And ….just bc the mind gives us one message doesn’t mean we can’t interrupt it with another message. Ie., speaking makes me nervous, I feel a block coming on, what if I get stuck, I’m embarrassed, you know …..insert your own thought pattern here_________. What if you added your own mantra to speaking in addition to your default ie., speaking is rewarding, I love the opportunity to interact with others, I can introduce myself as a stutterer (so I don’t have to spend as much energy on worrying about a stutter and ppl not knowing), that wasn’t so bad, I changed the way I stutter (intentional stutter, rhythmic speaking on syllables ). There are definite differences in the way a stutterer speaks but you can represent those differences with confidence as a member of the stuttering community and you can learn to stutter with acceptance and pride in who you are