Gabriel Méthot
Séminaire Saint-François

Living with a speech problem is definitely no picnic, even less so when you’re a teenage boy. Gabriel Méthot, now a Secondary 3 student at Séminaire Saint-François, has been afflicted with a stuttering problem since first grade and could speak volumes on the subject. There was a time not so long ago when, for Gabriel, making a simple oral presentation would prove to be a real nightmare. But for the past year, his resolve and effort have enabled him to take his rightful place, to gain confidence in himself and even become the member of a music group… as a singer!

Ever since Gabriel has had to come to terms, on a daily basis, with his stuttering disability, or rather “manufacturing defect” as his parents prefer to call it, his life has not always been easy, especially at school. Despite being considered a gifted student, Gabriel’s constant involuntary hesitations often made him the victim of mockery and made him try to be totally anonymous in class. To such a point in fact that he could no longer even conceive of asking a question in class. But then one day, when he entered Secondary 2, he decided he’d had enough.

“I understood that I mustn’t say to myself “I stutter, such is life and there’s nothing I can do about it.” I chose to tackle life and forge ahead. And I was fed up of being scared to go to restaurants and place my order. Things had to change,” he recalls with emotion. With the help of the school resource teacher Karine Guilbert-Blanchette, Gabriel therefore developed strategies so as to give his teachers and fellow students a clearer understanding of his disability. It was also at this time that Gabriel began speech therapy, therapy that he followed for a year and a half and that was aimed at helping him to get to grips with his problem.

“The most difficult aspect of speech therapy is that the exercises learned must be applied as often as possible in everyday life. Because the results are not immediately apparent, most people quickly give up. Gabriel, however, set himself apart in the very first weeks. Occasionally, I sensed he was discouraged and exhausted, but he never gave in,” points out the young boy’s speech therapist Tatiana Rafenomanjato.

From one day to the next, from one week to the next, all those around Gabriel were happy to note the positive changes that were taking effect. His parents soon saw the difference between the former Gabriel, who used to go off to school his head bowed and eyes red worried about his upcoming oral presentation, and the new Gabriel, who was becoming increasingly open to others and speaking more and more, both at home and at school. “Thanks to your inner strength, you have persevered in your everyday life and you have found a way of turning this foe into a friend. You are a model for all young people who have to live on a daily basis with a speech problem,” his parents often enjoy reminding him.

And you can imagine how surprised his family were when Gabriel decided to make a dream come true by signing up for private singing lessons. With the wind in his sails because of his remarkable progress and newfound self-esteem, Gabriel became the singer in a group and then entered the group to take part in the inter-school Secondaire en spectacle competition. It was an exhilarating experience and one the group decided to repeat by auditioning for the school’s Cultural Gala. Gabriel will soon be participating as a soloist in a year-end musical production presented by his singing school.

“He could have decided to withdraw into silence, to become a “class ghost,” but he chose to take drastic measures and allow himself to be himself,” attests his French teacher Danielle Béland.

At the tender age of 14 going on 15, Gabriel Méthot now sees a future ahead of him that all teenagers his age dream about. With his great maturity, he sees life with freshly acquired optimism. “I now get up feeling good. I believe in myself and I’m happy. I have come out of my shell and I’m opening up to the world. Turning back is simply out of the question,” he asserts in an outburst of pride.

Gabriel Méthot
Séminaire Saint-François