Stammering and Counselling: Exploring the Relationship

Jackie Turnbull

This paper traces the history of psychological approaches to stammering treatment. It examines the current place of counselling in speech and language therapy with people who stammer. The question of whether boundaries do and /or should exist between the two disciplines is addressed and consideration is given to where any such boundaries should be drawn. Case material is used to illustrate and reflect on specific issues which may arise and how dilemmas can be managed. Stroebe & Schut’s dual process model of loss (1995) is adapted to describe how counselling can be integrated in speech and language therapy.