INTERNATIONAL STUTTERING AWARENESS DAY

Samuel Jackson. Emily Blunt. Bruce Willis. James Earl Jones. King George VI.

Who would have guessed that they were and still are stutterers? They make it appear so easy but these people share that common experience. For someone who stutters like me, having these personalities eases the burden of anxiety and hopelessness. If they can do it, so can we!

Have you met someone who stutters or stammers? Someone who repeats words he just said. Someone who seems to have a hard time pronouncing the next syllable. Someone who sounds longer than he should. Generally, all people stammer. You may have not noticed it when you were speaking over the phone; you repeat words unconsciously. You may have not noticed it when you were feeling something; you prolong sounds in your breath. You may or may not have noticed these manifestations yourself, regardless, it does not mean you also have the condition. The difference between you and me is that I struggle while you don’t.

I entered college and discovered a community - a community of people who apparently have the same disposition that gathers once in a while. It’s surreal. Discovering them was too good to be true for I haven’t met anyone like me – ever. This support group pushes each and every one to be open with their personal battles as an individual who has the condition. I refrain from using the word ‘disorder’ as it would only be redundant and obvious – since we’re struggling with ordering our thoughts, or more likely, the order and manner of our speech. So let ‘stuttering’ be a condition, not of defeat but of purpose.

The only relief that we try to keep is the belief and practice of courage, hope, and persistence. The notion of “kung kaya nila, kaya ko rin!” (If they can do it, so can I!) holds our vulnerable lives and anxious mind together. It does not matter whether or not it is a lie we tell ourselves because at the end of the day, giving up should not be an option – and so we believe.

To you who are reading this, this is to make you aware about our existence. Our experiences are not limited with failures but are more motivated by triumphs. Being able to buy what we need, to speak when we like to, to travel as we wish, to work without discrimination, to study with enough ease, are only some of our challenges and-or-yet aspirations. We have good days and bad days. It is not just a matter of mood but situation. People commonly mistake that our nervousness makes us stutter. “Don’t be nervous”, so we’re told. No. It’s like saying, “don’t stutter”, to someone who evidently does. It’s counterproductive. Little do they know that we’re nervous because we stutter and not the other way around. It is not we stutter because we’re nervous; we are nervous because we know we stutter.

Again and again, mind over matter, they always say. Please know that we try. We try to think best and speak well. Why wouldn’t we? We thank you for the patience because that’s the least and best you can give us.

If you reach until here, thank you for taking and giving time. I, along with my fellow stutterers, will continue to struggle but with this struggle is our battle to victory. Some of us are teachers, lawyers, and managers. Unthinkable professions they may be, but we prove that we are not defined by our impairment. Actors and leaders have proved it. Others will. We will prove it too.

It only takes a patient ear, an understanding mind, and a kind behavior to help us who stutter. In times of mobility and progression, we may lag behind but rest assured that we will continue. A sympathetic gesture from you would break a significant barrier in our way to meet our goals.

Wait for us to finish what we’re saying.

Ask us our thoughts.

Wait.

Listen.

Hear what we have to say because we still have a voice!

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For interested persons who would like to support, to learn more, and to aid people who stutter, Philippine Stuttering Association (PSA) is the forefront organization in the advocacy of raising awareness and support for people who stutter in the country. Voluntarism is open for anyone – be it someone who also stutters, as someone who knows someone who stutters, or as someone who just wants to help and give a helping hand.

Thank you for reading, fellow stutterers! Let’s make this special day more meaningful by raising stuttering awareness. Let's post and share!

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“October 22 was designated International Stuttering Day (ISAD) in 1998. This day is intended to raise public awareness of stuttering, which affects one percent of the world’s population.” –The Stuttering Foundation

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TBWS

written on 21 October 2019