My name is Janeel. I live in Johannesburg, South Africa. I am 30 and I am a software developer. My stutter has been holding me back for the last 20 years and I often kept quiet in a fear of stuttering and did not say anything at all. I prayed that it would just disappear as a child but it never did. There were occasions where I felt so embarrassed that I decided to go for speech therapy twice in my life but I still could not overcome stuttering.
I recently discovered Lee’s book while browsing for a stuttering book. I am so grateful I came across this book; it is priceless. . . It helped me overcome the biggest stuttering hurdle which I faced, which was saying of my name and or other names. When I listened to Lee’s audible book, I understood why I struggle with names and weirdly enough, it was a relief to know that it was common for PWS to stutter on their own name. While reading Lee’s book, I loved the crutches and when I first heard them, they make total sense to me and I could relate to all of the explanations. Lee’s book is a practical guide to stop stuttering and I truly believe this book can help so many people. I only wish I came across Lee’s life changing book many years ago. “
I was also helped a lot by Speech Anxiety Cures or SAC which Lee licensed to spread his methods to others (https://speechanxiety.com/). SAC (a company run by ex-stutterers) has developed programs that make Lee’s methods easier to understand, including dozens of video lectures by Lee on his books and coaching videos that are much like private coaching sessions. I also love SAC’s speech club. It’s a great place to gradually expose yourself to public speaking and to learn from other ex-stutterers and those working on their speech.
My only regret is that I didn’t know about Lee’s methods many years ago. SAC is now teaching them through its programs and a staff of people who stopped stuttering using those methods. Imagine that: A whole community of EX-stutterers to help us. There is just no reason to keep stuttering anymore.
Janeel, Johannesburg, S.A., September 2020