Understanding and Controlling Stuttering A Comprehensive New Approach Based on the Valsalva Hypothesis - Softcover

Parry, William D.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1929773013 ISBN 13: 9781929773015

Publisher: Natl Stuttering Assn, 2009

Synopsis

Puzzled about stuttering? Do you wonder why words often feel like brick walls, even before you try to say them? Or why your blocks get stronger the harder you try to force through them? If so, you need to know about the Valsalva Hypothesis - an exciting new theory that explains stuttering blocks as a neurological confusion between voice and the body's Valsalva mechanism, in response to anxiety or the anticipation of difficulty in speaking. As a result, the larynx is prepared to exert effort instead of phonating a word's vowel sound, causing speech to get stuck on the consonant or glottal stop preceding the vowel. This theory was partially explained in the very popular Second Edition of this book (now out of print). That edition has now been greatly surpassed by the Revised and Expanded Third Edition, published in 2013. The Third Edition, which is written in clear, every-day language, fits together the pieces of the stuttering puzzle as never before. The Third Edition demonstrates how neurological, physiological, and psychological factors interact to stimulate and perpetuate stuttering through a Valsalva-Stuttering Cycle. It sheds new light on virtually every aspect of stuttering behavior -- its causes, its variability, and its many forms of treatment. Finally, it outlines a totally new comprehensive self-help program based on Valsalva Stuttering Therapy, aimed at relaxing the Valsalva mechanism, eliminating blocks, freeing your inherent fluency, and allowing you to speak in an easy, effortless, and natural way. The Revised and Expanded Third Edition contains many new insights and exercises, developed through actual clinical experience and experimentation, involving the participation of dozens of persons who stutter from all over the world.

About this title

From the Publisher

Most people who stutter can also speak fluently some of the time. The author of this book believes that their problem is not a lack of ability to speak, but rather an interference with that ability - usually when the words seem most important. This book shows how a stutterer's blocks are powered by the body's Valsalva mechanism - a neurologically coordinated combination of muscles in the larynx, mouth, chest, and abdomen. According to the Valsalva Hypothesis, stutterers may have developed the habit of activating the Valsalva mechanism in an attempt to force out words when they anticipate difficulty in speaking. Although this may feel like the "right" thing to do, it results in forceful blockages of airflow by the mouth or larynx and interference with phonation - two of the basic, underlying elements of stuttering. Therefore, the harder one struggles against stuttering, the worse the blocks become. Over time, these behaviors become deeply rooted in the nerve pathways of the brain, making them extremely difficult to change.

This book lays out a comprehensive plan to improve fluency by controlling the Valsalva mechanism and breaking the Valsalva-Stuttering Cycle. Unlike other therapies, which may have an indirect effect on various aspects of the Valsalva-Stuttering Cycle, Valsalva Control focuses directly on the Valsalva mechanism itself and attacks all aspects of the Cycle - both physical and psychological. It includes specific advice and exercises related to breathing, phonating, and relaxing muscles of the Valsalva mechanism. The goal is not artificially produced fluency, but speech that is free and natural.

The book does not rely on simplistic gimmicks. Instead, its approach requires that we first gain a thorough understanding of what stuttering is and why we do it. Applying insights gained from the Valsalva Hypothesis, it analyzes the symptoms and circumstances of stuttering, the development of stuttering in childhood, the influence of heredity and neurological factors, and the physical and psychological conditions that tend to increase or reduce stuttering. It then discusses the strengths and weaknesses of existing therapies (including drugs and electronic devices), points out the elements that many therapies have in common, shows why most stutterers tend to relapse, and indicates ways in which therapies might be made more effective. (What one reader called "repetitive" was merely the brief restatement of the Valsalva Hypothesis in relation to each of these many aspects of stuttering, in order to make the discussions easier to follow.)

It would be presumptuous to claim that people will be "cured" of stuttering just by reading a book. Nevertheless, this book is sure to provide a deeper understanding of stuttering, as well as effective tools to reduce one's struggle in speaking.

From the Author

Over the years I have been gratified by the enthusiastic reception enjoyed by the Second Edition of my book, which I wrote before becoming a speech-language pathologist, and which is now out of print. However, I am even prouder of the new Revised and Expanded Third Edition of the book, which goes light-years beyond the earlier edition. Of special note, the Third Edition contains a comprehensive new self-help program based on years of intensive experimentation and clinical experience, involving dozens of persons who stutter from all over the word.  I urge anyone interested in stuttering to check out the new Third Edition.

Edition details

• Publisher: Natl Stuttering Assn
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 1929773013
• ISBN 13: 9781929773015
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 166