Stammering & Spirituality discussion

Join our online Zoom discussion on stammering and spirituality this November.

Does the term 'spiritual' resonate with you? Do you seek a meaningful connection with something bigger than yourself? Do you like to take time in your day to meditate, pray or just 'be'? Do you wonder how all that can relate to stammering? 

Then you are invited to join a safe space discussion on Tuesday 22nd November at 7pm. 

John Evans, who ran a session on stammering and spirituality at our STAMMAFest conference, writes: 

"What would we most like in life? Most of us have gone past fast cars and large houses to realise that what matters in life can include feelings of being alive, having good relationships, a sense of being in touch with ourselves and having found our 'purpose' in life. It might feel to some people that their stammer makes it harder to achieve these 'spiritual' goals. After all, stammering can make it tougher to make connections with others. It can also tend to take up a great deal of our 'headspace' and make it harder to be in tune with ourselves.

'Age-old spiritual practices like meditation can help us live well with stammering — stammering can be an incentive to pursue them, and reap the benefits they bring. Stammering can be what sets us on a spiritual journey towards wisdom, peace and joy.

'With STAMMA's help, I am holding a 'safe space' discussion with Debbie Mason, a speech & language therapist (SLT), where we can talk about spirituality and stammering, and share our experiences, strengths and hopes — as well as our disappointments and questions.

'You're welcome in this space to talk about spirituality in whatever way you want. Spirituality is hard to define, and some words 'press other people's buttons'. For instance, in some great Eastern writing the 'Self' is seen as a good thing, while in the Christian tradition it can be associated with selfishness. Again, for some people, spirituality might be linked to their religion, while for others, religion might play no part in their lives. In this safe space, both are OK.

'It is open to those of all faiths or those with none, and you won’t be judged for the words you use."

How to join

Join John and Debbie on Tuesday 22nd November at 7pm for an open conversation in a non-judgemental environment. Email communities@stamma.org and we'll send you the Zoom link for this session.

About the hosts

John Evans been involved in spirituality for many years and attributes this largely to his life-long stammer. He practices mindfulness daily, has been on a number of spiritual retreats and has a Masters in Christian Spirituality. Ask him about Franciscanism – an inclusive approach to spirituality, based on the life and teachings of Francis of Assisi. John is also impressed by Buddhist ways of dealing with suffering.

Debbie Mason is an SLT who works with people who stammer, as well as a hypnotherapist and NLP Master Practitioner. She has followed an Interfaith path of spirituality for the past 20 years. Inspired by the Eastern traditions of Advaita (a non-dual awareness practice) and Buddhism, Debbie uses mindfulness in her work and guides her clients to explore their inner wisdom.

See our Events section to see what else you can join in with.