Can a PWS Learn to Speak Fluently Like Everyone Else?

That was what one of the PWS (People Who Stutter) I coach asked me last week. This question surprised me at first, but then I replied with another question: "You mean, to speak like those using the Neuroscience Method? Without bad incidents? Of course you can!" Before I go any further, I'm going to do what Socrates used to do before starting any discussion: begin by defining fluent speech. We define fluent speech as any way of speaking where there are no bad speech incidents. Bad speech incidents are those where the listener clearly identifies us as speech disabled. Nevertheless, we must know and accept that everyone—including the best speakers in the world—stutters sometimes:

"Wha-What ti-time is it?"

"I-I-I live in Ma-Madrid."

People do this all the time. These are not bad incidents. This is simply how people speak. We shouldn’t punish ourselves for these moments, as long as they don’t make us appear speech disabled. Going back to my client’s question—after my reply—I explained to him that if he continues following our guidance, just as he has been doing so far, he will become a PWSS (Person Who Stopped Stuttering). As we define it, someone becomes a PWSS when they haven’t had a bad speech incident in at least four weeks. This means they’ve mastered the tools and strategies from the Neuroscience Method, and have proven to themselves that they can avoid stuttering moments.

Yes, fears and stuttering threats may still come—but the difference is, now they know how to manage and prevent them from becoming bad speech incidents. Fears are not stutters. We’ve feared words for a long time, so it’s natural to still have those fears even after posting a Stopped Stuttering Story. But by rejecting those fears through positive affirmations, and celebrating every fluent moment, the fears get weaker and less frequent. Eventually, you’ll enjoy speaking, no matter the situation. Your speech will keep improving, day after day. Over time, the threats become rare and insignificant. You’ll handle them easily. Nobody will know you ever stuttered.

We can become excellent speakers—just like those who’ve successfully used the Neuroscience Method. Afterwards, I asked him, “Was that the answer you were looking for?” He smiled and said, “Yes.” So yes—we can be fluent, just like everyone else. In fact, we can become even better speakers than most. The tools from the Neuroscience Method don’t just help us beat stuttering—they also make our speech stronger, clearer, and more enjoyable.