Red Flags for Stuttering
The majority of children go though some stuttering when they are learning to talk.Little mouths often can’t keep up with everything that they want to say.But because stuttering can be such a serious problem it is very important for parents to know when to seek help and to seek help early.
Children should be assessed by a professional if you see any of the following:
- The problem has been going on for more than 6 months.
- If it is constantly getting worse.
- If your child shows a negative reaction to the stuttering or avoids talking because of it.
- You see tension in the facial muscles during the stuttering.
- Voice pitch rises with the stuttering.
- You are seeing blocks where your child is completely stuck on the word. Nothing is coming out.
- Stuttering is happening on more than 10 percent of the words that your child is saying in a whole day.
- If parents are concerned. The best advice I ever learned in school regarding stuttering is that when a parent is concerned, something needs to happen.
Factors that make it even more important to seek help:
- Someone in the child’s immediate family or the parent’s family stutters.
- Problem started after 3 1/2 years of age.
- Your child is a boy.
- Other speech or language delays or if the child’s language is advanced.
One excellent source for more information on stuttering is The Stuttering Foundation of America. Almost all of the above information is from their site.
I hope this helps.
Let me know if you have any questions. You can reach through my Contact Page or email me at SLP@Speech-Therapyathome.com.
SLPatHome