Stuttering is a highly misunderstood communication disorder, and many people have limited and/or outdated information regarding its cause and how to help those who stutter. Below is just a brief overview of current information about stuttering.
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What is stuttering?
Stuttering can be defined as involuntary disruptions in the flow of speech. Stuttering can impact an individual’s ability to communicate freely, and reactions to stuttering have the potential to negatively impact quality of life.
Stuttered disfluencies include:
- Repetitions of words or parts of words:
- such as “He-he-he-he is my friend,” or “No-no-nobody is home.”
- Prolongations of sounds
- such as “I llllllike stories.”
- Blocks
- such as “This i----s mine.”
These disfluencies are produced with involuntary tension in the speech musculature that is felt by the person who stutters and is sometimes seen by communication partners.
What causes stuttering?
For most children, stuttering starts between the ages of 2 and 6 years old. The causes of stuttering are not straight-forward, but we do know that stuttering can happen due to an interaction of a variety factors in a child’s development. These factors can include differences in the brain, as well as internal and experiential factors of a child’s development of motor skills, language and temperament. Stuttering can also “run in families” and have a genetic factor for some children.
It is important to realize that stuttering is not caused by any one experience or developmental factor. Moreover, stuttering does not have a psychological cause, and parents cannot cause stuttering.
For more information about factors associated with chronic stuttering,
contact Nina.
What can therapy do?
The goals of stuttering therapy are different depending on the age of a child, and are always individualized for each person’s (and family’s) needs. Stuttering therapy can help those who stutter become knowledgeable about speech and stuttering, learn how to speak and stutter more easily, become more confident and comfortable communicators (regardless of stuttered speech), and advocate for themselves in speaking situations when difficulties arise.
How can listeners help?
Many listeners (parents, teachers, siblings, peers and others) who don’t yet understand stuttering may try to “help” a child who stutters by giving advice when they see him or her struggling with speech. This advice is well-intentioned, but often misguided by poor or outdated understanding of stuttering. Advice usually given [such as “slow down,” “stop and start over,” “take a deep breath,” or “think about what you want to say”] does not help a child who stutters over the long term.
What we know now is that listeners can best help children who stutter by listening patiently and attentively, while allowing children to say what they want to say. For more on how parents and others can help, click here. Children who stutter need allies that understand they are not making "speech mistakes," and do not need to speak fluently to effectively communicate with others.
For more information on how to help your child, click
here. 
