Archive for September 2023
Episode 261 features Mandy Rodstrum, who hails from Columbus, Ohio. Mandy is a wife, mother, and school based Speech Language Pathologist. She has worked as a SLP for 19 years.
Mandy originally thought she was going to be a music teacher. She considers music “her first language.” After taking an elective course in speech and hearing science, she realized she was meant to be a SLP.
Listen in as Mandy talks about the “distant relationship” she had with her stutter. As a SLP, she had been taught “fluency enhancing” therapy only, which solidified her own covert stuttering. She eventually realized she wanted to become more of a counselor rather than a “fixer.”
I met Mandy at her first National Stuttering Association conference this summer, which was a life changing experience for her. She also went to the Friends conference, both helping her see that she was enough and worthy, and that it was exciting to experience new calmness, confidence and curiosity.
Mandy shares that she has always been “Amanda” professionally, because she didn’t stutter when introducing herself as “Amanda.” She has said goodbye to “Amanda,” thanked her for her service and has welcomed “Mandy,” who is ready to be, and stay, in the drivers seat.
The Word Impediment
Posted on: September 1, 2023
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I recently had a couple of conversations where the word impediment came up. I find that people who stutter often describe their stutter with words that denote something negative. Like impediment, problem, disorder, or even defect. I honestly don’t remember using any of those words when referring to my stuttering. When I talked about it, I always called my stuttering “stuttering,” never speech impediment. I don’t remember anyone around me specifically saying I had a speech impediment.
To me, these above words are negative. They imply there is something wrong with us. Don’t get me wrong, I definitely have felt there was something different about the way I talked. I was often embarrassed if someone called attention to my stuttering, or if I did so myself by stuttering more than I usually did/do.
But the word impediment has always bothered me. I have never felt impeded in communicating. I have always been able to talk and get my point across, albeit differently than non-stutterers. I could ask for something, answer a question, and on the rare occasion, even poke light fun at myself. (I am able to do that much more today than I was when I was desperately covert. Even when hiding though, I could still convey my thoughts.)
I think about what impedes us regarding stuttering. I think the fear of judgement, of being laughed at, or not taken seriously can impede people who stutter (heck, anybody really) from engaging with the world around us.
I can answer the phone, chat with friends and family, place an order and talk to staff at medical appointments. I am not impeded from communicating. I get what I need and want. It’s not always smooth sailing, and I know that people who struggle more with stuttering than I do may disagree about whether we have an impediment or not
I hope we reach the point some day where how we talk is not seen as a problem, a defect or an impediment. It’s a difference, it’s how I talk and it’s OK. Really!
Make Room For The Stuttering 
What people are saying!