Stuttering and causes
No-one knows exactly what causes stuttering, although it has recently been suggested by experts that people who stammer may have difficulty co-ordinating the muscles needed for speech, and require more time to form words. It is likely that stuttering is caused by a variety of factors, including genetics and environmental factors. Although stuttering is a physical condition, there can often be a psychological aspect linked to it starting, for example experiencing a trauma in early life, or going through a difficult or stressful time, such as being bullied.
How can hypnosis help with stuttering?
Stuttering is a physical condition, and if you are worried about having a stutter you should speak to your doctor in the first instance. He or she can refer you to a speech therapist if necessary, who can advise on different therapies to alleviate the stammer.
Clients with a stutter often speak normally when under hypnosis, without a trace of a stammer, although this is by no means universal as is sometimes reported. Stuttering can be triggered by different situations, and hypnotherapy can help to reduce the impact of these triggers by teaching new reactions, building confidence etc.
Hypnosis can also be used as an analytical approach to go back to the time when the stuttering first began, and analyse the situation that first triggered the stutter. Hypnosis can be utilised to change a person’s beliefs about that situation, and to desensitise the reactions to the memory.
