Speech therapy: Issues with pronouncing the letter R

Oh man, this whole thread has me cracking up so much😉 Since I was a little kid, I’ve had this weird way of pronouncing my R’s—kind of like how people do in France, you know? It’s just sort of... there. The funny thing is, I completely forget I even do it until I meet someone new. Like, just recently, I was hanging out with this guy who was being incredibly sweet—seriously, such a sweetheart—and he kept bringing it up, and I was just sitting there staring at him like, "What are you even talking about?"... only then did it click..
As for actually fixing my accent, I don't know, I kind of can't be bothered. I tried to learn the "correct" way once, really, but it just sounds so unnatural when I try it—totally cringey—so I just stick to my old ways. But hey, if you want to change it, go for it—just do it!

👍

Forget all those people telling you it's "cute."
Maybe it's charming when you're a kid, but once you hit your 40s, it starts feeling a bit ridiculous, and honestly, people struggle to take you seriously.
The bottom line is that it bothers YOU! That’s why I’d really suggest seeing a speech therapist—they can definitely help. Sure, you might not get a Hollywood-perfect accent, but your "r" sounds will sound way more natural.
I have a friend who struggles with his "r"s, and if I'm being honest, it's pretty tough to listen to. People he meets for the first time often have no idea what he's saying, though I've gotten used to it by now.
Look, if some guy who can't pronounce his "r"s tried to flirt with me, he'd definitely lose points in my book, and I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels that way. You even mentioned yourself how embarrassing it feels around women sometimes; if you fix this, your confidence is going to skyrocket. Just GO TO A SPEECH THERAPIST! Seriously, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain!

Sending you love—don't sweat it too much, because this is totally fixable!
And you are definitely NOT too old to see a specialist!

I actually know this guy who has this specific way of pronouncing his Rs, and honestly, I find it incredibly cute
I’m being completely serious here, too—this isn't some joke or me being silly, it's just how I feel

There is something genuinely sweet about listening to him talk🙂

Alan said:Maybe it’s cute when you're younger, but once you hit 40, it just feels kind of ridiculous—people stop taking you seriously.

😕 oh wow, and why's that??? 🙄 so basically, 39 is fine, but then you just expire...

sorry, but this is... uh... hilarious (trying to be polite here)

I mean, if someone's actually bothered by it, they can always go see a speech therapist or something, why not...

Mark Smith22 said:It’s actually pretty cute listening to him ramble on.🙂

🙂

Mark Smith22 said:I know this guy who has that specific way of pronouncing his Rs, and honestly, I find it incredibly cute.
I am being completely serious here; this isn't some joke or something trivial to me. This conversation is being treated with gravity, and frankly, the dismissive attitude is nonsense.

It is actually quite endearing to listen to him speak. 🙂

Listen, everyone... I’ve pronounced this letter incorrectly since the day I was born... so what?
I have a question for you all: Is the way I pronounce my words more important than the actual substance of what I am saying?🙄

And let me be clear: I have zero intention of seeing a speech therapist. I don't view this pronunciation as a flaw or a defect in any capacity.
If anything, it's an advantage. It’s part of my identity. People recognize me because of it.
In business terms, we call this "Goodwill."😉
I take pride in the fact that I am different from the crowd.😉

That is exactly why I chose my handle—"Come on, say Sam Smith3"...😁

Does anyone actually get what I'm saying?🙄

Sam Smith3 said:That’s where my handle comes from...-Come on, Sam Smith3, tell them...😁

You sure know how to spin that one...🙂

Why is seeing a speech therapist such a big deal?
Look, I get it—going to the OBGYN for an exam can be awkward and uncomfortable, but a speech pathologist? 😁 😁

I mean, at least that’s still just small fish in a big pond...
Give me a break—you’re really gonna try and sell me that fairy tale about the little cricket chirping on a pine tree while a black heart beats? Ugh, please. I’m dead.
My buddy R is a total disaster, but honestly, he wasn't even the worst one in our class—there was this one kid who literally couldn't pronounce an "L." So when we were all sitting in music class singing "la, la, la,"
for him, it sounded more like "va, va, va." Just absolute trash.

