Stuttering - Cortland, NY

Hey A.,
My daughter is 32 months old and we are going through the same thing. I noticed it start around 26 months and then it went away for a few months and now she does it again. I think its because their little brains are working faster than their mouths. I can tell my daughter gets frustrated sometimes when it happens. I spoke to her pediatrician and she said its normal and she will outgrow it, just as you mentioned. You are not alone :)
K.

My 7yr old had the same problem at around 3yrs. It only lasted a few months. I will say it bothered me more than him.
As frustrating as it will be, let her finish her own sentences. The more I tried to help him with his words, he would become frustrated and stutter more. Be patient, this to
shall pass. Good luck

Hi A.! Believe it or not, I totally forgot that my youngest son used to stutter at two years old also (just to give you an idea: it goes away, as fast as it appears!) I was told that their brains are moving so fast, their mouths can't catch up! I don't know if that is true, but, my son is a very smart eight year old today. Don't worry! It'll be no time before you say the same thing as I did "oh, yeah, he used to stutter!"

My son and I both had a problem with stuttering, but both of us outgrew it. So, in our cases, the speech therapist was right. It also helps a great deal to talk slowly. Good luck.

hi
my son went through quite a stuttering phase at around that same age, but it has indeed passed. it seem like it won't, but it (most likely) will. my nephew also went through this, although his phase was a bit shorter. i think my son's lasted about 3-4 weeks, and it got worse before it got better! don't fret;)

My 3 1/2 yo just started stuttering but only when he's rushed or feels that he has to get his point accross quickly before he is interrupted by one of his 3 sisters! If I sit with him and give him 100% of my attention, making eye contact, he stops immediately.

Hi A.,
I remember when I was 3 to 5 yrs. whenever I was excited I would stutter, by the time I went to school it was gone.
I believe that my mind was quicker than my mouth.
So just give her time.
C.

I went through the exact same thing with my son about 5 months ago. He'll be 3 in August. Out of the blue he started stuttering. He'd start a sentence We, we, we, weeee, we, we and almost wasn't able to finish it. It went away within two months. It's as if he couldn't find the words or his brain and mouth weren't in sync. I was worried but it passed quickly.

We went through this, too with our now 7 y/o. We got the same advice - to ignore it. We did for the most part. When it was really bad and we could tell he was rushing through trying to say something, we would calmly say, ok, slow down & take a breath. Now think about what you want to say, then tell me. That helped and he has outgrown it.

My son did the same thing, but grew out of it within a couple months. I figured that he was so excited to finally communicate better, his mouth couldn't keep up with what his little brain was processing - hence the stutter. :) In talking to the other moms at his daycare, most went through the same thing.

My sisters kids both stuttered for a short time. They are now 3 and 4 but at around 2 years old they did stutter and they have both grown out of it. The kids doctor said that it was because their little brains were working faster than they were able to express it verbaly. So rest assured she will most likely grow out of it

We had the same thing happen with one daughter. Her thoughts were faster than she could speak. She outgrew it in about 6 months.

I think all kids stutter a little bit at one time or another, my daughter used to occasionally when she got really excited, nothing worry about yet. She will grow out of it.

My son did the samething when he was about the same age. Basically they told be his brain was going to fast for his mouth. What I would do was stop him tell him to slow down and tell me what he wanted to say (knelt down eye to eye)
And I would repeat what he said slowly. I seemed to work, He is now almost 4 and does not stutter at all.

It happened with our daughter too. It's perfectly normal developmentally when they are going through a language/syntax growth spurt. It subsides on its own. But you do have to ignore it, because otherwise the attention you give it might make them choose to keep it or become self conscious. She should be through it by age three.

M.

I have 2 kids - both have gone/are going thru this. I was worried when it started with my (now 4yr old) son and his teachers gave me the same advice you got - and they were right it stopped. My 2yr old daughter is doing it now - "they" say that the kids just can't speak as fast as they think. Whether that is true I don't know ( my son would repeat a word about 10 times before continuing to the rest of the sentence) but at least it went away and he speaks great now. Good Luck.

Hi A., yes my 4 yr old son started stuttering a few weeks before our daughter was born and continued it for a few weeks after. I was beside myself. He too could not finish a sentence. I was afraid someone would make fun of him at school. He started those twitches with his eyes and putting his hand over his mouth. I had him evaluated and spoke with my doctor who said give it time, his whole life has just changed with the new baby. So me a fast talker started to talk slower, we started reading more books and just gave it time and he is completely fine now. I know it is heart breaking.

Hi A.,
My son stuttered at about the same age as you describe. I think we received the same advice, along with an accessment that the speed of the intelligence of his brain processing speech, what he wished to say, was faster than the physical capacity to say what he wished to say.
The stuttering left on its own, and he continued to do very well in school, and is now holds an engineering job at age 24.
The advice not to worry or make her self conscious or uncomfortable about it is good advice.

Hi A., I'm also a speech pathologist and I wanted to give you some more advice. When your daughter starts to stutter its because she has so much to say and is rushing to get it all out and hold you attention. So, when your daughter is speaking to you drop down to her level, establish eye contact (very important) and say slow down honey I'm listening and listen to her speak without moving. Show her that you are paying attention and not going anywhere while she's talking. This is will help her slow down because she knows she doesn't have to rush. Stuttering usually pops up around ages 2 or 3 when toddlers finally "find" all their words and have a ton to say. Don't worry about it- she'll be okay!

