The sentence that forms in your head is a fluid one — you can “hear” it perfectly clearly in your mind. Yet, when it reaches your lips, you stumble on certain sounds or words, creating a bit of a bumpier sentence than you had in mind. This is an adult perspective, but kids who stutter go through much of the same thing.
There are more than 3 million Americans who stutter, and their arrival at this speech disfluency can vary from one person to the next.
To shed some important light on stuttering — its origins and what therapies are most effective — the speech therapists and pathologists at Celebrations Speech Group dive into this common speech disorder here.
Let’s first look at when stuttering is most prevalent, which is in young kids who are just learning to talk. About 5% of kids stutter when they first begin to communicate verbally, and between 75% and 80% of them will outgrow the speech disfluency.
As for why some kids experience developmental stuttering while others don’t, researchers aren’t exactly sure, but it may be tied to:
Stuttering in kids may also be influenced by differences in brain structure that affect how the brain works the muscles for speech.
When it comes to adults who stutter, the language disfluency is most often brought over from childhood — they didn’t grow out of it. This is called persistent stuttering, which is an extension of developmental stuttering.
Adult-onset stuttering is far less common and can be caused by:
In some cases of adult stuttering, the language disfluency might be a relapse of childhood stuttering, and it most often shows up during times of heightened stress and anxiety.
The frontline treatment for stuttering of any origin is speech therapy, which is personalized to each patient’s needs.
For example, if your child is stuttering, we can use singing, speech, and breathing exercises to encourage better speech fluency.
We also take a close look at situations when stuttering tends to flare up, in both children and adults, and work on addressing those stressors. For adults, we might try some mock interviews or phone calls, while our exercises for kids will be tailored more toward their social interactions (though that definitely applies to adults as well!).
It’s challenging for us to outline exactly what we do during our stuttering therapy sessions, as they are highly customized. Rest assured, however, that whatever plan our team comes up with is one that will help you communicate more successfully.
If you have more questions about stuttering or would like to schedule speech therapy for a loved one or yourself, please contact one of our offices in Brentwood, Stockton, or Elk Grove, California, to schedule an appointment.