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Hey there! I’ve dealt with some R and L pronunciation issues with my daughter, who’s almost five. Both sounds came out sounding more like a "W" to us, so we decided to see a speech therapist. It only took about a month for her to get the "L" sound down with twice-weekly sessions—each lasting less than thirty minutes. Now, we're starting work on the "R." From what we've seen, these little speech hiccups can usually be smoothed out with professional help, even for older kids or adults. Generally speaking, having a perfect "L" makes fixing an unpronounceable "R" much easier than the situation my little one had. My advice? Go see a specialist; those exercises actually make a huge difference.

Oh, please—keep that energy! Honestly, I found it incredibly attractive when one girl I knew used to talk like that. 😎

Gibberish. That’s basically what I sounded like when I was a kid. I actually had to go to speech therapy back in the day, and honestly, those sessions did the trick.

Don't even try telling me you think Jack from the Nightmare stage is actually cute!

And honestly—most people just don't take someone seriously when they use an excuse like being a kid. We need to fix that mindset ASAP.

My brother, my dad, and I all struggled with that rolling R sound growing up—me and my brother were seeing speech therapists since we were little kids just to get it sorted out... Dad still can't quite nail it today, but honestly, it's no big deal.😎
Now, when I meet someone who has that same struggle, I actually find it pretty charming—sometimes I almost wish I hadn't mastered it perfectly myself.😁

Kylie said:Someone mentioned that this is a flaw... I don't really see it that way, because different cultures just pronounce certain sounds differently... obviously, you wouldn't expect an American to roll their Rs like someone from Germany or France, but if it isn't causing any actual issues, why obsess over it...

In American English, rhoticism is often viewed as a flaw that needs correcting, but in French, it's just how the language works. Even mispronouncing an "S" sound—sigmatism—is treated as a flaw here, yet it's perfectly normal elsewhere.

It doesn't bother me much anymore, but honestly—when I was a kid—it used to drive me absolutely crazy.
Everyone would just laugh at me, and you know how much those kinds of things can mess with a child's self-esteem.
I ended up seeing a speech therapist who worked with him until he could hit a crisp, hard "R" sound perfectly.
Even today, I still get this weirdly visceral reaction whenever someone mimics my old "R" sound back to me.

In my opinion, those things really should be corrected—regardless of whether some people find the accent "cute" or "charming" (especially when it comes to kids).

I was always so jealous of that...
rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr r

I don't think I'll ever be able to pull it off quite like that.😲

So, what now?!
I’m practically baby-talking here... I've got my Mona, I've got my Hendrick...😵
And I'm five times that age... Should I just end it all?😁

I have this supposed flaw, but it only exists in your eyes. The idea is that "the image is whatever the viewer perceives it to be," which says way more about the observer than the subject being observed..😉

I love myself!
😉 😛
Edit:
(I didn't even realize I had already posted in this thread, damn it, this space is getting too cramped...🙄 )

Marty McFly said:[The biggest headache is always when I'm trying to meet girls. 🙄
I mean, it’s obviously not a dealbreaker, but you know how things can go sometimes.
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Honestly, I think it's kind of cute. Wouldn't even bother me if a guy had that...
We had this TA back in college who couldn't roll his Rs to save his life, and god, a ton of girls were obsessed with him.🙂
And he wasn't even tall, or an athlete, or anything special...

velvetheron3 said:Don't tell me you guys actually think Jack from the Nightmare stage is cute?!
And honestly, most people don't take someone seriously when they start making excuses like a literal child. That’s something that needs to be fixed ASAP.

Going after Jack, haha... man, someone should just pass a law banning him..🙂
I don't know... I don't really look at it that way. I mean... I just don't take a person like that seriously..
The bigger issue is the people around him.. I mean, the whole environment.