I would not worry about it. It happens sometimes with young children, because they are learning more words quickly and they struggle with choosing them, or remembering them. It should sort itself out soon. One thing you can do is help her to remove her sense of urgancy when trying to talk to you by setting aside a little time every day to have a conversation or taking turns telling a story (I find it works good at bed time.) I would tell my son a story - quality does not matter at this age, just use familiar things, people, places and animals. I always started out by saying "Once upon a time...." He seemed to get a kick out of telling the story back to me, and pretending that I heard it for the first time.

Yes we had that problem with my daughter, at about the same age actually. The fist few times it happened i actually cried alittle for her, she was advanced in her talking and could speak so well so when that happened i was heartbroken. we got the same advice and she popped right out of and talked our ears off and still is now at 10 years old. Hang in there your little one will too.

They gave you the right advise. My son started stuttering around that age and I did what they said and now he is 4 and does not stutter at all.

their little minds work sooo much faster than their mouths/vocabulary will let them....keep your eye on it(a journal so you know how long and if it is becoming a bigger problem)but odds are in your favor and she will out grow it...you can always tell her "slow down, take a breathe mommy can't understand you when you talk so fast"...don't stress, it will most likely pass.

My son went through the same starting around the same age - I noticed that during certain growth sperts it would happen - I was concerned because we do have some family members that stutter - I spoke to his day care teachers and they said the same - to give him a chance and keep an eye on it - I haven't noticed it any more and he is 3 1/2 - Don't worry - just keep giving her the chance to finish (even though on some days you may want to finish it for her) - Good Luck - like anything - it is good that you are noticing it and getting the help early -

My son experienced the same thing around the same age. My pediatrician said this is common with children and called it a disfluency. She advised the same thing your speech pathologist did and stressed that we should not finish his words or sentences as he struggled to get the words out. My son happily outgrew it after about 2-3 months. Good luck!

Dear A.,

My son also stuttered at around 2. Equally panicked was I. My pediatrician also told me it's a phase where their brains are much quicker than their mouths so the words are stuttured trying to catch up. He also told me he'll grow out of it. I was still unsure as my mother stuttered all through grade school. I seeked another opinion got the same response. He stopped stuttering at around 3, 3 1/2. He's 5 now and no issue at all. It is indeed a growing phase. Hope this helps to ease your mind.
A. B.

Hi A.. Most likely it is nothing to worry about. Both of my boys went through the stuttering phase around the same age. Both times I rushed to the doctor and each time they said the same thing. At this age their brain is moving alot faster than their mouth. When she starts to stutter just tell her to slow down and take her time. Both my boys are perfectly fine and speak very well for their ages(3&4). Good Luck.

Hi A.,

I am also a speech pathologist. What you are describing is called "normal dysfluency" and is common in children from 2-5 when their language is exploding and they have so much so say. It is important to respond in the right way, not drawing attention to her speech, giving her time to finish, and modeling a slow, relaxed speech pattern yourself.

I have written an article on tips for parents whose child is displaying these typical dysfluencies which might be of help to you on my website, www.playonwords.com:

http://www.playonwords.com/articles/2007/08/08/stuck-on-w...

If this doesn't resolve on its own or your child starts to repeat parts of words or sounds, you should consult a speech pathologist.

Good luck!

Not personally but you could try making everyone in the family speak SLOWER, and annunciate each word and syllable

it helps her become more aware , UNCONSCIOUSLY

and of course helps her prepare her thoughts before hand which is very helpful

M

Hi A.,
My daughter did the same thing around that age. She didn't get stuck so much on a word, but on her train of thought and she would repeat it over and over again. But sometimes just one word too and the constant repeating. But I could tell it was her mind racing and she couldn't get it all out. The pediatrician said it was normal so I waited. Then she started preschool at 41 months and they said it was very common and would work itself out. And sure enough it did. About 2 months into preschool she stopped doing it. Now she talks 24/7 without interruption! If you really think there is a problem, call Birth to Three for a free evaluation and peace of mind.
Good luck!
Alexis

Hi A.,
Don't become too alarmed. It's much more normal than you think. Both of my children did this until they developed their complete capability of speech. I mean when they are able to speak in a normal everyday child's way of conversation. This is a learning time for them. Sometimes they know what they want to say and pretty much how to say it but they over analyze it and it comes out but a little different. Kind of like they're trying to make sure they get it right. Other times they're brain is just going faster than their mouths. Just tell her to slow down when she starts this. Tell her the word she's trying to say and help her to say it quickly but without the stuttering. You also might notice that its the same set of words over and over again that she'll do this with. My one sons trouble words were "where, which sounded like wh..wh..wh..where and wh..wh..wh..when". Their were other words too but always those. I ensure you at this age it's really nothing to be concerned about. It's just developmental.

Hi A.,
I had the same experience with my oldest daughter around the same age, the pediatrican said the same as the other moms who responded, their brains work faster than their mouths, they basically can't get their words out fast enough. We just ignored it and she did outgrow it.