42 | FEBRUARY 27 • 2020 

Health

continued from page 41

when I started high school. 
“I learned along the way I 
cannot shy away from speak-
ing in front of people, and I 
have to embrace that I am a 
person born with a stutter and 
I cannot control that, but I can 
control how hard I work to 
overcome it.
”

STATISTICS AND HELP 
Approximately 3 million 
Americans stutter, accord-
ing to the National Institute 
on Deafness and Other 
Communication Disorders 
(NIDCD). While stuttering 
occurs most often in children 
between ages 2 and 6, it can 
affect people of all ages. 
Boys have a higher inci-
dence of stuttering than girls, 
a disparity that increases with 
age. Seventy-five percent of 
children outgrow their stutter-
ing, while the other 25 percent 
continue to stutter in varying 
degrees through-
out their lifetimes. 
Stuttering often 
runs in families, 
and researchers 
at the National 
Institutes of 
Health have 
found there may be a genetic 
component.
“If a child’
s stuttering per-
sists longer than six months, 
or if they’
re older when the 
stuttering begins, you may 
need to seek intervention,
” 
advised Albiona Rakipi, a 
speech and language pathol-
ogist and clinical supervisor 
at the Kaufman Children’
s 
Center in West Bloomfield.
In addition to seeking pro-
fessional help, Rakipi suggests 
parents create an environ-
ment that makes it easier for 
children to speak. This could 
include reducing a parent’
s rate 
of speech so a child does not 

feel rushed when producing 
a response. She also recom-
mends support groups and 
says support and treatment 
for those who stutter and their 
families are important for 
optimal outcomes.
Bressler credits his par-
ents, Elisa Weinbaum Geisz 
of Berkley, Michigan, and 
Jay Bressler of Palm Beach 
Gardens, Florida, for helping 
him gain the confidence he 
needed to accomplish goals. 
“We treated him normally. 
I think the sports helped … 
he loved playing basketball,
” 
Jay Bressler said. He advises 
parents of children who stutter 
to “find something they’
re pas-
sionate about and use that to 
help them build confidence.
”
He also stressed the impor-
tance of listening patiently to 
children, which can be diffi-
cult when they are struggling 
to speak. His son agrees.
“Other people would try to 
finish my sentences, but my 
mom and teachers would wait, 
even if it took 30 minutes to 
get out what I wanted to get 
out,
” Dylan said. “It’
s hard for 
the person listening, I know, 
but it’
s better for the other 
person.
”
Above all, he has learned 
that stuttering does not define 
who he is or diminish his 
accomplishments.
“There will be good days 
and bad days, but don’
t let 
it affect you as a person. If it 
affects other people, then that’
s 
their issue.
” 

Stuttering Resources
• National Stuttering 
Association
• Stuttering Foundation of 
America
• American Board of Fluency 
and Fluency Disorders

Albiona 
Rakipi

CATARACT AND EYE CONSULTANTS 
OF MICHIGAN 

23133 Orchard Lake Road, Ste. 200
Farmington, MI 48336
Phone: (248) 478-8990
AND
29753 Hoover Road 
Warren, MI 48093
Phone: (586) 573-4333
www.eyeconsultantsofmich.com

By Esther Allweiss Ingber

Amanda Salter, MD, a comprehensive ophthalmologist specializing in cataract 
surgery, will mark her second anniversary with Cataract and Eye Consultants of 
Michigan on April 1. It’s also the date that she will begin seeing patients at the 
brand new Farmington practice location. 

A native of Farmington Hills, Dr. Salter, 36, “will take a leading role” in the new 
office. Joining her at both locations will be Dr. Sarah Muenk-Gold and Dr. Alan 
Parent. The three physicians are board-certified ophthalmologists and fellows of 
the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Dr. Salter, daughter of Adrea Benkoff, MD, is a second-generation ophthalmologist 
at Cataract and Eye Consultants. 

“I began seeing my mother’s patients after she retired in March 2018,” Dr. Salter 
said. Dr. Benkoff spent nearly 30 years with the practice.

Dr. Salter’s medically-oriented family also includes her husband, Matthew Salter, 
DO, an anesthesiologist; father, David Benkoff, MD, a gastroenterologist; sister, 
Reesa Benkoff, JD, who practices healthcare law, representing physicians; and 
father-in-law, Michael Salter, DPM, a podiatrist. 

Growing up, Dr. Salter and her Benkoff family belonged to Adat Shalom Syna-
gogue. She and her husband are Temple Beth El members now, along with daugh-
ters Liora, 5, and Daphne, 3. 

Dr. Salter graduated from North Farmington High School and continued her studies 
at the University of Michigan. She earned her medical degree at New York Uni-
versity and did her ophthalmology residency training in the Ivy League at Brown 
University in Rhode Island. She practiced in Massachusetts before returning home 
to continue her practice in the Detroit area. 

The doctors on staff at Cataract and Eye Consultants are “excellent surgeons and 
clinicians,” said Dr. Salter. “We all do everything within the field of ophthalmology 
but also have our areas of expertise.” 

The focus of Dr. Salter’s practice is cataract surgery, glaucoma, dry-eye syndrome 
and facial rejuvenation, primarily for aesthetic reasons, through the use of Botox 
and dermal fillers. 

“We strive to stay up to date with technological advances in 
ophthalmology, so we can offer the newest advancements to 
our patients,” said Dr. Salter. 

She’s excited about being able to offer her dry-eye patients a 
new eyelid treatment in the near future, to be administered 
in the office. For cataract surgery, an out-patient procedure, 
the ophthalmologists are utilizing state-of-the-art technology 
with more precise accuracy. Astigmatism is managed with-
out requiring needles or stitches. 

Regarding facial rejuvenation, “when people age 30 
to 50 begin receiving treatments, they may reduce 
the likelihood of getting deeper wrinkles when 
they’re older,” said Dr. Salter.

The Farmington office of Cataract and Eye Con-
sultants is already taking appointments. “My 
passion is treating disease in and around the 
eye, and I work hard to care for my patients,” 
she said.

DR. AMANDA SALTERS

