One of the most difficult times to speak, for people who stutter (including me) is over the phone. I will be OK talking to someone face to face, but the second I need to speak to the same person on the phone, my fluency drops. I feel this panic rising as I hit various blocks and try to dodge saying words.
A few months ago I hit my decision point and decided to start working hard on my speech. This includes attending speech therapy and working through self therapy. I have been learning and practising various techniques which are helping with my fluency.
In particular there is a technique called ERA/SM which stands for "Easy relaxed approach, smooth movement". The aim here is to speak (from the very first sound) with controlled breathing in a light manner with a relaxed mouth, tongue and jaw. The idea being to prevent any fluency problems before they occur. In the past I would have only used a fluency technique on words I battle with, with ERA/SM I use techniques on all the words. This has been a big help when it comes to the telephone as I can get my mind ready before I make the call and then use ERA/SM throughout the call. In the past if I had a question for a client I would have sent an email, which means the answer is delayed. Now I am picking up the phone more and more which is a great feeling and saves time!
Here is an audio clip of me on the phone, went pretty well except for the 'to', 'to', 'to' stutter.
