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People Who Stutter (PWS) may struggle with negative emotions surrounding their stuttering, which in turn creates an internalized stigma. This means that PWS may believe negative stereotypes about themselves which can have a harmful impact on their social life. For example, PWS may believe that because they stutter, they are incapable of making new friends or initiating conversation. The presence of support groups for adolescents who stutter provides an opportunity for increasing self-esteem and creating a new outlook on stuttering as a whole. These groups can also encourage the development of coping skills for managing stuttering and improving overall communication skills (Bloye et al., 2023). There is also the Stuttering Foundation, Stutter Social, and the Stuttering Society who create videos for stuttering individuals to relate to, post encouraging messages on their website, and host video chats for PWS to connect to others. It may be encouraging for PWS to know about people who have become famous and learned to manage their stuttering. Celebrities such as Ed Sheeran, Emily Blunt, Bruce Willis, and even Samuel L. Jackson all are PWS and actively socialize with fans and peers alike. Do you know someone who would benefit from attending a support group for adolescents who stutter?

Reference

Bloye, N. E., Abdoola, S. S., & Eslick, C. J. (2023). Why do people who stutter attend stuttering support groups?. The South African journal of communication disorders = Die Suid-Afrikaanse tydskrif vir Kommunikasieafwykings, 70(1), e1–e8. https://doi.org/10.4102/sajcd.v70i1.958