Today I attended a seminar on web marketing. I started to ask a question at the end of the seminar and I felt myself tense up, hold my breathe and then start to speak. This happens normally when I 'm nervous (as a stutterer one is already a bit socially anxious). When I'm comfortable, I breathe normally and then speak. Luckily what followed was a quick transition away from the "abyss" as I like to call it. As a recovering stutterer, I have to be careful to catch a relapse before it gets out of hand. Immediately when I realized I was getting nervous and short on air, I immediately began to relax. The rest of my discussion went very well (except for a "the the the the" part). I don't think anyone even noticed- it probably looked like I was a bit nervous or something. My question was followed by a fruitful discussion.
Like I mentioned in my previous post, my stuttering isn't very noticeable. For example, I don't stutter to the degree that I begin salivating and/or have facial contortions. There are just times when I have to pause for air (regroup). For many people, controlling the flow of air is the main problem.
I have a stutter/stammer and the older I get I'm more comfortable with it. It is part of my experience as a human being in this crazy world. However, as a professional I really have to watch my speech and make sure that I don't let a stressful situation get the best of me. Besides, in the business world time is money and no has time for a stutter/stammer.
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