"If I want to make the effort to talk without stuttering, that's something I should be able to do" But when you do that, what if you're reinforcing the actual stutter to begin with? I.e. you're doing the very thing which results in stuttering in the first place! If you really want to say something, no need to block that thought. In fact, focus on that intention and the message you want to convey and the words will produce themselves. But there's no need to bring in the "I don't want to stutter" aspect because that justs invites the stutter. But I think I understand the essence of your post. "Yeah I get this is why I stutter, but why can't I do this anyway and not stutter". It's simply not how it is, and if you look at non stutterers, they don't approach speaking like that either