Struggling to Speak: When to Get Help For Stuttering
In the critically acclaimed film The King’s Speech, Colin Firth plays a British prince crippled by a severe stutter on the eve of World War II. Watching him struggle through the delivery of a simple speech is painful, perhaps most acutely for parents of young children who have a stuttering problem. No one wants to see a child struggle with simple conversation, let alone be bullied or teased. But today, early intervention for speech problems can brighten a child’s future considerably.
Cynthia Jacobsen, Ph.D., has studied the topic of language development for decades. A speech pathologist, she’s the director of the hearing and speech department at Kansas City’s Children’s Mercy Hospital. “There’s a very rapid growth spurt of speech and language between about a year and a half and age 5,” Jacobsen explains. Parents who converse regularly with their children give them an edge, helping them practice their speech and build larger vocabularies. A child whose speech is developing normally should be understandable about 80 percent of the time. At some point, though, a child may develop a stutter.
An early stutter, Jacobsen stresses, is not necessarily cause for alarm. It’s common for children to go through a phase called normal dysfluency between the ages of 2-and-a-half and 5. This kind of stutter, says Jacobsen, usually consists of whole word or phrase repetitions. A sentence might sound like, “But I-but I-but I don’t want to go home yet.”
Ashley Brown, who specializes in fluency and stuttering as a speech pathologist for Children’s Therapy Services in Overland Park, says that this normal dysfluency will look fairly effortless. More of a concern, says Brown, is when a child shows physical struggle: blinking the eyes, tensing the jaw or, in severe cases, exhibiting a block—the mouth opens but the child seems unable to force a sound to come out. An emotional reaction, adds Jacobsen, offers another clue to a deeper problem: “The kid changes the word [he’s trying to say] because he’s afraid to talk, or he doesn’t want to talk at all.”
Another risk factor for chronic stuttering is family history. According to The Stuttering Foundation, an American nonprofit group operating since 1947, 60 percent of those who stutter have a relative who also stutters. And the problem affects four times as many boys as girls.
Assessing the risk factors for true stuttering can help parents decide whether their child needs therapy, says Jacobsen. If the child has no family history of stuttering, seems unanxious and repeats words or phrases intermittently, the problem may be a case of normal dysfluency that will resolve itself, usually in about three months’ time.
Still, Brown advises parents to seek help if they have a gut feeling something isn’t right. Even a telephone consult with a speech therapist can allay a parent’s fears. If therapy is warranted, it’s best to start as early as possible. “I don’t think there’s any age at which you shouldn’t be concerned” if you feel your child has a speech problem, Brown says.
If the child’s dysfluency has evolved into a true stutter, early intervention therapy can often yield dramatic results before habits get entrenched. Therapy for very young children is low pressure and fun-oriented. Strategies include showing children simple breathing techniques and how to slow their rate of speech. “The main thing too is we want to make sure they have good self-esteem,” says Jacobsen. “They’re still children.” Direct therapy combined with a good home program may last as little as three months. In other cases, a child may need to see a therapist on a weekly basis for as long as a year.
The key, says Brown, is “working on good communication skills with the whole family.” “We teach parents to be patient while they’re listening to the child,” Jacobsen says. And it’s important that parents make time for relaxed, unhurried conversation. Brown adds that parents should focus on the positives, making it clear that they’re more interested in what the child is saying than how she is saying it. This helps remove a lot of the stress that exacerbates a stuttering problem. “It’s not frivolous,” says Jacobsen. It’s all about communication, that highest of processes that makes us uniquely human. Such skills are essential for every one of us, whether a crown prince or preschool toddler.
RESOURCES FOR PARENTS
The National Stuttering Association
www.NSAStutter.org Click on the menu tab “Who We Help: Kids.” The site includes articles on therapy techniques and how parents can create a good home environment for children who stutter.
The Stuttering Foundation of America
This site offers practical information on the causes of stuttering and the treatments for it. Click on “Referrals” in the sidebar menu for lists of therapists by state. Older children can access the “For Kids” page to read testimonials from other children who have stuttering issues.
ASHA (American Speech-Language-Hearing Association)
www.ASHA.orgThe ASHA site covers all sorts of speech issues, including language delays and other disabilities that may accompany or exacerbate a stuttering problem. Go to the main website and click on “Topic Index,” then “Stuttering,” for a comprehensive fact page.
Children’s Therapy Services
Jennie Bjorem, owner
816.914.1454
The service does not operate a clinic; speech pathologists who serve the metro area administer therapy in the child’s home.
Schiefelbusch Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic
2101 Haworth Hall
University of Kansas
Lawrence, KS 66045-2180
785.864.4690
Children’s Mercy Hearing and Speech Clinic
2401 Gillham Road
Kansas City, MO 64108
816.234.3677
Children's Mercy Northland
Hearing and Speech Clinic
501 NW Barry Road
Kansas City, MO 64155
816.413.2500
Children's Mercy Hearing and Speech Clinic
College Boulevard Clinics
5520 College Blvd.
Overland Park, KS 66211
913.696.5750
Shawnee resident Claire M. Caterer writes frequently about children with special needs.