Stuttering - Hamden,CT

Hi M.,
I can only imagine how worried you are. My nephew, same thing. I would recommend bringing to see pediatrican and see what they recommend. My nephew was around 3 at the time too. He worked with a speach therapist and he is now 14 and all is great! Please try not to worry as she is young and this can be corrected. Good luck!

Hi, I had the same problem with my now almost 6 year old daughter. She was the same age as your daughter when this started. I did a ton of research on it, and talked to everyone I knew on the subject...the research suggested I should do something about it, while all the people I spoke to said 'wait it out, it is a phase that she will get over'. In the end I did end up signing her up for services through the school district, she had a language teacher twice a week for a short 'lesson'. My daughter LOVED her speech teacher, they had such fun together and it was great one on one time for her. Long story short, she is now completely fine, stutter free, and VERY articulate. I'm very happy with my decision to go with services, it didn't cost me a dime and we all made a new friend. One thing I did learn...do NOT bring attention to the stutter. It's VERY important not to say "slow down, just take your time and think about what you're going to say"...this only makes matters worse! The one thing the speech teacher stressed to me (and she had me write notes to all adults my daughter would come into contact with) was to look my daughter in the eyes when speaking to her, and model sloooowwww deliberate speech, and speak very clearly. After time, the stutter will most likely fade, as your daughter's brain catches up with her mouth! Good luck and feel free to contact me if you have any more questions. I would give you the # of our speech teacher, but I'm not sure where you're located! My direct email is ____@____.com luck!

I have a 5 year old that takes speech in school, she has had a lot of ear infections as an infant causing speech problems..

I am not sure where abouts you are. I live in NY and there is a program called EARLY INTERVENTION.(its Free and income does not count) and they serve children from birth to 3 years old. and after that the school jumps in from 3-21 years of age.
GREAT PROGRAM... They come out and test your child and see if there a reason to be alarmed.. We had a speech therpist come to OUR home 3 times a week and social teacher come 2 times a week. My daughter is doing great now, she still continues speech in kindergarten and LOVE it.

Good Luck and if you have an questions.. I could try and help

My daughter started around 2 years of age. As well they taught me how to sign with her when she wanted a drink.. or more.. things like that because she would get fustrated when we did not understand what she wanted!!!

yes, my now 6-1/2 year old son was a stutterer (started around age 3 as well, and this is the most common age for it to take root). you need to act quickly. get a referral from your pediatrician for early intervention (birth-3 services) and have her evaluated right away. if there is a true stutter, as opposed to what is considered "normal dysfluency", probably she'll qualify for speech services (they come right to your home, or go to her preschool or whatever). if you can get her in under the wire, she will then be in better position to have the services extended beyond the 3 year mark. the key is in acting fast, as the earlier it is addressed, the better the outcome. my son had a moderate stutter and he had nearly 2 years of 1x weekly speech therapy, but because he was already 3, he didn't qualify for services, and we had to pay for it all out of pocket. still it was worth every penny! if you are in manhattan, i would highly recommend dorothy schorrmann. she is very experienced and has boundless energy for this work, and excellent outcomes! good luck.

Hi,
My son stuttered when he was 3. The best thing to do is to not draw attention to it or make her feel "on the spot". Try not to tell her to "slow down", that will just draw more attention to it. My son is getting speech therapy and his therapist said it is common for young children to stutter. Often they are excited and their mouths are moving faster than their brains! See your pediatrician if it persists. Good luck!

My nephew used to do that at that age and we said it was the same thing. His mind was just going faster than his mouth could. He grew out of it on his own. My oldest also did it for a bit at this age though not as much as my nephew and he outgrew it too. :)

When she starts to stutter, tell her to stop for a minute. Say something like, "Ok, I can tell you have something really important to tell me/a lot to tell me and I can't wait to hear it but I need you to wait for a minute and think about what you want to tell me. Take your time telling me." Sometimes they just need to be reminded to slow down and think their thought through but that was all we did.

Hi M., I know you have received a great deal of solid advice but I feel compelled to look at the stuttering from a different angle. And for any other poster, please note that this is what I recall in dealing with my son's stuttering and not meant to invalidate your comments.

With that said, my son had a stutter at age 3 that seemed to wax and wane for awhile but then towards 4 years old continued and eventually got worse. Even at three I was worried (like you) and spoke with numerous people - teachers, pediatricians, grandmas etc. They all said don't worry it is developmental. And it most definitely is a stage for most children. The reason I worried was because it didn't let up and my son would often just not speak out of fear.

