12 Jan Help! My Child Is Stuttering!

Posted at 09:58h in Speech by
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You might notice that your little one is having some trouble talking lately, and you wonder if it’s a stutter. Stuttering can often seem to come out of the blue, and it can be difficult to know what to do about it. We at Sound It Out want to answer some common questions about childhood stuttering and guide you toward making the best decision as to whether and when to seek help!

Is my child stuttering?

  • Are they sometimes repeating a phrase (“I want to…I want to go”), saying “um,” or self-correcting (“The boy..The boys are”)? If so, they are demonstrating non-stuttering disfluencies, which are common and not necessarily a sign of stuttering. These happen as your child develops their language skills. Even adults have disfluent speech sometimes (when was the last time you said “like” or “um”?).
  • Are they saying part-word repetitions (I wa-wa-wa-want some..), prolongations (Ssssssssssstop it!), or blocks (I w………………want some)? If so, they are demonstrating stuttering-like disfluencies, meaning they are showing signs of stuttering.

 

Isn’t some stuttering “normal”?

  • Sort of…about 5% of all children at or below the age of ~5 years old will go through a short period of stuttering, and 75% to 80% of those kiddos who do start stuttering will recover within a short period of time without any treatment. Although we can’t predict with 100% accuracy which kids will recover on their own, there are certain risk factors we look for that often indicate that the child may continue to stutter.
  • However, as Dr. Scott Yaruss–one of the foremost researchers in stuttering–states, “Stuttering is not a normal part of development—there is no such thing as “normal” stuttering, and it is not correct to say that “all children go through a normal period of stuttering”” (taken from Is It Developmental?).

 

Does my child need treatment?

As speech-language pathologists, if we see stuttering behavior, even in young children, we will want to further assess the child’s speech and language development and look for risk factors that may indicate continued stuttering, which would warrant treatment. Those risk factors include (taken from How Do I know…?):

  • Positive family history of stuttering (stuttering is genetic, so it runs in families)
  • Your child shows concern about their stutter (e.g., “I don’t want to say that word”)
  • Your child is a male (girls are more likely to recover than boys)
  • They have been stuttering for many months or longer (the longer the child stutters, the more at-risk they are to continue stuttering)
  • Beginning to stutter at age 5 (children who start stuttering at a younger age are more likely to recover)
  • Other speech or language difficulties

 

When should I get help?

There is no magic number for how long to wait to see if your child will stop stuttering on their own. Some clinicians and parents feel comfortable waiting up to 6 months (but not longer) to see if the stuttering goes away, but there is no reason, or research, to suggest that you shouldn’t schedule a speech and language assessment sooner. If you are concerned about your child’s stuttering and notice any of the following, you should seek out speech and language services as soon as possible:

  • Your child is demonstrating frustration with their communication, they say they don’t want to talk or are avoiding talking with others
  • Their stuttering seems to occur more often than not
  • There is a family history of stuttering

While there is no one size fits all approach to stuttering, trust your parental intuition and speak to your pediatrician or call your local speech-language pathologist if you have concerns regarding your young child’s stuttering. It never hurts to ask questions!

 

Helpful Links:

Written by: Naguine Bensimon Tree, M.A., CCC-SLP, bilingual certification

References:

  • Reardon-Reeves, N., & Yaruss, J. S. (2013). School-age stuttering therapy: A practical guide. McKinney, TX: Stuttering Therapy Resources.
  • Yaruss, J. (2019, July 31). How do I know if treatment is indicated for a young child who stutters? Retrieved January 04, 2021, from https://www.stutteringtherapyresources.com/blogs/blog/how-do-i-know-if-treatment-is-indicated-for-a-young-child-who-stutters?_pos=1
  • Yaruss, J. (2019, May 22). Is it “developmental stuttering” or “normal disfluency” or “true stuttering” or what?!?!? Retrieved January 04, 2021, from https://www.stutteringtherapyresources.com/blogs/blog/is-it-developmental-stuttering-or-normal-disfluency-or-true-stuttering-or-what