Teacher’s Day Special
The Teacher’s Day is a few days away and I thought it would be appropriate to pen down a few blogs on the people who have helped me improve my shortcomings (which were many) in all these years and made me into a decent enough individual who could stand on his feet.
A couple of days ago I posted a one minute video (link at the end of the post) on Instagram and YouTube regarding my book Polish September and it was pleasing to receive appreciation from some of the viewers who saw the video. However there was a time, when speaking fluently was a massive challenge for me (and sometimes still is) due to a severe stammering problem which I had picked up in my early childhood. My father was deeply concerned of the problem and was always looking to address the issue.
The moment my SSC (std. X) exams were over my father took me to Nair Hospital in Mumbai, which had a speech therapy department. I was extremely reluctant to go but eventually gave in to my father’s wishes. It was here that I met Dr. Sethuraman a young speech therapist . It was early days in her career. I was put under her tutelage for about a month in the first stage of my therapy post which I had to be put in a group. I had visited a speech therapist a year ago as well and just after two meetings or so I had called it quits and in my heart of hearts I knew that this experiment with Dr. Sethuraman may not last long either. However, I was in for a surprise.
My speech therapy sessions began. I had to do two exercises daily 1. Breathing exercises: This was critical as steady breathing was a prerequisite to smooth delivery of words and Dr Sethuraman very aptly laid emphasis on that. 2. Reading exercises: Dr Sethuraman made me read a passage from Reader’s Digest every day. The passage had to be read aloud and slowly. This was the best part of the therapy sessions. I started looking forward to the passages she would give me to read because the passages were helping me gain some good knowledge daily.
There was a third exercise also which was the most difficult one and had to be done by me as an assignment everyday. Dr. Sethuraman wanted me to talk to two strangers daily, by asking them a question, and then tell her my experience the next day. This was really difficult. Finding strangers and then talking to them was not easy. I tried to somehow avoid the exercise for a couple of days but then Dr. Sethuraman became adamant and I had to relent. This exercise was aimed at addressing my inhibitions in talking to strangers because of the stammering problem and help me gain confidence. Dr. Sethuraman was absolutely right. This exercise did help me to do away with the fear of taking to unknown people.
Dr. Sethuraman was a soft, humble person. She listened more than she spoke which made her a great communicator. She was calm and collected, but sure of what she was doing. She was patient, but whenever required she was strongly assertive. My one month stint with her helped me immensely and I just didn’t feel the need to go in for the second stage of the therapy. Dr. Sethuraman was a remarkable professional. It has been 32 years since my therapy class and I remain thankful to my father who insisted on me to attend the therapy.
I hope Dr. Sethuraman has done well in her profession and helped several people who suffer from the problem of stammering. Even today, there must be many going through this problem and may even be suffering silently. I wish to convey to all such people that stammering is no disease, but just a habit and it is absolutely curable. You just need to practice breathing.
Thank you Dr. Sethuraman.
Links to my video: Instagram- https://www.instagram.com/reel/CTFBnC7JvGq/?utm_medium=copy_link
Youtube-https://youtube.com/shorts/IBLK7c-xmfY?feature=share
Speechless ..👏👏