MAKING IT WORK : Attentive Listening Can Make Those Who Stutter Comfortable

The more comfortable those who stutter are with themselves, the more at ease their listeners will be, said Jeanna Riley, a Tustin psychologist and speech therapist.

The director of Rileys Speech and Language Institute advises clients to tell others matter-of-factly, “I stutter, so you need to be patient.” But it’s difficult to be open about something that makes you feel ashamed and embarrassed, Riley said. One of her goals in therapy is to help people overcome their self-consciousness about stuttering. She said others can help by remembering the following:

* Be a good listener and resist the temptation to finish sentences for a person who stutters.

* Maintain normal eye contact. Don’t stare or look away when someone is struggling to get a word out. Just be natural and wait patiently.

* Concentrate on what the person is saying, not how he or she is saying it, and if you don’t understand something, don’t be afraid to say so.

* Remember that people who stutter usually have more trouble controlling their speech on the telephone. They need extra patience from listeners in this situation.

* Don’t make any judgments or assumptions about people based on the fact that they stutter. Stuttering is a speech impairment--not a symptom of nervousness or a mental disability.