ss into the Spasmodic Stage of the disorder, however, some passing
directly into Primary Mental Stage.

The Spasmodic Stage, however, is a form of difficulty somewhat akin to
the Advanced Phase of Stuttering, for in this stage the trouble can be
said to be of Physical-Mental nature instead of the purely physical
disorder found in Elementary Stammering.

Stammering, in the Primary Mental Stage, takes on a distinct Mental
form as differentiated from the Mental-Physical form and becomes
therefore more difficult to eradicate. If allowed to continue, this
form of Stammering (like Stuttering) passes into the Chronic Mental
Stage, in which case the Stammerer usually exhibits pronounced signs of
Thought Lapse and finds himself a Chronic or Constant Stammerer, often
unable to utter a sound-and further at times unable to THINK of what he
wishes to say.

The progress of both Stuttering and Stammering from one stage to
another is very certain. These speech disorders do not differ
materially from other human afflictions in this respect--they do not
remain constant. There is an axiom in Nature, that "Nothing is static,"
which, being interpreted, means, that nothing stands still. And this
applies with full force to the stutterer or stammerer. If no steps are
taken to remedy the malady, he may be very sure that the disorder is
getting worse--not standing still or remaining the same.

CHAPTER VI

CAN STAMMERING AND STUTTERING BE OUTGROWN?

Probably the most harmful and oft-repeated bit of advice ever given to
a stammerer or stutterer is that which says, "Oh, don't bother about
it--you will soon outgrow the trouble!" It is the most harmful because
it is palpably untrue. It is so oft-repeated because the person giving
the advice knows nothing whatever about the cause of stammering and
just as little about its progress or treatment.

The fact that we hear of no cases of stuttering or stammering which
have been outgrown does not seem to alter the popular and totally
unfounded belief that stammering and stuttering can be readily outgrown.

If the reader has not read the chapter on the causes of stuttering and
stammering and the two preceding chapters on the Intermittent Tendency
and the Progressive Character of these speech disorders, then these
chapters should be read carefully before going further with this one,
because it is essential to know the cause of the trouble before it is
possible to answer intelligently the quest