Yes exactly. I also think it's very intertwined with our self esteem. That's why I became a perfectionist when I was younger. I thought that if I accomplished a lot I would become more confident and then have to stutter less, which did work for a while. I think you would like some of the ideas in this article: [https://www.mnsu.edu/comdis/kuster/Infostuttering/Harrison/block.html](https://www.mnsu.edu/comdis/kuster/Infostuttering/Harrison/block.html) a small extract of it: "You have a divided intention -- speak/don’t speak. But because you have learned to prevent yourself from experiencing painful emotions, you close up and hold back. You push the fear (embarrassment, discomfort, etc.) out of your conscious awareness. Thus, the block seems outside of your control, because you’re only aware of half the conflict. You know you want to speak, but you are not aware of the simultaneous reluctance to speak because of the underlying fear and pain. You hold yourself back without being aware you’re doing so. That is why speech blocks seem to happen *to* you. The antidote is to begin paying attention to what you’re feeling...or at least start noticing and questioning what’s going on when you block. The most compelling question I used to ask myself when I was afraid of blocking was, “Suppose I do speak right now in this situation. *What might I experience?* Usually, the first thing I thought of was, “I might stutter.” Perhaps. “But what *else*, might I experience?” Here’s where so many people go blank. They simply don’t know what else might be lurking down there. Is it a fear of asserting yourself...of looking aggressive or coming on too strong...of being the real *you?* Usually, the problem lies in this area. There is something about yourself that you feel is unacceptable, so you hold back until it feels safe to talk. “Safe” means that you can now talk because the intensity of the feelings has dropped and you can now remain within your comfort zone. "