Why Mechanics Fail
Understanding the psychology of persistent stammering.
The Vicious Cycle of Avoidance
Traditional therapy often teaches you to "breathe correctly" or "soften your contacts." These are mechanical fixes. But when you are terrified of blocking, your fight-or-flight response overrides these mechanics.
Phone rings
"I will block"
Don't answer
Anxiety drops
The Trap
Every time you avoid speaking (or swap a feared word for an easier one), you feel Relief. This relief tells your brain: "Good job! We avoided danger!" This reinforces the fear for next time.
The Solution: Avoidance Reduction
To break the cycle, we must remove the "Avoidance" step. We must enter the situation, feel the fear, and speak anyway. Whether you stammer or not is irrelevant. The goal is to show your brain that stammering is not dangerous.
Key Concepts
- Amygdala Hijack: Why you can't "think" your way out of a block.
- Operant Conditioning: How relief reinforces stammering.
- Exposure Therapy: The gold standard for anxiety.
Did you know?
Many "fluent" speakers still suffer from Covert Stammering. They hide their stutter so well that nobody knows, but they live in constant fear of being "found out."