I'm not sure fluent speakers give that much thought and attention to their rhythm and diction. For us, to concentrate on anything extraneous is just one more distraction. It's evident that stress and anxiety are factors, but I wonder what’s the precipitating factor and what’s the result of our stuttering. In my case, it was a feedback loop. The more I stuttered, the more anxious I became, and so on. Each one of us does what helps us the most whether it's treating anxiety or treating the outcome of how defeated we feel after blocking, repeating, hesitating; or seeing that ‘look of pity and horror’ in the face of a listener. We do whatever works best for us. Sue