What to do if a child stutters - why a child stutters, how to cure it

What is stuttering

Medicine defines the problem as a speech disorder in which a person often repeats certain words or syllables, pronounces individual sounds in a drawn-out manner, without being able to pronounce them fully. Smoothness, rhythm, and tempo of pronunciation of phrases suffer. Doctors define the disorder by the term “logoneurosis.” According to statistics, it occurs in approximately 2-3% of people, that is, quite common.

Physiological reasons include spasms and convulsions of the muscles responsible for speaking. These disturbances negatively affect breathing, the strength and pitch of spoken sounds. The physiology of this process is similar to hiccups.

What is stuttering? Secrets of our brain

According to the theory of speech production, the speech process is a kind of circle of information transfer between three brain centers located in the cerebral cortex - speech (Broca's center), auditory (Wernicke's center) and associative.

With the help of the associative center, we select the necessary words, arrange them in the required sequence, that is, we build a phrase. From the associative center, information is transmitted to the speech center, which processes it, emits the required number of nerve impulses and sends them to the muscles of the speech apparatus (lips, tongue, vocal cords, larynx), as well as the muscles involved in the act of breathing (diaphragm and chest) . A person exhales and speaks, while information in the form of speech enters the auditory center. Auditory control makes it possible to judge the correctness of speech, and if everything is pronounced correctly, information about this is returned to the associative center. This is a signal for the construction of the next phrase.

From this diagram it becomes clear that smooth speech is possible only when all three centers work synchronously, that is, when they transmit information at the same speed. When stuttering, this synchrony is disrupted. The “culprit” for this is Broca’s speech center. For various reasons, its activity is significantly increased, which causes it to produce more nerve impulses and transmit them to the muscles of the speech apparatus. This causes their additional contractions, which, when exhaling, leads to the appearance of convulsive stuttering.

There are two main forms of speech cramps:

Clonic – convulsions that cause numerous speech repetitions (lo-lo-lo-zhka, ku-ku-ku-kla);
Tonic – convulsions that hinder speech movements for a long time (t…….axe, m……..machine);

Most often, both forms occur in the speech of a stutterer.

At what age does the problem appear?

Most often, a child encounters stuttering at the age of 3-4, when the speech apparatus and psyche are formed. However, logoneurosis can manifest itself at a later age - up to adolescence. The occurrence of a problem in adulthood is an extremely rare occurrence, as it is associated with the formation of the nervous system and speech function of the brain. And this period occurs at the age of 3-6 years. It is noteworthy that the disorder occurs much more often in boys, since the cerebral hemisphere responsible for speech develops more slowly in them.

Comments

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30.01.2021, 22:27

Do you want to know how the fight against stuttering can develop into a hobby and then into a profession? It sounds absurd, but I know at least 2 people who started stuttering as children.

When stuttering, parents, on the recommendation of a speech therapist, send their children to vocal training, the children, as they say, “get involved” and all is lost.

— Alona

22.08.2020, 02:55

It helps, it helps, but not always. For a long time we tried to solve the child’s speech problem on our own. But still, we are not experts. But with the specialist (when we found a good one who was suitable for us), things immediately went well. I’ve heard something that seems like speech therapy massage is nonsense. But what about in reality? If after a massage the child is able to pronounce sounds better, that’s great. We go ourselves and recommend to all our friends a wonderful speech therapist in Obolon - Elena Nikolaevna Karpenko. This is where the real professional comes in! If anyone needs contacts and details, you can look here https://medikom.ua/logopediya-kiev/.

— Olechka (guest)

20.03.2020, 18:12

Wiesel’s statements on the treatment of stuttering in children, made in the form of a lecture on YouTube, on which this article is based, are completely incompetent and even harmful and dangerous for parents of stutterers. I suggest that all sensible people watch the complete destruction of Wiesel’s professionalism on YouTube. Video - “A child stutters. S.B. Skoblikova vs. T.G. Wiesel. Analysis of dangerous misconceptions"

— Mark

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What can cause a child to stutter?

