5 Effective Tips To Help You Overcome Stammering In Kids

Stammering in kids is one of the most commonly encountered problems by parents all around the world. Stammering is a speech-deficit problem, where the normal flow of speech and words is interrupted. You will often see that a child who suffers from stammering may face difficulty in speaking a complete word or a sentence. In fact, 2 to 5 years of age is considered to be the crucial period of speech and language development of your child.

And most of the stammering develops during the early years of life due to a neurological or a psychological condition. Kids who stammer, may not only end up repeating the same word again and again, but they may even get stuck while talking. In order to overcome stammering in kids, you should try to find out what is the root cause of stammering? And then look for the remedial ways to overcome it.

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What is the Root Cause of Stammering in Kids?

Stammering is also known as stuttering and it is very common in young children. Some people even consider it as a normal part of learning. One of the major causes of stammering in kids is that their speech and language abilities are not much developed, so they may end up getting stuck while they speak.

However, as parents make sure that you don’t ignore the stammering problem in your kids because if not treated properly, stammering can develop into a chronic problem and your child may end up having speech problems in the future too. And this type of stammering is harmful because it can lower their self-esteem. Today, there are so many ways by which you can easily overcome the problem of stammering in kids. And one of the ways is speech therapy.

Symptoms of Stammering in Kids

A stammering child will suffer from the following symptoms-

a) Difficulty in speaking a word or a phrase or a sentence.
b) Repetition of a sound.
c) Anxiety about talking.
d) Not able to communicate properly and effectively.
e) A pause of silence for certain words and phrases.
f) Excess stress and tightness in the chest.
g) Frequent eye blinks.
h) Facial sweats.
i) Hands getting cold.

These are some of the symptoms that you may come across if your child is suffering from stammering or stuttering. However, to overcome the problem of stammering in kids, we have prepared a helpful guide consisting of all the essential exercises to help a stammering child.

Effective Tips and Exercises To Help Overcome Stammering in Kids

1. Slow Down Your Pace

One of the best ways to help your child with stammering is that you should try to speak very slowly while talking to your child. If you will rush in with your speech, it will cause you to stammer, speed up your speech, or you may end up having trouble while speaking the complete words. You just need to calm down, take a few deep breaths, and speak slowly. This will also enable people around you to know what you are saying and their patience will also help you a lot.

2. Keep Practicing

If possible, you can also reach out to your other family members and friends and see if they can help you in the process of making your child talk. We all know that a child is comfortable when they are around their family members. Hence, the best way to help your child with stuttering is to make them practice speaking in a safe and secure environment.

By doing this, they will be at more ease with themselves and their speech. You can also consider the option of taking your kids to various self-help groups with kids who stammer and maybe they will be able to benefit from such groups. Your kids will not only be able to speak in front of strangers but these groups will also help you and your kids in establishing a reliable social network.

3. Relax and Calm Down

When your child suffers from stammering it can make them feel self-conscious about interacting with other kids. Hence, as parents, not only your kids but even you need to relax. Stress and tension will not help in reducing your worries, rather it will just mount on the burden. Hence, make sure that neither you nor your child is tense or stressed. When the body of your kids will be free of all types of stress, this will help in creating a more natural flow of breath and will enable their speech to flow more freely as in when they talk.

Furthermore, relaxing will also help your kids to take their minds off stammering and this will help in reducing self-consciousness regarding their stammering problem. You can make your child practice mindfulness and meditation. In fact, meditation is a great way to clear off your mind, reduce stress and tension, and all this can play a key role in minimizing the overall tension that can lead to potential speech-related issues.

4. Focus on Your Breathing and Voice

Another great and effective tip that will help you in overcoming stammering in kids is by properly monitoring your child’s breathing pattern. And that is why meditation is very important for kids suffering from the problem of stuttering.

The breathing process has the potential to change the mind, reduce stress, and offer immediate peace to your mind and body. Moreover, focusing on your breath will also be helpful in improving your speech pattern.

5. Record Your Kids

Most kids are in the habit of speaking without even realizing how they sound. And listening to their own sound can be very helpful for them. Though recording your kids may make them feel uncomfortable when they speak, again it is an essential tool. It is a helpful exercise to help a stammering child. By hearing the sounds of their own voice your kids will come to know about the patterns of speech they are not completely aware of.

Therefore, this will allow you as parents to study the patterns in-depth and work accordingly to make adjustments. Once you start recording your kids, start maintaining a diary. By doing this small exercise, you will be able to help your child to properly carry out their breathing exercises thereby, enabling them to manipulate the muscles of their throat, mouth, and face. And you don’t even need a special device for recording your kids. You can easily use your smartphone for this purpose.