International Stuttering Awareness Day – 22 October

October 22nd marks International Stuttering Awareness Day as a way to bring awareness for this speech fluency disorder.

The primary purpose of International Stuttering Awareness Day is to:

Change public attitudes and eliminate societal discrimination toward people who stutter
Promote the self-esteem and opportunities of people who stutter to reach goals and aspirations
Build a community and provide an opportunity to exchange ideas and strengthen the relationship among researchers, people who stutter, clinicians and parents of children who stutter

More than 70 million people around the world stutter. This means that while talking, they repeat syllables, sounds or words. People who stutter also prolong sounds or experience unwanted interruptions in their speech. They know what they want to say, but are unable to produce a normal flow of speech. This disorder usually affects children between the ages of 2 and 6. This is when they are producing their language skills.

Primary causes of stuttering include genetics, child development, neurophysiology, and family dynamics. Many people think that emotional trauma or psychological problems causes stuttering. There is no evidence to support this idea. The good news is that when caught early, stuttering is highly treatable. One of the best ways to treat stuttering is through speech therapy.

Those who stutter might be glad to know they are not alone. In fact, there are even famous people who have been known to stutter. Some of them include James Earl Jones, Winston Churchill, Marilyn Monroe, and King George VI. It is also believed that Moses, the man in the Bible responsible for communicating the 10 Commandments, had a stutter. Despite their speech fluency disorder, they all went on to lead successful lives.

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International Stuttering Awareness Day – 22 October

Source: Text & Image: https://nationaldaycalendar.com/international-stuttering-awareness-day-october-22/