It’s International Stammering Awareness Day 2020!
Thursday 22nd October 2020 is International Stammering Awareness Day. This year our focus is to empower children and young people who stammer by giving them a voice within our organisation and in society. Throughout the day we have been posting videos of our Youth Panel talking about their Stamback in Time game and how they want people to perceive their stammer. We have also been sharing links of our fantastic supporters who are raising awareness on the national news! Below are some of the posts all in one place.
Keira, age 15, has written a piece for us about how she has managed her stammer growing up:
“Hi my name is Keira and I’m 15 from Merseyside. I have had a stammer almost all my life and it hasn’t been caused by genetics or trauma which people often think it is caused by. I’ve had mixed views on my stammer my whole life it has brought good and bad to my life but mostly good. Yes I admit it has prevented me from doing certain things, but that’s from my feelings and how people would see it not the stammer itself. With a stammer I am capable of things everyone else is but it can just make it more difficult for me. Speech therapy hasn’t worked for me, which I think people need to understand, as we don’t need to find ways to make it not as bad. Speech therapy helps me with more the mental aspects of it because if I think negatively about it then it makes it go worse. Overall I don’t see stammering as something which needs to be treated or cured, I see it as something which can make certain things more difficult and so stammering should be made more aware of. I also see it as what makes me myself, if I didn’t have my stammer I may not be as empathetic as I am or as good of a listener. My stammer is a part of me, it doesn’t make me different to everyone else I just want to be treated as everyone else is. Remember if you have a stammer yourself, its what makes you you, don’t feel like you need to change.”
Amelia, age 17, has also shared her thoughts on what it’s like having a stammer by recording a video on Instagram.
Georgie has also shared her experience of stammering on social media and makes sure everyone knows that her stammer is “what makes me, me!”
Phoebe, who has been a Youth Panel member since it began, wanted to debunk the big myth about stammering and intelligence:
And 10 year old Sam, sent us in some brilliant poetry about his stammer and how he ‘rocks’ it. What a creative way to raise awareness. He was awarded a Blue Peter Badge and was also featured on the front page of BBC Newsround and has encouraged his whole school to raise money for Action for Stammering Children today! Here he is reciting his poem:
We also want to highlight one young fantastic fundraiser called Callum. He’s smashed his target 🌟 Read Callum’s story and donate here:
