>What exactly is the cause of Kaitlyn's stutter? Was it caused by some
>traumatic childhood event? A by product of the attack and poisining
>her
>mother recieved?

Gryph has already stated that nobody knows for sure. That it smooths out some when she's talking to someone she knows well, and altogether when she's singing, suggests that it's psychological rather than physiological in nature. If it's physiological, then it'll disappear when her Detian genes kick in fully; if it's psychological, presumably it'll fade over time. One hopes, anyway; but, most who stutter as children eventually manage to overcome their stutter by adulthood. (It can still come back in moments of stress.)

I never stuttered as a child, but I'm given to understand that it's incredibly frustrating, trying to get the words out and they just won't come. (Neil Gaiman stuttered as a child, and he talks about this occasionally. It's one of the reasons he was such a bookworm.) Since many (in fact, from what I've read, most) stutterers don't stutter when they sing, some actually sing every word they say to get around it.

I wonder if Kaitlyn has tried this.

-- Sean --

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