Anne Skyvington
  • Writing
  • Mythos
  • Travel
  • Australia
  • Book Reviews
  • Poetry
  • Memoir
  • Publishing
  • Guest Post
  • Psychology
  • home
  • ABOUT
  • Contact

Anne Skyvington

The Art of Creative Writing

  • Writing
  • Mythos
  • Travel
  • Australia
  • Book Reviews
  • Poetry
  • Memoir
  • Publishing
  • Guest Post
  • Psychology
Australia

An Amazing Story About Stuttering

written by Anne Skyvington June 14, 2022
Clinician preparing baby

Did you know that Australia is a world leader in Stuttering research and treatments? See: The Australian Stuttering Research Centre.

But first, let me tell you a story. Many years ago, when I was little, there were always one or two children in school who couldn’t get their words out. They sounded ‘bumpy’ when they did manage to speak. Other children laughed at them. In my uncle’s time, he was even caned for his stutter.

Enter a team of Australian speech pathologists) at Lidcombe Hospital and other locales in Sydney’s Western Suburbs, during the nineties. They devised a simple plan, based on the idea of a puppet who appeared and then magically disappeared from sight. The Lidcombe Program for treating preschool age children was born!

When refined, this program was conceptually very simple, and involved trained therapists in verbally rewarding stutter-free speech outputs and pointing out “bumpy words” in a neutral manner.

Therapy sessions, individually suited to each child, and occurring in fun and environmentally friendly settings, occur over a period of weeks. Although simple, it could ‘go wrong’ if certain protocols are not followed. In other words, it is a demanding operation, that requires a stable and subtle framework to put it into practice.


Fast forward to today. The Australian Stuttering Research Centre RC is now working on another ground-breaking piece of research. They have been researching the very deep question of WHY people stutter. The causes of stuttering have escaped researchers all around the world since thinkers first wondered about it eons ago. It is a very complex multifactorial matter and many possible starting points for scientists to work from.

Enter the Baby Solution! Researchers at the ASRC have courageously begun studying the brains of infants who are at risk of developing stuttering. Yes, it is proven to be a heritable condition, afflicting ten percent of those on the planet at some stage during their lives. At risk babies were placed in Magnetic Resonance Imaging scanners in special capsules. This is already showing amazing early suggestions of differences between ‘at risk’ and control groups.

This study is the first to investigate the brains of children before the onset of stuttering.

Professor Mark Onslow, the Australian Stuttering Research Centre founding director, says people who stutter live in a society that marginalises them with stereotypes that portray stuttering as a psychological problem. It is not caused by emotional issues, but made worse by stigma and bullying at school.

The researchers say their preliminary findings warrant replication incorporating longitudinal research. They say a better understanding about how different brain regions become disconnected will bring us closer to developing treatment that one day may completely alleviate stuttering.

How do I know this? Because I’m married to the director of the the Australian Stuttering Research Centre, Mark Onslow. And because I’m so proud of him and his colleagues for the work that they do in trying to manage this horrible affliction that ruins lives and prevents sufferers from reaching their full career potential as adults.


Read the article Does Stuttering Have Its Origins at Birth on the ASRC website at https://www.uts.edu.au/news/health-science/does-stuttering-have-its-origins-birth

[See the Research Paper published in the journal Neuroscience Letters: ‘White matter connectivity in neonates at risk of stuttering: Preliminary data’]

An Amazing Story About Stuttering was last modified: July 6th, 2022 by Anne Skyvington
Brain imaging on babies at risk of stutteringStammering is the word used in other countries.The Australian Research Stuttering CentreThe Lidcombe Program for treating young children
0 comment
0
Facebook Twitter Google + Pinterest
Anne Skyvington

I have been a reader/writer all of my life as far back as I can remember. Blogging has opened me up to another world, where I can share my skills and continue to create through word and picture. Writing is about seeing the world and recreating it for others to see through different eyes.

previous post
From the Archives: Australian Story

You may also like

5 things about Coogee

May 8, 2017

The Pandemic Down Under

August 17, 2021

From the Archives: Australian Story

June 14, 2022

Malabar Headland in Sydney

July 8, 2015

Memories of Greek Cafés

September 3, 2018

Boat People to Australia: a revisit

March 22, 2019

Hurrah Helen Garner!

March 2, 2016

Babies are awesome … otherwise … we’d...

September 2, 2015

Winter in Australia

August 4, 2016

A Kit Home Goes Up in Vacy

February 26, 2018

About The Author

About The Author

Anne Skyvington

Anne Skyvington is a writer based in Sydney who has been practising and teaching creative writing skills for many years. You can learn here about structuring a short story and how to go about creating a longer work, such as a novel or a memoir. Subscribe to this blog and receive a monthly newsletter on creative writing topics and events.

Buy Karrana my debut novel from Amazon online

EBook Cover

My How To book about Writing A Novel: The Big Picture

The Craft of Writing Included in Top Creative Writing Blogs

https://blog.feedspot.com/creative_writing_blogs/

Connect With Me

Facebook Twitter Google + Pinterest Linkedin Youtube Email

Recent Posts

  • An Amazing Story About Stuttering

    June 14, 2022
  • From the Archives: Australian Story

    June 14, 2022
  • Have You Ever Experienced The “Numen”?

    April 27, 2022
  • I visit the Ukraine in 1968

    February 25, 2022
  • In Search of a Voice

    February 19, 2022

I’ve joined ALLI

About The Author

About The Author

Anne Skyvington is a Sydney-based writer and blogger. <a href="https://www.anneskyvington.com.au She has self-published a novel, 'Karrana' and is currently writing a creative memoir based on her life and childhood with a spiritual/mystical dimension.

Popular Posts

  • Randwick Writers’ Group: Sharing Writing Skills

    May 7, 2020
  • 5 Further Publishing Facts

    April 1, 2020
  • Symbolism of Twins

    October 2, 2017
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linkedin

&copy: 2021 Anne Skyvington. All Rights Reserved. Site by Nate Hoffelder.


Back To Top