{
  "schema_version": "1.0",
  "id": "CC-014",
  "title": "How did I practice while I was still stuttering?",
  "topic": "Conversations and practice",
  "author": {
    "name": "Craig Coffee",
    "id": "https://usedtostutter.com/craig-coffee#person"
  },
  "canonical_url": "https://usedtostutter.com/practicing-while-you-still-stutter",
  "access": "public",
  "content_kind": "author_published_article",
  "context_url": "https://usedtostutter.com/about-this-material",
  "source_sha256": "2e08b0fa54f4558ae946ec6da65b9278b8f7302dc455a4c952f6ba8da1b12177",
  "source_markdown": "# How did I practice while I was still stuttering?\n\nBy [Craig Coffee](/craig-coffee)\n\nI started while I was still stuttering. That is a big part of the story. I noticed that approaching someone could feel a little less intimidating than waiting for them to approach me. My speech was still hard, but slightly better gave me something to work with.\n\nI challenged myself to talk to one new person a day. At a store with my parents, I could ask an employee a question. At school, I could talk to someone I didn't know. I was using opportunities that were already in my day.\n\n## The approach and the conversation were both practice\n\nI had to make myself walk up and say something. Once I did, I had to listen to the response and try to say something back. That was the ordinary exchange I needed practice with.\n\nI had spent years planning what I would say and what the other person might ask. Giving that up was hard. I wanted to trust that I could find words as the conversation developed, and there were plenty of times I couldn't do it the way I wanted.\n\nI blocked. Someone said something and I wasn't quick enough. I went out and tried again while still figuring out how it worked for me.\n\n## A fluent opening didn't mean the rest was easy\n\nOne afternoon at the University of Florida, I approached a girl and asked fluently whether she wanted to get ice cream. That part went well. Then we had the conversation, and I struggled with ordinary details about myself: my hometown, my major and my fraternity.\n\nI ordered chocolate because vanilla was harder for me to say, even though vanilla was what I wanted. When I explain [that afternoon](/dating-with-a-stutter), I describe it as a step in my process. I was gaining confidence while still learning how to maintain my speech and be spontaneous.\n\nThat is a much better picture of my practice than imagining every attempt was smooth. I could get one part out and still have a hard time with the next part.\n\n## I had to decide what I would do with the time\n\nI made a personal decision that I might be stuttering for years more. I didn't know how long. I could spend that time working on my speech or remain where I was. I chose to work.\n\nThat involved trying an idea, seeing what happened in a real situation and refining it. It also involved the way I spoke to myself afterward. I had been very quick to attack myself over difficult speech. I wanted to learn to notice a small experience that had gone better too.\n\nThere were days I backed down. I have said that. There were days I wanted to stay in bed, and there were times when I was trying and progress wasn't happening all the time. I know that part of it as well.\n\nSo when you see me talking now, understand where I began. I didn't wait for the stutter to be gone before I practiced. I began with an approach I could try, a person I could talk to and a small difference I wanted to understand. [The daily challenge](/daily-stuttering-practice) was part of that work.\n\n## Related answers\n\n- [How long did it take me to get the speech I wanted?](/how-long-my-stuttering-journey-took)\n- [What have I said about the days when I want to back down?](/when-you-dont-feel-like-practicing-speech)\n\n[Find your question](/questions)\n",
  "relative_link_base": "https://usedtostutter.com/practicing-while-you-still-stutter",
  "sections": [
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      "heading": null,
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      "citation_url": "https://usedtostutter.com/practicing-while-you-still-stutter#reading-content",
      "role": "source_context",
      "source_markdown": "I started while I was still stuttering. That is a big part of the story. I noticed that approaching someone could feel a little less intimidating than waiting for them to approach me. My speech was still hard, but slightly better gave me something to work with.\n\nI challenged myself to talk to one new person a day. At a store with my parents, I could ask an employee a question. At school, I could talk to someone I didn't know. I was using opportunities that were already in my day.\n\n",
      "source_span_sha256": "9b2aec659c64eb8be5e0d99375e4a7c03b0f6b5dcf0e653cdd5955f588c2728c"
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    {