Organic causes

A number of reasons are associated with problems of early development and organic lesions of the nervous system:

genetic predisposition;
injuries during childbirth;
intrauterine development disorders;
infections that the mother suffered during pregnancy;
diseases associated with metabolism in a pregnant mother;
frequent ENT diseases of a child in the first 3 years of life.

In these cases, curing stuttering in a child is problematic. After all, it is caused by physiological abnormalities in the development of the nervous system. Children may have impaired reflexes, a tendency to seizures, and surges in intracranial pressure. Problems can be corrected with the help of medications that are selected by the doctor.

Acquired reasons

Basically, they are associated with stress and neuroses, due to which the child may begin to stutter. Most often this happens at 4-5 years of age, when the nervous system is most susceptible to external factors. Doctors include these:

strong and frequent quarrels;
life changes (for example, starting kindergarten);
unfavorable atmosphere in the family;
sharp fear;
excessive intellectual stress;
emotional turmoil;
disordered life, child's daily routine.

Often, a child begins to stutter during the period of mastering his native language, when parents begin to intensively engage in its development. The brain does not have time to perceive the entire mass of information, especially if learning a foreign language is also added to the native language. Therefore, during any intellectual activities with your baby, it is important not to overload him. Particular attention should be paid to emotional children.

According to statistics, more than 80% of stuttering cases have acquired causes. Such children do not have any physiological abnormalities, and speech disorders can be corrected quite well.

Stuttering

Stroke

Encephalitis

4286 March 30

IMPORTANT!

The information in this section cannot be used for self-diagnosis and self-treatment.
In case of pain or other exacerbation of the disease, diagnostic tests should be prescribed only by the attending physician. To make a diagnosis and properly prescribe treatment, you should contact your doctor. Stuttering: causes of occurrence, what diseases it occurs with, diagnosis and treatment methods.

Definition

Oral speech is a complex multicomponent process in which not only the structures of the maxillofacial apparatus, but also the brain centers located in the cerebral cortex take part. It is in these structures that in most cases certain pathological processes leading to the development of stuttering are localized.

Stuttering (stammering) is understood as a speech feature characterized by frequent repetition or prolongation of sounds, syllables or even words in combination with frequent pauses, which disrupts the fluency of oral speech.

Today, different figures are given that characterize the number of people who stutter - from 1 to 5%. However, all experts are unanimous that among males stuttering occurs 4 times more often than among females, and also that in 90-95% of cases stuttering occurs between the ages of 2 and 7 years.

This speech defect often leads to problems in communication, which consist not only in the difficulty of perceiving such speech on the part of the listener, but are also associated with the internal emotional experiences of a stuttering person.

Types of stuttering

There are the following types of stuttering:

Neurotic stuttering, the development of which is usually based on some psychotraumatic factor. This type of stuttering is psychogenic and is not based on structural damage to the brain or peripheral parts of the speech apparatus.
Neurosis-like stuttering - unlike neurotic stuttering, it develops against the background of organic damage to the nervous system.
Mixed stuttering develops against the background of both a psychogenic factor and true damage to the nervous system.

Possible causes of stuttering
Stuttering is based on various muscle spasms of the speech apparatus. They develop due to abnormal impulses emanating from the motor speech centers of the brain. The cause of the pathological functioning of these parts of the central nervous system can be both structural and functional disorders. The latter are characterized by the presence in some part of the brain of a focus of excitation, which activates the motor speech center and leads to the development of convulsive readiness of the muscles involved in articulation and voice formation.

If tonic convulsions develop, a prolonged muscle spasm occurs, resulting in speech delay. Unlike tonic convulsions, clonic convulsions are a series of short-term convulsions that lead to involuntary repetition of sounds or syllables.

