postr/StutterNovember 1, 2018

Stuttering and dating as a man

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Content

Stuttering and dating as a man For us guys here, have you ever been the type to make the first move in regards to people you're attracted to? We all know how hard it is to approach someone anyway, but to add a stutter on top makes it all the more challenging and embarassing/potentially humiliating. Having a stutter can crush and cripple your confidence, and I think for men that can have a significantly negative impact on our ability to feel like we are men, in the traditional sense of course. Intellectually we may tell ourselves our inability to do such and such thing, or not do it all too well, doesn't make us any less of a man, but in reality we live in a far more superficial world. We consciously or subconsciously compare ourselves to other people constantly to figure out our place in the social hierarchy. We're socialised to be active seekers in the dating world whereas for women, they are socialised to wait to be approached (I'm aware that for women who stutter, a different set of problems arise from this, though from where I'm standing, it appears you have one less hurdle compared to men), but what does it do to our self-esteem and our position in the hierarchy when we're hindered in such a way? How do I get over this feeling of my masculinity being in question whenever girls are thrown into the mix?

Themes

Emotional ExperienceIdentity & DisabilitySocial & Relationships

Subthemes

Anxiety & Social JudgmentHelplessness & AgencyIdentity & Self-PerceptionDating & Romance

Codes (1)

emotional_state