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The Valsalva Stuttering Network
Home Introduction Articles Links Advice and Support Forum
Bill Parry's Stuttering Links
Stuttering (sometimes called "stammering")
is a specific kind of disfluency, in which the flow of speech tends to be
involuntarily disrupted by forceful closures of the mouth or larynx, by
repetitions or prolongations of sounds and syllables, or by hesitations or
delays in making voiced sounds. Stuttering generally involves an excessive
amount of effort, force, and struggle in the attempt to speak. It also may
be accompanied by a variety of behaviors intended to avoid, postpone, or
hide the blocks.
Stuttering, while not the worst of handicaps, certainly can be one of the
most frustrating. Unlike other disabilities, stuttering has the mystifying
and maddening habit of coming and going. Even if you stutter badly, chances
are that you will be perfectly fluent when singing, talking in unison with
other people, and in certain speaking situations. You may do a great job
acting out a role on stage, but not be able to say your name when asked.
You may begin telling a joke with perfect fluency, but not be able to deliver
the punch line. You may have long stretches of fluency when it really doesn't
matter. Then, just when the words are most important, stuttering jumps out
of the closet and pins your speech to the ground.
This website is devoted to exploring the puzzle of stuttering, the factors
that may cause or perpetuate it, and what we might do to control or alleviate
it through therapy or self help. We are also interested in encouraging
self-esteem and acceptance for persons who stutter, fighting discrimination,
and educating the public about this often misunderstood condition.
The following are some websites concerning stuttering which may be of particular
interest to persons who stutter and their families:
Information about Stuttering, the Valsalva Hypothesis, and Valsalva Control
The Valsalva-Stuttering Network: (A new website to promote research and education about stuttering and the Valsalva mechanism and development of therapies to reduce the Valsalva mechanism's interference with speech and other activities.)
Understanding
& Controlling Stuttering: A Comprehensive New Approach Based on the
Valsalva Hypothesis, by William D. Parry, Esq. (Puzzled about stuttering?
If so, here is information about and selections from a book that fits together
the pieces of the stuttering puzzle as never before. It discusses all aspects
of stuttering, its possible causes, therapies, and suggests an experimental
self- therapy program called "Valsalva Control.")
Stuttering and the
Valsalva Mechanism: Introduction, by William D. Parry. (Why is stuttering
usually worst when the words are most important? This article shows how a
natural bodily function - the Valsalva mechanism - may turn our efforts to
speak into the very blocks we are trying so hard to avoid. This introductory
article is based on Bill Parry's presentation to the 1995 World Congress
for People Who Stutter.)
Beating the Stuttering Block: How To Really Improve Your Fluency through Valsalva Control. (Announcement of a new self-help manual by Bill Parry, to be released in summer 2005.)
Can Stuttering Blocks Be Controlled by Relaxation of the Valsalva Mechanism?, by William D. Parry. (A research proposal presented by Bill Parry at a Stuttering Research Symposium sponsored by the National Stuttering Association in Anaheim, CA, on June 26, 2002.)
Responses to the Valsalva Hypothesis from Readers Who Stutter. (Representative customer reviews of Understanding & Controlling Stuttering on Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.com and e-mails received by the author.)
General Information about Stuttering
Stuttering Foundation of America.
Stuttering Home Page (A most comprehensive web page, by Judy Kuster and John Harrison.)
Information about Stuttering, Discrimination and Advocacy
Being Your Own Best Advocate, by Bill Parry, former Chair of the NSA Advocacy Committee. (Article reprinted from the NSA's newsletter, Letting Go, about dealing with discrimination and negative stereotypes about people who stutter.)
Stuttering as a Disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act, by Bill Parry, as Chair of the NSA Advocacy Committee (A legal discussion of stuttering as a disability entitled to anti-discrimination protection under the law.)
Stuttering and Employment Discrimination, by Bill Parry, as Chair of the NSA Advocacy Committee (A paper written for the International Stuttering Awareness Day 1999 On-Line Conference.)