Both types of seizures lead to impaired speech fluency and stuttering.
Diseases that cause stuttering
Among the factors influencing the development of stuttering, doctors identify the following diseases and conditions:

emotional lability and dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system;
mental trauma;
traumatic brain injuries;
infectious brain damage;
stroke;
perinatal damage to the central nervous system of the child, associated, as a rule, with a violation of the supply of oxygen to brain structures in the prenatal period of development, during childbirth and in the first hours and days of life.

Which doctors should I contact if I stutter?
Traditionally, the initial examination of a patient with stuttering is carried out. After a detailed interview with the patient, the purpose of which is to clarify the circumstances of the appearance of stuttering and possible provoking factors, the doctor specifically examines the nervous system for the presence of other signs of neurological abnormalities. In the treatment of stuttering, doctors resort to the help of a speech therapist and psychologist. Often, to treat stuttering, especially in the absence of organic damage to the nervous system, the neurologist refers the patient to a consultation with a psychiatrist in order to identify some mental abnormalities that lead to the development of stuttering.

Diagnosis and examinations for stuttering

Diagnosis of stuttering begins with a neurological examination, during which a neurologist may suspect the presence of a structural brain lesion or, conversely, receive no evidence of the presence of organic damage. In this case, the doctor resorts to additional laboratory and instrumental diagnostic methods in order to confirm or exclude various organic lesions. EEG and neuroimaging methods are coming to the fore.

Electroencephalography (EEG) is one of the integral methods of additional research of a patient suffering from stuttering. EEG helps differentiate neurotic and neurosis-like stuttering by identifying signs of convulsive activity in individual areas of the brain.

How can you tell if your child has a speech disorder?

The easiest way to treat stuttering is when it is discovered at a very early stage, before the brain has yet “fixed” the speech defect, before it turns into a reflex and affects the child’s psyche. Therefore, when he turns 3-4 years old, we recommend paying attention to the following points:

when pronouncing phrases, the child stops, breathes quickly, as if gathering strength;
stammers, repeats the same syllables and words;
pronounces additional sounds before the phrase (i, a, e);
refuses to speak at all, becomes abruptly silent;
becomes withdrawn.

Any of these symptoms is a reason to consult a doctor. The sooner you do this, the faster and without consequences the problem will be solved.

Which doctor treats stuttering?

Speech therapist

If no physiological abnormalities are found in the child, the next step is to contact a speech therapist. This specialist specializes in the correction of speech defects and will help the child learn to correctly pronounce sounds that he cannot comprehend. The speech therapist will determine the nature of stuttering - it can be tonic (drawn-out main sounds) and clonic (stutter on consonants). And then he will choose the optimal treatment method.

It will teach you to breathe evenly so that your breathing does not falter and remains even throughout the entire phrase.
Place pauses to save speech effort and relieve muscle spasms.
Form sounds using the speech apparatus: larynx, tongue, teeth, lips.

The specialist works to ensure that the baby overcomes the weakness of the articulatory (speech) apparatus. To do this, the speech therapist will develop certain muscles, for example, the larynx, neck.

Psychologist

However, in most cases, its work alone is not enough. The causes of stuttering are inextricably linked with psychological problems. They need to be corrected no less than speech. Therefore, we recommend that you also contact a psychologist. Visits to this specialist may be even more effective than visits to a speech therapist.

Muscle spasms are often associated with nervous tension and an inability to relax emotionally. Therefore, this doctor will work with a stuttering child in the following areas:

Teaches you how to behave competently in stressful situations.
Relax and rest.
Control your emotions.
Overcome your fears.
Contact with peers.
Express yourself through creativity and communication.

There are a huge variety of methods for psychologists to work with children who stutter. For kids, this may be the development of fine motor skills, for older children - listening to recordings of their own speech with its subsequent correction.

What should parents do at home?

It is ineffective to cure logoneurosis without the help of parents at home, since the main support should come from them. Therefore, get ready for the fact that you will also have to contact a psychologist and learn from him. To correct psychological problems in a child, you need to change your daily routine and lifestyle at home. The best way to prevent stuttering is to avoid situations that make it worse.

