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 Stuttering or stammering is a speech disorder in which people either repeat or prolong words, phrases, sounds and syllables. It is most commonly seen in children from the ages 2 to 6, during speech and language developmental stages, and rarely continues in adulthood. Some of the common signs of stuttering in children and adults alike are:

• Interrupted or halting speech
• Repetition of a phrase, syllable, word or sound
• Hesitation before producing certain sounds
• Difficulty beginning a sentence, word or a phrase
• Prolonged speech sounds
• Hand or limb movements when trying to communicate
• Blinking rapidly or jaw trembling

The causes of stuttering are not known. It does exacerbate in situations that are stressful or that might draw a lot of attention. There have also been studies to link the role of genes in this condition. There are three main categories that stuttering can fall into, these are:

• Developmental Stuttering: Most commonly seen in children in the formative stages of speech and language development. This is known as pseudo-stuttering and often self rectifies itself as the child grows. If the stuttering persists after 6 months from the onset of the condition or if it worsens with time, consult a Speech Language Practitioner.
• Neurogenic Stuttering: Is more commonly seen in adults. This form of stuttering is brought about by some trauma or injury to the brain or the central nervous system, or due to brain diseases and disorders. Depending on the region of the brain that is affected, people show different signs of dysfluency.
• Psychogenic Stuttering: This form of stuttering usually occurs suddenly after an event that may have been extremely stressful psychologically, although this is quite a rare type of the disorder.
  

A Speech Language Practitioner will have to be consulted for problems with stuttering. Treatment will vary depending on the severity, age, goals and other pertinent factors. Usually SLPs recommend a combination of therapies to help overcome or decrease the severity. These treatments would ideally be speech therapy, drug therapy, support or self help groups, and electronic devices. Some patients even opt for unconventional forms of therapy such as acupuncture and hypnotherapy, although not many studies have been conducted to support the success rate of these therapies.

Parents can do certain things to help their children overcome stuttering, these are:

• Allow for positive and relaxed opportunities for children to converse. If your child is very excited about telling you something, immediately set aside time to listen to him intently.
• Do not complete your child’s sentences or words. Wait for him to finish what he wants to say. Your child needs to know that you are there for him, and this helps build self-confidence
• Speak to your child in a relaxed manner, this will help reduce the pressure of keeping up with you.
• Do not react negatively to when your child stutters. This will only increase stress levels and make for stumbling blocks in his confidence levels.
• Encourage your child with praises and positive words when he does things right.
• Do not allow other siblings to make fun or imitate your child that stutters, this will only worsen the situation.
• For adults who face stuttering, these are the following things that can be done:
• Learn and read about stuttering, and educate others as well about it.
• Join a support group. It sometimes helps to know that you are not alone in this, and you can be around people who don’t judge, misunderstand or discriminate you because of the condition.
• Practice yoga. Deep breathing exercises can help reduce psychological as well as physiological stress.
• Go to a speech therapist to help decrease the severity of the stuttering
  

Reference

1. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2901556/

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