No Miracle Cures: A Multifactoral Guide to Stuttering Therapy [Paperback]

Thomas David Kehoe (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2006

Stuttering is caused by at least five factors: genetics, two neurological abnormalities, responses to stress, and speech-related fears and anxieties. But most stuttering therapy programs address only one issue, such as breathing a certain way, or not hiding your stuttering. Each might help you in some situations, but you still stutter in other situations. No Miracle Cures instead guides you through treatments for all five factors that contribute to stuttering. You'll find the best treatments for children, teenagers, adults who stutter mildly, and adults who stutter severely. Stuttering may seem like one big problem to you. No Miracle Cures breaks down stuttering into many small problems and shows you how to solve each one.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Thomas David Kehoe is the owner of a company that manufactures anti-stuttering devices, so it should come as no surprise that the first chapter is about anti-stuttering devices. Kehoe presents many studies showing that his company's anti-stuttering devices are effective, both when wearing the devices and for training long-term carryover fluency. They are helpful on their own but have found to be most effective when used in conjunction with other therapies. Kehoe clearly admits, "Many factors contribute to stuttering. No single stuttering therapy works for every stutterer." As a severe stutterer himself at one point in his life, Kehoe shows real insight into other issues related to stuttering. Many of you who have undergone Fluency Shaping therapy will find Kehoe's section 'Beyond Fluency Shaping' fascinating. This is where Kehoe really hits his stride and makes interesting if not provocative observations. He challenges conventional wisdom that stuttering is psychological in nature. Kehoe points to studies that found placebos did not reduce stuttering, and yet sufferers of what were thought to be strictly physical ailments, such as heart disease or asthma, were. At this point, Kehoe poses the ultimate irony. "Could stuttering--long believed to be solely psychological--actually have no psychological component?" Also in the section 'Beyond Fluency Shaping' Kehoe speculates why stutterers are sometimes fluent and sometimes not. Kehoe's explanation is that, as stutterers, we utilize not one but two speech motor programs. "Sometimes our brains pick the fluent speech motor program. At other times our brains pick the stuttering speech motor programs." According to Kehoe, we choose according to environmental settings as to which program to deploy. Here he uses the analogy of someone who lives part of the year in Vermont sporting a "yankee" accent and the other part of the year in Georgia speaking with a southern drawl. In the section "Zen and the art of speaking", Kehoe compares stuttering therapy to drawing and releasing an arrow. The section, with its colourful and entertaining metaphorical speech, highlights the importance of breathing properly. In the Zen philosophy, nothing is forced. Kehoe writes, "In stuttering therapy, the first word of a phrase should be without effort, rolling off your vocal folds like the snow sliding off the bamboo leaf. You shouldn't intend to say the first word, as the archer doesn't open his hand on purpose. The word should say itself, without your planning or calculating or trying." From there, Kehoe goes on to highlight the obvious yet thought-provoking difference between stuttering and other disabilities. Whereas stutterers are sometimes fluent, sometimes dysfluent, people aren't sometimes blind, or sometimes crippled. With stutterers, the speech apparatus is seemingly in perfect working order. We simply choose to use it incorrectly. In the section "Psychological" issues about stuttering, Kehoe presents this great piece of advice: "Don't try to avoid hiding the fact that you stutter. Indeed, trying to hide it only adds to the tension which can lead to greater difficulty. Take every opportunity to explain to people what you know about stuttering." I think this is great advice. For example, think about how we stutterers behave in a conversation compared to someone who is hard of hearing, who casually explains to listeners up front if they wouldn't mind speaking up because of a hearing problem. If anything we regard that kind of a person, who admits a frailty, not as someone hard of hearing or in our case someone who has a speech problem, but as someone who is open and honest. Kehoe emphasizes, "Stuttering doesn't necessarily communicate low status. Embarrassment and anxiety about stuttering communicates low status. --Review by Bernie Dobrucki, Canadian Stuttering Association "Voices" newsletter, November 2007

About the Author

Thomas David Kehoe's previous book was Stuttering: Science, Therapy & Practice (1998). He is a member of the American Speech-Language Hearing Assocication.

Product Details

• Paperback: 196 pages
• Publisher: University College Press; Pap/DVD edition (August 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0965718166
• ISBN-13: 978-0965718165
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #502,280 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I stuttered severely until I was 30 years old. A speech clinic measured my most fluent speech -- reading aloud, alone -- as ten times slower than normal speech. I needed an hour to say what non-stutterers could say in 5 minutes, and listeners couldn't understand what I said anyway. I'd completed seven stuttering therapy programs with little or no effect on my speech. I had an MBA from the University of Chicago, no jobs, and few friends. I then changed my life from trying to compensate for my speech by being better at everything else, to focusing on my speech as the center of my life. 14 years later I still stutter mildly, but my speech is 99% improved, and doesn't stop me from doing anything I want.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Exceptional Work on Speech Therapy, February 14, 2007

By 

Patrick McReaken (Layton, Utah) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: No Miracle Cures: A Multifactoral Guide to Stuttering Therapy (Paperback)

Mr. Kehoe's work provides an exceptional, comprehensive guide to persons who stutter. He presents the difficulty of stuttering as one that is definitely correctable, given time and effort. The book encouraged me towards improving my individual speech therapy and I see daily improvements. The Small Talk device, discussed in the book, has had a significant influence as both a training aid and as a support in real-time speaking situations. Much applause to Mr. Kehoe for his efforts in preparing the book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Invaluable and an easy read, November 6, 2010

By 

Matthew Boyd - See all my reviews

This review is from: No Miracle Cures: A Multifactoral Guide to Stuttering Therapy (Paperback)

I just finished this book; it was an excellent read. Overall I think it is a great resource and I'm going to use it to make my next "plan of action" (I am a severe stutterer). The author's description of stuttering pathology and the different classes or eras of treatment is quite complete and unbiased. His conclusions and proposed treatments seem practical and give me hope that with perseverance I can make real permanent progress.

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars No Miracle Cures: A multifactoral Guide to Sturrering Therapy, July 22, 2007

By 

Michael A. Mims (New Orleans,La.) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: No Miracle Cures: A Multifactoral Guide to Stuttering Therapy (Paperback)

This is an excellent book. I would encourage anyone who stutters, even lightly, to read this book. It is an eye opener.