I have in my 47 years (life) of being a person who stutters been stupid, crazy, weirdo, is there a problem with you, I do not want to deal with this person, and more. I lost billion dollar construction projects for my company because of my stutter. Being one that stutters led me to multiple inpatient stays at psychiatric hospitals. To this day I still have a severe stutter. I know others in this group also wishes so hard that the medical community would have figured out by now on a cure for stutters, but yet when a person’s speech comes from a person’s brain; well then the brain is a he last and most complex part of the human anatomy to truly understand. Yet, the brain controls our entire body. When I was a child the medical community told my parents and myself that in simple terms the wiring in the speech part of my brain is mixed up. Mixed up in comparison to a person who does not stutter, and there is no cure and not even a medication out there for us. So yes, when I hear words similar to those of what you have heard OP from people that say, I know what you are going through”, I feel like punching the hell out of them. But I am not a violent person anymore when it comes to my stuttering now. I just do not even respond when those comments are made. It shows me that I am still locked up in this “prison” for longer. So please people who are not stutters and are part of this subreddit group do the following when you encounter one of us. Do not try or attempt or think about attempting to finish our sentences for us. It’s extremely demoralizing to at least in my mind as a person who stutters. It will take us longer to translate our thoughts into words, but eventually we will say what we want to say. The way you can support us is when you interact with a stuttering individual, to just silently wait until we are done speaking. It is alright to politely ask when we are done speaking to ask if it’s okay to respond. I know that from a person who ain’t a stutter is a bit more difficult when having a conversation as the listener does not know when to respond. Finally, to the parents who are finding out that their son or daughter has a speech disorder. Please do not take what you are reading about me as this could be the outcome of how my child’s future will play out. Each person is different and life is 100% different from the next another person who stutters. But yes being a person who stutters will have major hurdles to overcome throughout their lives. At times it will be extremely difficult, demoralizing, and at times mentally exhausting, and mentally draining. You will have good and bad days. As a parent and like all good parents you want to protect your children from the bad parts of society. Totally understandable. I do not have kids and understand what the role of a parent should be doing for their child or children. But please seek out the help of the wonderful and awesome community of speech language pathologists (SLP). If you are just starting out on this journey with your child and do not know how to get in contact with a SLP. Ask your child’s doctor. Most hospitals will have some SLP’s on staff at the hospital. You may need to be referred by your kids doctor, and the doctor will be happy to do so. I had 14 years of wonderful experiences with SLP’s as a youth all the way until I graduated from high school. But a proper and professional diagnosis from a SLP is key to helping you the parent to navigate forward with your child. Good luck!