International Stammering / Stuttering Awareness Day (ISAD) is on Tuesday 22 October 2024. The day raises awareness of issues faced by those who stammer and challenges negative assumptions and stereotypes; including that people who stammer are nervous or less intelligent and the use of stammering in culture for comic purposes.
Stammering (also known as stuttering) is defined by STAMMA (the British Stammering Association) as a way of talking, a physical condition which makes it difficult to talk. At least 1 per cent of adults stammer.
Someone who stammers might repeat sounds or words, stretch or prolong sounds and / or have a silent block where a sound gets stuck.
It is not a ‘weakness’ or a ‘defect’, it is simply a stammer that people live with and manage. Everyone's stammer is unique and everyone stammers differently. The best thing to do for someone who stammers is to not mind that they stammer. Find out more on the STAMMA website.