stutter: Meet Mark Baer
This is a new series I’m starting on AArielRenee that I’m SO excited for. You can check out my other series about stuttering in professional environments here. For a while I’ve been thinking about how I can turn this blog into something bigger than myself. I’ve got loads of stories to tell about stuttering, but…what about everyone else? What are their stories? The more involved I get with the stuttering community, the more eager I am to share stories from a larger audience. So I thought it would be super fun to interview a few speech language pathologists (also referred to as SLPs) who stutter AND give avoidance reduction therapy for stuttering (also referred to as ARTS). Therefore I’m bringing you a new stuttering series: SLP’s Who Stutter!
The first PWS/SLP I want to share with you all is Mark Baer. Mark is a speech language pathologist at Sisskin Stuttering Center and for Prince George’s County Public Schools in Maryland. He earned his M.S. in Communication Sciences and Disorders from the University of Memphis. Mark is a person who stutters and is passionate about helping other people who stutter. I chatted with Mark about his stuttering beginnings, why he chose this career path, and how stuttering affects his work as an SLP. We also discussed one of the upcoming panels at this years NSA Conference! So, without further ado, I introduce to you all Mark Baer, speech language pathologist and person who stutters!
If somebody would’ve told me growing up that I would be an SLP, I would think that’s a crazy idea and that there’s no chance that would happen.
Mark Baer
Tell me a little about your stuttering background and why you became a speech therapist.
When I entered college, I didn’t know what I wanted to study. My roommate and a close friend of mine were majoring in finance and accounting. For some reason, I figured that I wouldn’t be required to speak a whole lot in those fields, and decided that was the way to go. I did well in my classes, but when I interviewed for summer internships as a junior, it was disastrous.
In what way?
Many lasted significantly less than the allotted time, and I felt unable to say the things I wanted to say. I also felt uncomfortable disclosing the fact I stuttered, and I imagine the interviewers pegged me as someone with poor communication skills. Following those interviews, I realized I needed to change, and that summer I did a three-week-long intensive therapy program in New York at the American Institute for Stuttering. The most beneficial part of my experience there was meeting other people who stutter, learning about advertising and self-advocacy, and gaining greater self-acceptance. That was quite helpful because the next year my interviews were a lot more successful and I was offered a job at KPMG where I worked for a year and a half doing federal internal auditing.
I didn’t know that you had been completely in another field before becoming a speech therapist.
Yeah! Before I was scheduled to begin working, I was nervous about stuttering. I was back home in Northern Virginia and went to an NSA meeting a week or two before my start-date, and when I asked about effective therapy options in the area, he mentioned Vivian. I remember him referring to her as the “patron saint of stuttering” — which I don’t disagree with! I contacted Vivian and started group therapy shortly thereafter, and it had a profound impact on me. After one-and-a-half years of working as an auditor and making deep seeded, meaningful change in speech therapy, I realized accounting wasn’t for me. Due to the tremendous impact ARTS had on me, I decided to become a speech therapist, so that I could help be a catalyst for others to experience similar transformations. I remember thinking how beneficial this therapy would have been for me had I been exposed to it as a child.
Related: ARTS Panel
That’s an awesome story! So when you first started working with clients, did you ever feel weird teaching people in speech therapy how to be okay with their stutter while you were also stuttering and trying to work through that yourself?
Not really, I’ve always felt comfortable and confident working with people who stutter, though I do recall a challenging situation involving the father of a boy who stutters. He had been making good progress when suddenly his teacher said his parents didn’t want him in speech therapy anymore. While working with him, I learned his dad also stutters and stuttering wasn’t tolerated in his home. So that was an unfortunate situation, especially because I could tell he really enjoyed our sessions.
Was it because they didn’t want someone who stuttered teaching their kid, or was it because the kid had began to accept stuttering even though his parents didn’t tolerate it?
That’s a good question. I‘m not sure and I didn’t ask them. I imagine it was a combination of both because I met with the mom a few times and she knew I stuttered, and the boy was beginning to stutter more openly at home. I also provided them with resources that preached acceptance and openness..
As someone who stutters and as a speech therapist, what do you get out of going to NSA chapter meetings and conferences? How do they affect your personal stuttering life and your professional career?
During the first couple of years I went to the conference, I was working as an auditor, and had not yet decided I wanted to be an SLP. The first year was a special experience for me and played a pivotal role in my journey towards self acceptance as somebody who stutters. Being surrounded by people who stutter — countless people who shared similar experiences as me — was surreal. That was when I truly knew and felt that I was not alone. I continue to enjoy attending NSA conferences, both as someone who stutters and an SLP striving to better myself as a clinician. It’s also fun seeing old friends.
Related: Getting Ready for the 2019 NSA Conference
In what ways can you better yourself as a clinician by going to the National Stuttering Association Conference?
Mostly gaining a deeper understanding of how the problem of stuttering effects people. Chatting with other SLPs also offers some fresh perspective.
You said the problem of stuttering.
Yeah, that’s an interesting choice of words. I guess I would say “on the nature of stuttering.”
Related: Stuttering In The Media
People who are open about their stutter still find themselves saying things like “the problem of stuttering” because the general attitude in society is that stuttering IS a problem. Which is interesting…do you feel like it’s a blessing in disguise for you?
I think stuttering was certainly a “problem” for me, as it was an unwelcome difficulty that needed to be dealt with. I definitely do consider my stuttering to be a blessing, as it has led me to a fulfilling career, some wonderful friends, and significant personal growth.
The last question I have for you is, can you give us a sneak peek of what to expect on the panel at this years NSA Conference?
We’re giving a panel discussion on acceptance and change and if they’re compatible. We’re going to explore whether the ideas of accepting ones stuttering is compatible with the idea of changing ones stuttering or how one relates to their stuttering. And I personally think one is not really possible without the other.