Mode

Organize your daily routine so that periods of intellectual and emotional stress alternate with proper rest and relaxation.

Dream

Children must sleep at least 8 hours a day, so you need to organize your daily life, home space, and sound atmosphere in such a way as to ensure this minimum.

Intonation

The baby should feel the confidence and calmness coming from the parents, so you need to address him slowly, quietly, calmly, without interrupting him. It is important to explain to loved ones that this is exactly what needs to be done.

Praise

Develop your baby's self-confidence by praising him for any success. Create situations in which he could show his best side. However, praise for success should not be confused with pampering.

Situation

In family relationships, quarrels should remain prohibited. It is impossible to cure a child and prevent stuttering in an aggressive and tense atmosphere. The same applies to visiting noisy companies or places.

Leisure

Limit watching programs, movies, cartoons or games that cause emotional overstimulation. Leisure should be calm, aimed at developing creative abilities.

Communication

Gradually and delicately expand your child's social circle by inviting him to visit public places that do not evoke strong emotions. Introduce him to interesting people. They will help him adapt to the outside world.

Activity

Dosed physical activity has a positive effect on the nervous system, as well as muscle development. Therefore, physical education, swimming, running, just walking, playing in the fresh air should become the norm.

Restrictions

Under no circumstances use punishments that can have a negative impact on children's emotions (punishments should also be calm, no matter what offense the child commits). It is strictly forbidden to leave a child alone in a dark room.

What should adults say?

To prevent relapses of speech disorders (and they may well occur), you as parents need to change or carefully monitor your own speech. This applies to your conversations with each other. Children actively perceive the conversation around them and unconsciously imitate it:

Speak clearly, intelligibly, without mistakes and without rushing.
Try to pronounce the phrase a little slower than usual.
Avoid complex words that are incomprehensible to the baby.
Various “scary” topics of conversation are taboo.
It is not recommended to speak in syllables or sing phrases.

Try to get your baby to make friends with balanced children who have well-developed speech. If his speech activity is too high, artificially limit it by giving him the opportunity to silently play alone with himself for some time. Try to get your child to listen more than talk.

What to do to get rid of stuttering

Many celebrities have overcome stuttering. It is now difficult to believe that Elvis Presley, Bruce Willis, and Winston Churchill suffered from this defect. You can get rid of it forever. Your child can do this, no matter what speech defect he or she has. However, this requires serious effort, perseverance, and patience.

Here are the elements on which your success should rest:

Emotional calm.
Correct speech construction.
Organization of the child's daily life.
Thoughtful daily routine.
Regular sessions with a speech therapist and psychologist.

The main thing is to practice regularly and not lose control of the problem.

How to get rid of stuttering on your own with pills?

Very often, stuttering can recur, and the triggering mechanism is severe stress and extreme anxiety. Under no circumstances should you protect your child from anxiety, forbid him to communicate with peers, and protect him in every possible way from stressful situations. On the contrary, it is recommended to live a normal life, adapting the child to stress, sometimes provoking minor emotional arousal, so that the child can fight stuttering and control his speech. Very often medications are used for treatment.

How to get rid of stuttering yourself with pills:

Pantogam . This is a drug that is used for mild pathologies; it calms the nervous system and helps a person relax. After all, very often stuttering is triggered by stress and nerves.
Dopamine . This is a hormonal drug that is used for serious disorders. Usually used in cases where classes with a speech therapist and defectologist are ineffective.
Mydocalm . It is also a drug that is used for non-serious disorders.
Cortexin . Used in the form of injections or solutions, as well as tablets. It is mainly used as prescribed by a doctor after examination. Helps improve blood circulation in the brain. Allows you to reduce stuttering.
Sedatives that normalize heartbeat and breathing. Among them are Persen, Finlepsin , and Glycine. These medications help reduce anxiety, thereby reducing the risk of stuttering episodes.

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