      "id": "the-approach-and-the-conversation-were-both-practice",
      "heading": "The approach and the conversation were both practice",
      "heading_level": 2,
      "citation_url": "https://usedtostutter.com/practicing-while-you-still-stutter#the-approach-and-the-conversation-were-both-practice",
      "role": "source_context",
      "source_markdown": "## The approach and the conversation were both practice\n\nI had to make myself walk up and say something. Once I did, I had to listen to the response and try to say something back. That was the ordinary exchange I needed practice with.\n\nI had spent years planning what I would say and what the other person might ask. Giving that up was hard. I wanted to trust that I could find words as the conversation developed, and there were plenty of times I couldn't do it the way I wanted.\n\nI blocked. Someone said something and I wasn't quick enough. I went out and tried again while still figuring out how it worked for me.\n\n",
      "source_span_sha256": "9a13d86c9cc8a6a6c8214d82812679217e245e821948609665917142e54f2fc0"
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    {
      "id": "a-fluent-opening-didn-t-mean-the-rest-was-easy",
      "heading": "A fluent opening didn't mean the rest was easy",
      "heading_level": 2,
      "citation_url": "https://usedtostutter.com/practicing-while-you-still-stutter#a-fluent-opening-didn-t-mean-the-rest-was-easy",
      "role": "source_context",
      "source_markdown": "## A fluent opening didn't mean the rest was easy\n\nOne afternoon at the University of Florida, I approached a girl and asked fluently whether she wanted to get ice cream. That part went well. Then we had the conversation, and I struggled with ordinary details about myself: my hometown, my major and my fraternity.\n\nI ordered chocolate because vanilla was harder for me to say, even though vanilla was what I wanted. When I explain [that afternoon](/dating-with-a-stutter), I describe it as a step in my process. I was gaining confidence while still learning how to maintain my speech and be spontaneous.\n\nThat is a much better picture of my practice than imagining every attempt was smooth. I could get one part out and still have a hard time with the next part.\n\n",
      "source_span_sha256": "3b8d7c7c6e8914254da68a510a43918dec2618a2fb9a4bc755ea1bbd002f48c3"
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      "id": "i-had-to-decide-what-i-would-do-with-the-time",
      "heading": "I had to decide what I would do with the time",
      "heading_level": 2,
      "citation_url": "https://usedtostutter.com/practicing-while-you-still-stutter#i-had-to-decide-what-i-would-do-with-the-time",
      "role": "source_context",
      "source_markdown": "## I had to decide what I would do with the time\n\nI made a personal decision that I might be stuttering for years more. I didn't know how long. I could spend that time working on my speech or remain where I was. I chose to work.\n\nThat involved trying an idea, seeing what happened in a real situation and refining it. It also involved the way I spoke to myself afterward. I had been very quick to attack myself over difficult speech. I wanted to learn to notice a small experience that had gone better too.\n\nThere were days I backed down. I have said that. There were days I wanted to stay in bed, and there were times when I was trying and progress wasn't happening all the time. I know that part of it as well.\n\nSo when you see me talking now, understand where I began. I didn't wait for the stutter to be gone before I practiced. I began with an approach I could try, a person I could talk to and a small difference I wanted to understand. [The daily challenge](/daily-stuttering-practice) was part of that work.\n\n",
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      "heading_level": 2,
      "citation_url": "https://usedtostutter.com/practicing-while-you-still-stutter#related-answers",
      "role": "navigation",
      "source_markdown": "## Related answers\n\n- [How long did it take me to get the speech I wanted?](/how-long-my-stuttering-journey-took)\n- [What have I said about the days when I want to back down?](/when-you-dont-feel-like-practicing-speech)\n",
      "source_span_sha256": "11bd24fd6a93a3a36affeda0eb9391a43411c5cf4e3333986d9bf8cbe14dd0ea"
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    {
      "id": "the-once-a-day-challenge",
      "title": "THE ONCE-A-DAY CHALLENGE",
      "url": "https://usedtostutter.com/reader/book/editions/corrected-2026-10-04-9e1d376a993f/chapters/the-once-a-day-challenge",
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        "md": "https://usedtostutter.com/reader/book/editions/corrected-2026-10-04-9e1d376a993f/chapters/the-once-a-day-challenge.md",
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}