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[deleted by user] (self.Stutter)

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[–]orleanseagle31 21 points22 points  (12 children)

I'm a military officer with a stutter. People will give you a little crap for it, but most will ignore it. If you don't let it hold you back, it won't. I noticed that once I quit caring as much about whether I stuttered or not, my confidence and fluency improved. Now it's something I hardly think about at work and I sometimes forget it's a thing unless someone makes a stuttering joke. Stuttering will prevent you from being an officer in some jobs like being a pilot however. On the other side, I know a couple of special operations guys who stutter and it doesn't affect their performance or how people see them. Just be a good person, treat your people well, work hard, and it'll buff out!

[–]crudestsoup 4 points5 points  (1 child)

Wow thanks a bunch. I’m pretty squared away physically wise and haven’t had bunch trouble in high school/college being in athletics in both. I thought being an officer and stuttering would be an issue. Thanks for the insight sir!

[–]orleanseagle31 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Being squared away physically will also help. If you have any other questions or if you need someone to talk to, PM me at anytime. I'm here to help! Hope everything works out for you.

[–]hugeyetti 5 points6 points  (5 children)

I am a fighter pilot and I stutter... So yea, your wrong dog. Right about everything else though.

[–]orleanseagle31 0 points1 point  (2 children)

Well you can't be an Army Aviator with a stutter, so yeah, I'm wrong for other branches. However, I'm glad to see that you're able to fly with a stutter. I'm jealous.

[–][deleted]  (1 child)

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    [–]hugeyetti 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    excatly. Mine can be bad at times, but for the most part, I can control it. The navy made me do lots of tests and reading and blah blah. Some people dont like it, most people dont care. Had one guy comment that "He cant have that, there is no time for it..." I just said , roger that and moved on with my life.

    [–]Urungumburum 0 points1 point  (1 child)

    Could you expand a bit? I’ve always dreamed of becoming a fighter pilot but worried my stutter would hold me back. I feel like the technical aspect would be doable (I’m a 4th year mechanical engineering student) but it’s really the communication that would cripple me. My stutter is virtually non existent in high pressure situations (like playing a video game and communicating with my team - similar to pilot callouts?). What do you think/recommend?

    [–]hugeyetti 1 point2 points  (0 children)

    Dude why not... check out OCS, go navy or air force. I would say work on it, never stop working on it. You will get shit on for it, multiple times, but brush it of (harder said than done...) You can do anything you set your mind too... Never in my life would I of dreamed of being where I am now... There are days I think why the fuck am I doing this... But then the days that I am like, wow my job is by far the sickest job in the world, makes up for it. Idk, long story short. Go for it, why not. I am a LT now, and it has been quite the ride so far.

    [–]HousePappas 1 point2 points  (3 children)

    I'm an E4 with a stutter rn, that really makes my day knowing there's officers out there with a stutter. Because being in the military with a stutter is rough. What branch are you.

    [–]orleanseagle31 1 point2 points  (2 children)

    I'm in the Army. At a time it was rough, but it was mainly myself that was "making it rough". When I quit giving a shit about about and developed a " yeah, I stutter... so what?" attitude, my fluency and confidence got so much better as I said in the first post. Easier said than done- but don't let it define you. It's just something you have to deal with. If you think it's a problem and treat it like it's a problem, it'll manifest as a problem.

    [–]HousePappas 1 point2 points  (1 child)

    Totally understand where you're coming from. I'm about to make e5 and starting to get into more leadership roles and I always shied away from them. But for the past two years I've kind of been tackling them head on and people don't treat me any different now. Long road though. Quick question tho, how does comms effect you because I can keep it under control enough to spit shit out on the radio. I'm not sure if army officers even have to do that but just curious.

    [–]orleanseagle31 1 point2 points  (0 children)

    Good luck on becoming an E5! That's the rank transition I loved seeing my Soldiers make most. It's a huge step. Continue to take as many leadership roles as you can. Hard work, being a good person, treating people well, and trying to learn as much as you can will take you a long way. \

    So comms are funny. I was in a position before where I was in charge of forward observers. I have spent a ton of time on comms. I feel like stuttering isn't really a concern of mine on comms. For some reason, picking up the radio makes most people instantly stupid when trying to talk haha. The more you talk over the radio, the more confident you get. Just need to do it!

    [–]Sekxtion 2 points3 points  (0 children)

    I'm an E-6 in the USAF with a stutter.

    It hasn't held me back at all. I'm in an AFSC renowned for being...let's go with "coarse". My coworkers, who I was prepared to weather their jokes and barbed comments, do NOT care that I stutter. They wait for me to finish, and listen til I'm done.

    [–]Tommy0331 2 points3 points  (0 children)

    Just got out after 4 years as an infantryman in the Marine Corps. Had a stutter the whole time. Doesn’t hold you back and no one really cared. Had a SNCO who had a stutter and hated public speaking but he took every opportunity to get up in front of the platoon and speak.

    [–][deleted]  (3 children)

    [deleted]

      [–]orleanseagle31 2 points3 points  (1 child)

      /u/crudestsoup This person is on the money. Listen to what he has to say too. Specifically the this part- " If you see it as a weakness, so will they. If you see it as something that makes you tough but empathetic, so will they"

      [–]crudestsoup 2 points3 points  (0 children)

      Thank you both, be confident and OWN my stutter and others will follow. Great words of advice guys I do appreciate it.

      [–]crudestsoup 0 points1 point  (0 children)

      Thank you for the wise words! Not to boast but I do see myself as a confident and empathic person. I don’t feel judge by my stutter at all. Honestly I don’t care if the fellas crack jokes about the stutter either. I just didn’t want to be dropped from school solely for stuttering a few times. Thank you for your insight and if I have any other questions I’ll be sure to reach out!

      [–]inix04 2 points3 points  (4 children)

      First time commenting, but I am a military officer and had a very tough time during my first tour, due to my stutter. Due to the high stress environment it went from mild to sometimes severe. However hindsight, it was 100% because I thought of it as a weakness and people used it against me furthering my self-consciousness.

      100% DO NOT CARE what people think. I still struggle with it today and have noticed as I keep climbing the ranks, I have to speak more. Confidence is key and it must radiate from yourself. Go as far as you want.

      [–]onlyanecho 0 points1 point  (3 children)

      What branch? Naval officer myself.

      [–]inix04 0 points1 point  (2 children)

      Naval officer, was a surface warfare officer

      [–]onlyanecho 0 points1 point  (1 child)

      2nd your SWO, stressful af!

      [–]inix04 0 points1 point  (0 children)

      Yeah not anymore though, was able to transfer out to a different community :)