So what is  stuttering, and is it possible to get rid of it? 

Having gone deep into the speech production theory, we  noticed, that speech process represented a certain circle of information transfer between three nerve centers, located in the  cortex of cerebrum - speech (Broca's center), auditory (Wernicke's center) and associative center. It occurs approximately as follows:  By means of the associative center we select necessary words,  arrange  them in the necessary sequence, i.e. we construct a phrase. From the associative center  information is transferred to the speech center, which processes it, develops necessary quantity of nervous impulses and sends them to muscles of the speech organs (lips, tongue, vocal ligaments,  larynx), and also to the muscles, which are taking part  in the respiratory movement ( diaphragm and  thorax). The person, breathing out, speaks, and  the information comes into the auditory center in the form of speech. The auditory control allows to judge of correctness of  pronounced speech, and, if everything  is pronounced correctly, the information about  it comes back again to the associative center. This is a signal for construction of the following phrase, etc.

Fig. 1. The scheme of "speech circle”   

According to this scheme it is clear, that fluent speech is possible only during synchronous work of all three centers i.e. when they transfer the information with identical speed to each other. At stuttering this synchronism   is  just broken. "Initiator" of stuttering is the speech Broca's center. By virtue of the various reasons, its activity is considerably increased, and this forces it to develop more  nervous impulses and  transfer them to the muscles of  speech organs, causing their additional contractions, and that results to occurrence of unplanned sounds during expiration in the form of repetition of letters and syllables. Under the increased intensity of the impulses stream   muscles can’t  relax   even for a moment  - a marked spasm occurs, which blocks speech up to the complete  discharge of the speech center. Naturally, at this moment  the transfer of  information in the form of speech from Broca's center to  Wernicke's center  stops, and this  we call the break of “speech circle”.

In  terms of the aforesaid, it is  clear, that for correction of stuttering it is necessary not only to lower the activity of  speech center, but also  restore the work synchronism of three centers, which are responsible for speech, i.e.  adjust work of "speech circle”. Besides, taking into account, that Broca's center controls also the muscles, participating in the respiratory movement, it is necessary to pay attention to training of correct breath - in fact, the longer the exhalation, the more composite sentence we can "arrange" with it. Longer sentences with  longer exhalation make our speech fluent and qualitative.  

It  is possible to achieve decrease in hyperactivity of the speech center by different ways. Logopedists use  a mode of the  long-term silence and  the voluntary delay of speech  rate (which is reached, as a rule, with difficulty), psychoneurologists use sedatives (inhibitory for  not only the small Broca's center , but also for all other cells of cortex of cerebrum, which do not require it at all), hypnologists immerse into  a trance  practically all areas of cortex of cerebrum (except for the small Report zone, providing communication with the hypnotist). Physiotherapists  with the purpose of decrease in activity of the speech center apply electrosleep therapy, acupuncture therapeutists - acupuncture influence … 

We  consider decrease in the speech rate to be  the most "humane" way of influence on  Broca's center, which is necessary to reach practically involuntarily without special efforts of the stuttering person. With this purpose we  applied some delay (0,2 sec) of sound  supply into the headphones. It results to  approximately three-fold decrease in the speech rate, due to increase in duration of vowels. The increase in duration of vowel sounds causes a corresponding increase in duration of  exhalation. 

Thus, having finished the program, we waited for results with impatience. They were impressive: whatever severity degree  our patients’ stuttering was of, practically always it was possible to achieve fluent speech, without stumbling and spasms, and what was of importance - with correctly trained breath (it was really fixed automatically since the first minutes of work with the program).