I used 'the' and 'um' a lot. But over time, my stutter integrated these 'cheats' into the stutter, aggravating the situation. Instead of a simple stutter, I'd repeat 'the um' over and over. My "friends" made a "the um" rap (fuck those guys.) I always suggest seeking speech therapy. I was able to achieve fluency in my mid 20's thought an effective speech therapy program.