Discussion Forums about Stuttering
Valsalva Stuttering Forum - a new, improved, easy-to-use, threaded discussion board at the Valsalva Stuttering Network website, for sharing and responding to ideas, observations, research, and experiences concerning stuttering, the Valsalva mechanism, stuttering therapy, and Valsalva Control. It is open to everyone who has an interest in stuttering and/or the Valsalva mechanism, including persons who stutter, speech-language pathologists, other professionals, and researchers - as well as brass musicians and others affected by the Valsalva maneuver.
Stutter - a Yahoo group
Stuttering - a Yahoo group
Stutteringchat - a very active Yahoo group based in the U.K.
StutteringSupport - a Yahoo group
Home Pages of the National Stuttering Association and Other Stuttering Support Organizations
National Stuttering Association (formerly the National Stuttering Project) (If you stutter, you're not alone! Contact the NSA for information and publications about stuttering and the location of a support group near you.)
Philadelphia Area Chapter of the National Stuttering Association (Home page of the NSA's local chapter for the greater Philadelphia, PA, area.)
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
Argentina - Asociacion Argentina de
Tartamudez Australian Speak Easy
Association Inc. Austria - Oesterreichische Selbsthilfe-Initiative
Stottern Belgian Stuttering Association British Stammering Association Canadian Association for People who
Stutter (CAPS) Web Site ELSA - European League of Stuttering
Associations France - Association Parole-Begaiement Friends (USA) Germany - Bundesvereingung
Stottererer-Selbsthilfe e.V. International Fluency
Association ISA Home Page (The International
Stuttering Association, linking stuttering support groups around the world.)
AMBI - Israeli Stuttering Association
New Zealand Speak Easy
Association, Inc. Passing Twice (GLB&T people who
stutter) South African Speak Easy Stuttering
Association SSR - Swedish Stuttering Association Other Websites about
Stuttering
Driftwood - Stuttering:
"The Veils of Stuttering." (Darrell Dodge's thoughtful dissertation on
many facets of stuttering, including theory, treatment, and personal
aspects.)
Neuropatterning for
stutterers (Richard Harkness' approach to self-help.)
The Stuttering Blog and
The Stuttering Brain (Weblogs
by Tom Weidig about what he terms "persistent developmental stuttering.")
Stuttering Cured? (Scathing
expose of Andrew Bell's "Stammering Cured" course, by a number of dissatisfied
customers.)
Stuttering Prevention
Programs (J. Anthony Wray's website about childhood stuttering)
Stuttering Science & Therapy
Website (An informative book by David Kehoe.)
More websites to be added. Please suggest your favorites.
Bill Parry, now a trial lawyer in
Philadelphia, PA, wrestled with a severe stuttering problem for most of his
life before discovering Valsalva Control. He is the founder of the
Philadelphia Area C
hapter of the National Stuttering Association, for which
he served as Chapter Leader for 15 years, and was a member of the Board of
Directors of the National Stuttering Association and chair of its Advocacy
Committee for six years. His writings on
the Valsalva Hypothesis include an
article in the December 1985 issue of the Journal of Fluency Disorders
and his book,
Understanding & Controlling
Stuttering: A Comprehensive New Approach based on the Valsalva Hypothesis (2nd ed., 2000), which is available
from the NSA.
His is also the author of Being Your Own Best Advocate and Stuttering
as a Disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act, and co-author of
Mastering the Job Interview . . . for People Who Stutter and
Stuttering: What Employers Should Know, all of which are booklets published
by the NSA. Although not a speech therapist, Bill Parry
is a
serious student of speech-language pathology,
who is continuing to further his knowledge of the subject through ongoing
courses at Temple University. He receives no compensation for his workshops,
and profits from the sale of his book benefit the NSA and furthering stuttering
research and education.
Send e-mail to:
valsalvastutter@aol.com
This site has been visited
times since July 2, 2002.
Last modified January 25, 2006.
Copyright © 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006 by William D. Parry
The Valsalva Stuttering Network
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