#33 New Possibilities with VR with Gareth Walkom

TranscendingX - Raw Conversations and Practical Tips to Break Through Stuttering, Communication Fears, and Become Who You Truly Are

Guest Bio:

Gareth Walkom is originally from Basingstoke in the UK and now resides in the beautiful city of Ghent in Belgium. Gareth is a proud person who stutters and leads the way in utilizing how people who stutter and speech pathologists can benefit by using virtual reality as a tool. Working on this topic since 2015, Gareth studied for a bachelor’s degree in Digital Media Technology at Nottingham Trent University, using knowledge from the degree to create a VR application to be used in stuttering. He further developed this application by studying for a master’s degree in Medical Product Design, specializing in combining eye-tracking with VR. The new and improved application could measure eye behaviors such as blinks, eye closures, and fixations. The results indicated that VR could decrease anxiety levels and measure stuttering behaviors, such as those of the eyes. His research has shown that VR has enormous potential to be used as a tool in stuttering, where people who stutter can practice speaking in a safe, controllable place. Since then, Gareth’s work has been featured on the BBC, Independent, Guardian, various TV shows, and podcasts. In Gareth’s spare time, he enjoys attending and speaking at conferences, Belgian beer, and playing unicycle hockey.

In this episode Gareth and Uri discuss:

- Early years and growing-up

- Memorable experiences and influences life

- UK, US and Belgium Similarities and differences

- Virtual Reality (VR) in Real Life

- VR and stuttering

- Vision for the future

Resources and Links:

Gareth Walkom- Research Profile

Virtual Reality May Help Treat Speech Disorders and Social Anxiety Article

Speech Impediments + Virtual Reality (ft. Gareth Walkom) Podcast

Upcoming events

HOST BIO

Uri Schneider, M.A. CCC -SLP passionately explores and develops practical ways for us to create our own success story. Delivering personalized experiences of communication care informed by leading professionals and influencers, Uri is re-imagining the next-level of speech-language therapy for people to benefit in real life. Uri Schneider, M.A. CCC -SLP is co-founder and leader at Schneider Speech Pathology and faculty at the University of California, Riverside School of Medicine.

For more, visit www.schneiderspeech.com