I reckon it is hard for people who do
not stutter to understand why people like me who do actually stutter. Trust me
if we could speak without pauses every now and then we would definitely do it.
Unfortunately, some of us have that speech disorder called a stutter or locally
known as chibwibwi, it was a word used
to describe me when I was growing up.
Many people will not believe that I
actually do have chibwibwi; the fact
is that I do. I have just learnt to disguise it pretty well. It is not easy
growing up with a stutter, usually you are the butt of the joke and often you
are afraid to speak in crowds, or air your views. There is also a stereotype
that people with chibwibwi are short-tempered.
Well I am far from short-tempered as they come so that stereotype is not
entirely true. I also do not know whether the use of the word chibwibwi is derogatory, I just came to
accept it as one of the tags that were labelled on me. Anyway that is a debate
for another day.
The thing with chibwibwi, it is not like I choose to have it or choose to do it on
purpose to annoy people. It just happens; it's rather hard to explain. One minute
I can be speaking fluent and flawless like the strokes of the violin and then
the words come out in pauses like a car that has run out of gas. This is
perhaps what non-stutters must find very peculiar. The strange thing is that we will even
stutter on the simplest of words. Whereas a non-stutterer will just pronounce
the word, "Ball", one who does will say, "B-B-B-B-Ball. It is like
someone is removing a bath tub stopper from your mouth very slowly. At times
you can see the pain, impatience and amusement of the person you are talking to
as you struggle to say the word. For some individuals with chibwibwi this can be a huge dent to their self confidence.
I have good moments when the chibwibwi will not be heard then there
are moments when it will surface. In high school, I did the most absurd thing
for someone with chibwibwi joining
the Debate Club. I thought that somehow I could be able to defeat it. I think
it helped but the one thing that I then became known as was the boy who speaks
very fast. Now the speaking fast was not intentional at all, it was to avoid
the chibwibwi at the time that is the
only way I knew how to avoid it. In my head I know that I am going to stutter a
word even before I attempt to say it. For example, if I want to say,
"Exaggerate", I already know in my head even before those words roll
off my tongue whether they will be smooth or chibwibwi. I do not know if this is the same for other individuals
with chibwibwi but that is the way it
is for me. So I have two choices in such a situation, go ahead and stutter the
word 'Exaggerate' or replace it with another word like 'Overstate' which
hopefully will roll off easier. When I discovered this, I had to learn a lot of
synonyms maybe that is why I became a
writer. It is just a challenge when it is a person's name because then I
cannot easily replace it.
As a child I did not receive any
treatment. I do not even think my parents thought it was a problem at all. I
think in Zambia, it is hardly considered as something that needs to be treated.
No one appears to pay much attention to it. Whereas, I have been able to manage
my chibwibwi perhaps because it is
not very severe others have not been so lucky. It does result in people
withdrawing and abstaining from most activities that require them to speak out.
It was not until I watched the Oscar winning 2010 movie The King's Speech that
I learnt of what a speech therapist actually does. In the movie a speech
therapist helps King George IV of the United Kingdom with his stutter as he is
supposed to make a public address. Unfortunately, in Zambia the option of a
speech therapist is not available to many stutterers. However, there are other
ways that can be used to assist the person who stutters.
Patience- Be patient with us do
not feel the need to complete our sentences on our behalf. Allow us to finish
the sentence, it may be insignificant to you but there is a level of triumph
when we finally say the word.
Poetry- Experts say that reading
poetry or reciting it out loud is one way that can reduce the stutter.
Hollywood actor James Earl Jones (voice of Mufasa in Lion King) has attributed
this method to getting rid of his stutter. I think it worked for me as I would
recite at BitterSweet Poetry.
Synonyms- In most cases, I know
that I will stutter a word even before I begin to say it. Knowing a number of
synonyms to a word might be an alternative. Replacing the word with a synonym
might come out more fluently.
Breathe- The chibwibwi usually
becomes more aggressive when one is nervous and their mouth is dry. Learning
how to be calm as they speak and having breath control can reduce the stutter
considerably.
Understand- DO NOT speak back to us
in chibwibwi. We do not it deliberately. It is a speech impediment. Neither
should you show us any pity because of it.
I hope that I have shed some light on
why I stutter sometimes. I do not know whether someone else who stutters
follows the same pattern as I do. For a child with chibwibwi it can be very difficult especially if they do not have
the right support system around them. Some children will probably get rid of it
as they grow whereas for some it will not disappear. It will just have to be
managed. For someone with chibwibwi
it is not deliberate we speak that way, it just happens the very least we
expect is for others to understand that.
Do you have or know someone with chibwibwi? What is your experience?
