Seeking Advice About Stuttering That Just Started with 2.5Yr Old Daughter

G. -
I wouldn't worry about it at this age. My son, who is now 4, did that sporadically around 3 years old, too. A neighbor of mine is a speech therapist and said it's just a part of their development. In my son's case, he was copying another child who was doing it. Don't interrupt her, and don't point it out. Just ignore it for now. When she's school aged, or over 5 years old, is the age where you would start to be concerned.

This happened with my DS who is now 4-1/2 y.o.-- he was probably 2-1/2 or 3 at the time (with a baby brother on the way). He was an early talker, very bright and communicated easily with us and others. Then, he would do the same "stuttering" thing that you mention about your DD. It worried me b/c my dad grew up with a stuttering problem and he fought a tough battle to overcome it. I mentioned my DS's stuttering to my friend who is a special resources teacher in the public school system, and she said he was doing this b/c he liked the way it sounded and "felt" on his tongue. I kept my eye on it and tried not to obsess, and lo and behold, it cleared itself up just as she said. It in fact was a phase. I would watch her and see if anything changes and then seek professional help if it gets worse or does not disappear in a timeframe you feel comfortable about. Best of luck to you!

G.,
It sounds to me like you have answered all your questions already on your own! Your mommy-intuition has done that for you. It could be HER "normal," (whatever that is) a speech phase, and also anxiety about the up coming new addition. I think yall shouldn't worry or stress about it, as you said you weren't, and just let it work itself out, her speaking skills are still developing and will be for years to come. Yall are doing the right thing by just encouraging her sometimes while speaking (not too often as to make her self-conscious--she is only 2). But I don't know about stopping her while she's talking...that might make it worse. I think you should DEFINETELY NOT even think about a speech therapist or evaluation--I'll bet your pediatrician would say thing same thing, especially is this is the only "symptom." My son is almost 3 (birthday in Jan.) and a few months ago he started the same type of stuttering while starting his sentences, and just repeating himself often like he was having a hard time getting his sentence just right like he wanted to say it. He is, just as you described your daughter, an early talker, speaks proficiently and talks a lot, and holds long intelligent conversations too. We just let him take his time and say what he wanted to say it, how he wanted to say it. If we bring attention to it, it makes it worse I think and he starts to get more nervous or something and it interupts his thinking to where sometimes he wouldn't want to say it anymore and the thought passed already. We just listen, simply listen and make his words and input, and observations and comments important. So cut her some slack and let her work through any speech "issues" herself. She can't be so "perfect" in every way...she's precious the way she is! That is what we've done with our son. Everyone always comments on how "smart" and advanced he is for his age, etc....blah, blah, blah. Sure it all makes us feel good as parents, pats on our back...but, (because we talk with him a lot and not just "baby" talk, we explain things to him, include him in daily conversations, etc.) however, we give the credit to God...not ourselves. Let your little girl speak and communicate the best she can and she should improve on her own with yall's encouragement and soft guidance, don't allow anyone (docs/therapists, yourselves) to already start labeling her with some sort of "special" need, disability, speech impediment, etc. Just continue to help her with ABC's, words, singing, speaking, expressing herself, etc. And don't worry...she'll pick that up from you and start to be way too self-conscious! Happy parenting--it's a privilege! :)

I stuttered at the same age....my mom (and my grandma came down for a visit them too) as soon as i op-op-opened my mouth they would say STOP!!!! now think about what you are going to say.......now say it. and it took about 1 week of constant STOP, but sure enough I was cured. I think sudden stuttering at this age comes from having so much to say (you say how bright she is so in sure she is inquisitve), and talking before youy think about it....good luck

Hi G.,
It is not too early to have her evaluated. I would call Infants and Toddlers and talk to them. Our 8 year old started to stutter around 3 and we had her in speech therapy starting then. It has helped a lot. Most of the time they outgrow this, but it never hurts to get them evaluated. Hope this helps!

Blessings,
T.
www.mybabycrazy.com

You basically answered your own question. Yes she is thinking faster than she can talk and the arrival of a sibling or any stress (good or bad) can cause this. Of course if it doesn't go away after a few months then I would start to think more of it. But at this point it is very normal. My son did it a little at about your daughters age. My niece also did it as well at about the same age but for longer than my son. Sounds like she is very smart and very verbal, so I would wait it out. That is what all the pediatric speech therapists that I work with would say.

Gennlle,

I am a part time work at home mom with twin 9 year olds - one girl and one boy. My daughter has Down Syndrome and my son has some speech issues as well. I've been around many children diagnosed with all sorts of different things one of which is stuttering. I wouldn't hesitate getting a speech evaluation from a speech therapist. This could be absolutely nothing but for ease of heart and mind, I've always told my friends - get the evaluation done. To do this, ask your pediatrician for a perscription for speech evaluation and treatment (just in case). Also, ask for some references from him/her for speech therapist. Insurance usually covers a very good portion of the evaluation. Good Luck. Regards, H. S

I am a Speech Language Pathologist who has specialized in fluency disorders (aka "stuttering'). I agree with some of the advice you have been given so far and some of it I do not. Here is my take on it...
As long as your child does not have a family history of speech disorders (not necessarily stuttering), I would not be terribly alarmed at this age and with this degree of stuttering. Every child and adult has "normal dysfluencies" that occur in everyday speech. Be on the look out for things like facial grimacing, your daughter seeming stressed or anxious about her dysfluency, her refusal to talk when it happens, or her substitution of other words when she begins to stutter on a particular word. As long as she is just getting caught up on the first sound at the beginning of a sentence and it isn't happening really frequently, I would chalk it up to occasional motor planning difficulties (the brain having trouble sending signals to the speech muscles). We all do this at times and yes, the stress (even if it is positive stress) of awaiting her baby brother's arrival is enough to mix up the signals a bit from time to time. Keep an eye on it. Most likely, it will go away on its own over the next few months as she adjusts to the new baby. If any of the secondary behaviors like I described earlier begin to occur or if her dysfluency becomes really frequent, that is the time to take her to your pediatrician and ask for a referral to a Speech Language Pathologist. However, you are her mother and if your instinct tells you something is really wrong, go ahead and take her in. I have certainly treated two year olds with fluency problems.
In the meantime, DO wait patiently for your daughter to say what she wants to say. DO NOT tell her to stop and think about what she wants to say before she speaks. She is 2 1/2 and she can only think about what she wants to say for so long before she is thinking about something else. Calling attention to the dysfluency will only make her self-conscious and anxious about speaking.
Feel free to contact me directly if I can answer any questions.
Good luck!
- J. :-)

Hello! This exact same situation happened with my daughter at about 1 1/2 years of age. She just couldn't speak as fast as her brain was working! She was quite verbal and had great communication skills. I was so worried having worked in the field of pediatric oncology with a specialty in Brain tumors. YIKES!!! At the time this started we were in the process of a move and anticipating the arrival of baby #3. She seemed otherwise unphased by everything. It lasted only a couple of weeks and we just kept reminding her to slow down and take her time. She bounced back and I'd actually forgotten about the situation!

Good luck!

I have a son that is four, that is very intelligent as well. He had a stuttering problem for a very short time when he was younger. It has been awhile, but I do remember it. I was so worried when it happened! It is normal for them to go through this. Her brain is thinking faster than her words can catch up with. I read about this online when my son was going through it, and it recommended just trying not to draw attention to it, as it would pass. You don't want it to become a point of anxiety for her when it happens, because that will just make it worse. This will probably pass quickly. It did for us. My son is doing great, and is still very verbally advanced. Take care.