I am studying MBA right now. I have a big problem of stammering since childhood. I am 21 years old. Due to this problem, I lost opportunities to get job. So how do I get rid of stammering? Please suggest.— Anonymous

Stammering or stuttering is typically a developmental disorder beginning in early childhood and continuing into adulthood. There is a growing belief that stuttering is not a behaviour disorder as was always thought but rather a genetic disorder. However, 40-70 per cent of stutterers give no family history. Some stutterers are related to some other accompanying congenital defect. Still some are due to some sort of auditory system defect. Brain scan in these cases show reduced activation of the left auditory cortex. Speech defects occurring later on in our life either due to neurological or psychological trauma has to be assessed either by an ENT specialist, psychiatrist or neurologist before being referred to a speech therapist which is available in most major teaching hospitals.

There are a number of treatments for adult stuttering. Speech therapy can help adults that stutter, but is often dependant on a number of factors including the severity of the stammer, the commitment of the individual, the skills of the therapist, the underlying psychological issues of the individual, and the type of therapy technique chosen. No single treatment is effective for every stammerer and because everyone is different some treatments need to be tailored to the individual. In some cases, the stammer will completely disappear, but at some point in the future an event may cause the stammer to recur. Adult stammerers need to be aware that they need to tackle underlying causes of the stammer (psychological issues), as well as the more obvious outward signs of the stammer. Unfortunately, for many people there is no long lasting cure and they have to live with their stammer.

In case of physiological defects, speech therapy is compulsory to treat stammering. While speech therapist mainly concentrate on speech corrections, they may also adopt psychotherapies like hypnosis, impoco, role plays or cognitive behavioural therapy, if diagnosis suggests a psychological cause for stammering. Many therapists also use acupuncture, yoga spa treatment and other relaxation techniques to assist in treatment of stammering.

In conclusion, a speech and language therapist should be able to offer you a range of approaches and techniques, and from these you can focus on the ones that you find most helpful. The therapist will support whatever choice you make. Whilst there are no guarantees, many people who work conscientiously and in a sustained way with these sorts of approaches and techniques make real progress, in terms of speaking more freely and feeling more at ease with themselves as communicators.

The doctors on THT Medical Board are

•    Dr Sanduk Ruit Medical Director, Tilganga Eye Hospital

•    Dr Bhagwan Koirala Cardiac Surgeon,TUTH

•    Prof Upendra Devkota Chief of Neurosurgery, National Institute of Neurological and

Allied Sciences

•    Dr Kundu Yangzom Chief of OBGYN Services, Patan Hospital

•    Dr Kishore PandeyPediatrician, CIWEC

•    Dr Sameer AryalDentist, Advanced Dental Care

•    prof Dr Dwarika P Shrestha Head of Dermatology Department, Teaching Hospital and Consultant, Dermato-Venereologist, B&B Hospital

•    Dr Ranjeet s BaralConsultant cardiologist, GP and Aeromedical Examiner at

Ganga Lal, VAYODHA, Advanced Polyclinic and Norvic Hospital

•    Dr Prativa Shrestha Das is a Consultant Dermatologist and Aesthetician at Vayodha Hosptial, Balkhu

•    Dr Dilip Das is a Dentist at Vayodha Hospital, Balkhu

•    Dr Bharat Rawat is Consultant Cardiologist and Head of Cardiology Department at Norvic International Hospital Katmandu, Tripureshwor

•    Dr Uttam Kumar Sharma, is Associate Professor of Urology at TU Teaching Hospital and Urologist and Kidney Transplant Surgeon at Chirayu Hospital and Medical Institute, Basundhara, Kathmandu