F aged 9 years female

What did you do to help your stammer?

When I first got my stammer, when I was six or seven years old, I thought I had to try and hide it at all costs. Other children at school teased me for it, or made fun of the way I spoke. So I tried not speaking much at all, or pretending it wasn’t happening. It was only when I became an adult that I decided to get professional help and to see a speech therapist. I wish I’d done it years ago.

What did you do to get your mind off your stammer?

I used to have singing lessons, and strangely I never stammered when I sang so that was a huge relief. I also started writing. I remember watching the words come out of the nib of my pen, without any trouble at all, and feeling what a joy that was. 

What were you feeling when you found out about your stammer and what did you do to calm yourself down?

I think breathing deeply and regularly always helps. Sometimes I try and relax my jaw and tongue before I know I will have to speak. Also, telling as many people as you can about having a stammer is helpful, then people know to expect some dysfluency. Anything that normalises a stammer is useful.

What did you mean about the looming faces and why do you think they would have cute puppy eyes?

It’s the way I visualised my stammer when I was young: a little presence on my shoulder that stole words from me. It wasn’t scary or bad but slightly apologetic. I didn’t do the drawings for the book – they were done by the very talented Daniela Jaglenka Terrazzini – and this was her vision of the stammer.