Does your toddler or young child have problems with their speech? Are you a child who has a stutter/stammer? In this article I write about communication and speech problems in childhood.



The type of speech impediment I am going to concentrate on is stuttering. I myself had a stutter from the age of four and it was after eighteen years and at the age of twenty-two, that I finally managed to overcome it.

I was not alone as many children have problems with their speech from an early age. It is estimated that one percent of people in England have a stutter.

In most cases people start stuttering in childhood, often when they are a toddler. This can be a very worrying and stressful period for parents and the child alike, and where to seek help can often be difficult to know. To attend speech therapy straight away, can have a damaging affect as it can over-highlight the problem to the child and can make them withdraw into their shells. Parents though in most cases are not happy to just ignore the problem and to hope it goes away of its own accord.

Stuttering affects people in different ways. Some people who stutter are very good at hiding it and are sometimes known as a closet stutterer. Many people they mix with, may not even be aware that they have a stuttering problem. They have become so good at avoiding certain words or by finding alternative words, that they can make out that they are fluent. This takes a lot of effort though and it comes as more of a shock to people when the person does actually stutter.

Other people who have a stutter are unable to do this and can have what is seen as a more severe stutter.

A stutter would normally occur more when a person is:

- under pressure

- very tired

- meeting new people

- speaking in an uncomfortable situation

- asking questions, for example asking for directions

- introducing people

Stuttering therapy:

There are many types of stuttering therapy or stuttering treatments available these days. Most people would first try a speech therapist or speech pathologist. Alternatively they can attend a speech course which can be in a group or on a one to one basis.

I personally prefer and advise one to one stutter courses as I believe every person who has a stutter is an individual and has their own individual type of stutter.

There are also stuttering self help dvd's or stuttering self help ebooks now available for people who do not feel they have the confidence to attend a speech course