By Emily Younker
eyounker@joplinglobe.com
Stuttering can plague childhood years, but thanks to early intervention, it doesn’t have to be a lifelong speech disorder.
Twila Bell, a speech language pathologist with St. John’s Regional Medical Center, said stuttering is identified by several core behaviors: the repetition of a word or syllable, multiple repetition of several words and the prolongation of a sound or sudden silence.
Stuttering in children can often lead to secondary problems, usually involuntary physical motions, Bell said.
“They may tap on their leg or do some blinking that they’ll start to do,” she said. “They feel like they’re struggling so much that if they could just get their body to work a little harder, the word (will) come out.”
But stuttering might not be cause for immediate alarm. Many young children show signs of speech disfluency, Bell said.
“It’s just a part of that normal acquisition of speech and language when they’re trying to remember a word or having trouble with complex sound,” Bell said. “Depending on if I’m seeing a lot of disfluency, I may just ask (parents) to wait and see if they outgrow it.”
The Stuttering Foundation of America estimates that 5 percent of children go through a period of stuttering that lasts at least six months. Three-fourths of those recover by late childhood.
Linda Weller, a speech language pathologist with Freeman Health Systems, said there is no definitive cause of stuttering, but many factors are thought to contribute to its development.
“Some people who stutter process speech in different areas of the brain,” she said. “Children with other speech problems or developmental delays may be more likely to stutter.”
Other factors include genetics and “family dynamics with high expectations and fast-paced lifestyles,” Weller said.
If signs of stuttering continue past age 5, Weller said, parents are encouraged to visit their child’s pediatrician, teacher or speech pathologist at school to determine whether the child should be evaluated.
Stuttering is treatable, particularly if it’s caught early. Treatment through a speech pathologist or speech therapist varies according to the individual and the severity of the stuttering.
Kiley Kyte, a speech language pathologist for Webb City schools, said stuttering is one of the less common speech disorders she treats.
But she does periodically work with children with stuttering problems, most of whom will either outgrow stuttering or learn to effectively cope with it.
“They’re usually able to grasp on to what works for them,” she said. “From the beginning, (we) let them know it’s not bad communication; you just have a different way of communicating.”
Kyte said the biggest tip she can give parents is to stay involved.
“It’s really important for parents to give their child undivided attention at home,” she said. “Set aside some time where they know that their voice is going to be heard.”
Bell said it is important that parents not finish their child’s words or sentences.
“Then you’re calling attention to the fact that they are having trouble talking,” she said. “It could get to the point where they will start to develop reactions to talking in public. They’ll begin to avoid talking situations, which is what you don’t want.”
Weller said parents should talk to the child in an unhurried manner and pause frequently so the child has time to respond.
“You’re just modeling a slow, relaxed speech with them,” she said. “You can also reduce the amount of questions you ask and just simply comment on what the child has said.”
Parents should be aware of how they interact with their child and listen to the child’s message, Weller said.
“Above all things, let your child know that you accept them for who they are,” she said.
Numbers
More than 3 million Americans — about 1 percent of the population — stutter, according to the Stuttering Foundation of America. The speech disorder affects about four times as many males as females.
