Group friendships have opened up new possibilities & hope

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The North Herts Group (courtesy of Ramesh, left)

Ramesh Summan reflects on the friendships he's made since setting up the North Hertfordshire Stammering Support Group nearly two years ago.

As the second-year anniversary of our support group here in Hertfordshire approaches, I've been reflecting on the achievements, the challenges and how far it has progressed over the past two years. One thing that stands out are the friendships I've gained from running the support group.

Two years ago, in 2022, I set out on my vision of creating stammering awareness in North Hertfordshire and getting people together. With the world coming out of a pandemic, we held the initial meeting on Zoom in August. It was at this meeting that friendships started developing and people started to get to know one another. 

It is through friendships created in support groups that we get ourselves out of the wilderness and into a world of love, peace, positive energy and opportunity.

We held our first in-person meeting in September 2022 in Letchworth Garden City. I will never forget it. With the conversations over coffee, I felt as though I had known these people for a lot longer. Our experiences were similar and the interests we shared were common. As time has gone on, it has been great to see how friendships have bloomed and how everyone looks forward to the meetings to share experiences and thoughts. 

Conversations

The conversation and strengthening friendships that we have experienced in our non-judgemental space have encouraged our group to become ambitious with our meetings and we have had them in different locations in Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire and London. We have even started going for walks and meals together and we've shared ideas for future meetings. 

Our initial conversations were about stammering but have extended beyond that to issues that good friends normally discuss, like sport, fitness and well-being, relationships, philosophy and, of course, the good old British weather! 

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Ramesh (right) and N. Herts group members on a walk

It is also lovely to see that when new people come along to the group, everyone gets together and welcomes them. We do our hardest to engage with new members and discuss in a non-judgemental way what may have brought them to our meeting. I would love to think we have supported everyone who has attended. 

Community

I have been active in the stammering community for the past twenty five years and I have always felt that community and friendship have been at the heart of what I have experienced. I am grateful for this, as there have been times in my life when I really needed help and guidance with stammering. These friends have always gone the extra mile for me. These friendships have also led to growth within me as we share our journeys and experiences with stammering and life together. 

In summary, I feel this quote by Francis Bacon best summarises my experiences about the friendships which have developed in our support group: "Without friends, the world is but a wilderness". 

Our group in North Hertfordshire is definitely one that has become a home for everyone! We have encouraged a lot of support and understanding. No one is ever alone. The friendships that have formed in our group have opened up new possibilities and hope. It is through friendships created in support groups that we get ourselves out of the wilderness and into a world of love, peace, positive energy and opportunity.

See if there's a stammering group in your area. Would you like to set up a group, just as Ramesh did? See Start a Stammering Group or Community to find out how we can support you every step of the way.