I took him to a very established speech pathologist who diagnosed him with dysfluency. Before I get you upset, I only want to point out what to look for in terms of the symptoms of "problem" stuttering. We were told that if he/she stutters at the beginning of a word that is more in line with development. But if the stuttering is in the beginning, middle and/or end, you need to get it checked out. Also my son had very pronounced hand signals and arm waving when trying to talk. This is called a secondary gesture and that enabled the Speech Pathologist and Pediatrician to diagnosis him with the more adult form of stuttering and with that we were able to get him into an early intervention through the school.

Since you sound so worried I just wanted to give you clear signals to look for - not to scare you. My son, with about a year of therapy, actually learned to internally slow his speech down and by the time he hit 7 had not even a hint of stuttering. He was taught to say to himself (even out loud) "slow easy speech Jack". This acted like a positive trigger which switched his mind to a more calm state. It was amazing to watch.

I wouldn't worry at this point at all; my intent is only to give you more info and hope if the stuttering continues and you become even more worried.

You sound like a wonderfully attentive mommy. You daughter is very lucky.

All the best - H.

Hi there M.!

I had the same concern when my son was 3; he would get so worked up or so excited about what he was going to say that he would seem as if he was stuttering. My doctor told me it was completely normal at his age. He's now 4 1/2 and it doesn't happen at all. I definitely think it's most likely a stage she's going through. But to ease your concerns, definitely ask your pediatrician about it.

When it did happen with my son though, I would just ask him to stop, take a breath, think about what he wants to say and then tell me.....he would do just that and all was fine!

I'm sure she's just going through some growing pains!! But again, would definitely make an appointment with the doctor if it really concerns you.

All the best!

A. ; )

My daughter did the same thing at that age. Her doctor told me not to worry, that is was often a perfectly normal stage of speech development. She stopped about six to nine months later and is now eight with no stutter. So dry your eyes and smile, you're doing a perfectly wonderful job raising your daughter.

Hi M.,

I am a speech therapist. This is very common around this age and may be a developmental stutter. Most of your advice is to not draw attention to it and it may just go away on its own. That's very accurate advice. Sometimes when there is too much attention drawn to it (at this age - if its just developmental), the child begins to think there is something 'wrong' with her and begins to feel badly about herself and may negatively influence her speaking. If you 'go with the flow' and act as if there is nothing different about the way she is speaking, and model good communication (not point it out your good skills- just use good communication skills around her), her stutter may go away as she gets older. If you find that she continues to stutter and/or it gets worse - you may want to get her evaluated at some point later in time.

Good luck - try not to worry - it's a very common thing that many children actually grow out of.

Our son (also 3) started stuttering about 6 months ago. We consulted with a friend who is a speech pathologist and she said to wait a few months and it would most likely go away. We were told that any good Speech path wouldn't asses them until at least 5 years of age. We waited and he stopped stuttering. every so often it comes back for a day or so but then it goes away.
good luck. it's hard but it will probably work itself out.

Try to remain calm when she talks to you and just gently tell her to slow down and mommy will listen. Sometimes as your friend says their little brains are working so fast they just can't get it all out quick enough. If she sees you upset it will only become more of an issue. She needs to just be reassured with a smile on your face that it is okay and just take her time. You are not doing anything wrong and you didn't cause this. I am not at all a speech specialist but I have seen this happen in my preschool with many kids. Sometimes mommy is in a rush and they are trying to talk so fast and quickly that they stutter. So try calming down first, sit down and look her in the eye and tell her to talk slowly. Do not get upset, do not look concerned, just look completely interested in what she has to say. If that does not work over time then I would inquire further. Sometimes these things can go away as quickly as they come. If you are that worried ask your doctor he is the professional and can advise you best. I am sure you being alone is making things worse that can't be easy. February is right around the corner so just hang in there!!

Hi M.!

I have been a school psychologist for almost 10 years now and have done numerous preschool evals with our speech therapist. Stuttering is very common ans is typically something a child outgrows. Lead by example, talk slowly and encourage her to do the same. Do not draw attention to it and it should pass. Good luck.

H.

My 2 1/2 year old (June birthday)does the same thing. I wasn't worried about it at this point, just because I think like your friend; he is "thinking" too fast. I don't have much experience, but I do know that it is very important to let them finish the word/sentence, no matter how long it takes. I wouldn't rush to a speech therapist right now, maybe just mention it to the pediatrician so they can track it a bit. Come to think of it, I forgot to mention it at my son's 2 1/2 month appointment! Don't cry over it though. Your son will be fine. Good luck and let me know how it goes.
J.

Dear M.,
My heart goes out to you because I know you said you are so worried. You should speak with your pediatrician, however I have seen this in many children, it is common and especially when they become excited! I think it is a noraml developmental stage and not a problem at all. Encourage her to keep talking and communicating. You can teach her to slow down by letting her know you have her full attention when she is speaking get down on her level and look her in the eye, take her hand or sit her on your lap and ask her to slow down so that mommy can understand her.