Should I be Worried if My Toddler is Stuttering?
Toddlers are exploring the world around them with their cute, sometimes funny, and often rapid-fire speech. It's heartwarming to witness their language skills develop day by day. However, as parents and caregivers, we might occasionally notice something that raises a concern - a stumble, a repetition, or a moment of hesitation in their speech.
If you've ever wondered about toddler stuttering and how to support your little one if they experience it, you've come to the right place. In this blog post, we'll
“My two year old Taylor has been learning so many new words. She keep surprising me by saying words she doesn't even know. And last week she started repeating the first sound in different words when she is talking; it's been happening everyday since. She doesn't seem to be bothered by it, and it doesn't happen for every word. Does she have a stutter? I am wondering if I should be concerned or if she needs to go to speech therapy.” - Toddler Talk Mom
What is stuttering?
Stuttering is a communication disorder that affects a person’s ability to say words, phrases or sentences in a fluid and smooth way. We all have moments where we “trip over our words” or “get stuck”, but stuttering causes this to happen frequently, with varying degrees of severity.
As a parent it can be quite concerning when your child is getting “stuck” trying to get their words out, when they can’t seem to easily say the sentence that’s in their head.
You may also hear stuttering referred to as a “fluency disorder”
A person who stutters is communicating their ideas but often not smoothly, or “fluently”. They are speaking “dysfluently”. Which is why stuttering is also called a fluency disorder.
What are the different types of stuttering?
A stutter can present itself in different ways. The most common types involve:
Repetitions (of words or phrases) such as I-I-I-I want an apple or I want-I want-I want an apple
Prolongations where one sound is held out such as IIIIIIIIIIIIII want an apple
Blocks where it looks like a person is trying to get a sound/word out but it is “stuck”, and they may not be able to make any noise while they are blocked
Any of these stuttering descriptions can also include visible tension or stress, most often in the face, mouth, throat, neck or shoulders.
Stuttering in 2 Year Olds
Will my child grow out of this?
Before we go further, it is important to discuss typical childhood dysfluencies.
As children’s language explodes, there is a period during the preschool years when children’s ideas in their brains may be moving faster than their motor skills can move smoothly and efficiently. Imagine it’s like their brain is going faster than their mouth!
During this stage, it is common to have some dysfluencies (stuttering episodes). These can seem to emerge overnight, or slowly increase for your child. It can also seem to ebb and flow, day to day or week to week. For example if your child is upset, tired or worried, they may have more dysfluent moments. Or during times of transition such as arrival of a new baby, changing classes/schools, parent’s work schedule changing etc, this may seem to trigger increased stuttering moments.
Of the children that have these dysfluencies, 75-80% resolve naturally on its own within a year. As a child grows out of it, it is considered typical childhood dysfluencies rather than a true stutter.
The other 20-25% of children may be having the beginning of true stuttering, and would likely benefit from speech therapy.
How worried should I be about my 2 year old stuttering?
Watching your child stutter can often cause parents stress, anxiety, worry or frustration.
As our baby grows into a young toddler, we watch them learn to say their first words, and then later put 2 words together, then 3-4 words. They learn to say more and more of these great ideas in their little curious heads and it warms our heart! But then maybe it starts to seem harder for them—they can’t get their words out. They want to tell us funny ideas or new words or stories and it takes for-ev-er because they keep getting stuck… of course that would trigger some big feelings in us (worry, stress, frustration etc).
If you notice your 2 year old stuttering, here’s the best thing to do:
sit back, take deep breaths and try to relax.
It’s absolutely easier said than done, I know firsthand. My own preschooler is working through stuttering episodes and it is so hard to just sit back and let her work it out!! Especially if I know exactly what she wants to say-and it would be faster to say it for her and move on--but she needs time and space to get it out on her own. By giving them time, you’re sure to minimize the stress they may be experiencing in that moment, which is important when it comes to toddler stuttering. Even if it takes extra time.
How likely is it that my 2 year old will have a stutter that doesn't go away?
In the general population, approximately 1% of people stutter. It is 4 times more common in boys than in girls.
When we evaluate for a fluency (stuttering) disorder, there are a few basic characteristics we look at to distinguish between the typical childhood dysfluencies (remember this is the kind we discussed earlier that will go away on its own) and a true stutter.
If a young child has these characteristics, it is more likely to be the beginning of a true stutter:
Stuttering child is older than 3 years of age
The stuttering has lasted longer than 6 months
Type of stutter observed (for example, prolongations and blocks are more indicative of a true stutter, whereas repetitions are more commonly typical childhood dysfluencies)
Family history of true stuttering
I think my child has a true stutter. What should I do next? How do I get them tested?
A speech-language pathologist is the person who diagnoses stuttering. We discuss in this post how to go about getting a speech evaluation scheduled.
If your child has been stuttering for longer than 6 months, it is recommended that they have a speech evaluation to determine if it is a true stutter.
If your child has been stuttering for less than 6 months, it is generally recommended to give time to resolve on its own. There are some suggestions to try at home at the bottom of this post. However, if your child’s stutter is new but feels to you that it is very intense or severe, or if your child is getting more and more stressed by it, then trust your gut and get them evaluated even before that 6-month mark.
What are the symptoms of stuttering that the speech therapist is looking for?
During an evaluation, the speech therapist will be looking at the frequency of the stuttered moments (how often), and for how long it persists (i.e. how many repetitions or for how many seconds).
They will also be characterizing what type of stutter it is. They will talk and play with your child, trying to stimulate conversation so that they can see your child’s stutter. They may ask if you have videos from home of your child stuttering.
In addition, you could be asked to fill out some questionnaires about situations where your child has more or less stuttered moments, or ask questions about:
History of stuttering in the family
How long ago the stuttering started
Were there any big events/life stressors co-occurring at around the same time it started
Are there any situations/locations/events/people that your child is around that seem to trigger it
Using all the information they collected, your speech therapist will make a determination about the type of stuttering your child has and create an individualized plan to support them.
How does stuttering get treated?
As mentioned above, for typical childhood dysfluencies, speech therapists don’t typically call attention to the stutter. However, if a stutter has crossed over into a true stutter, a speech therapist will help your child using a variety of techniques in speech therapy.
For toddlers/preschoolers, these are often play-based and work to teach some awareness of how the child’s body/mouth feels and how the words sound/feel when they are “stuck” vs “smooth”. Techniques to help a child work through their stuttered moment are also typically used. A child’s family/caregivers should be involved in the speech therapy so that they know how to help the child at home throughout the day.
What can I do now at home if my toddler is stuttering?
Try these strategies to support stuttering in 2 year olds and older children:
Let your child finish their words or ideas. Don’t interrupt or finish their sentences for them. As much as possible give them as long as they need to finish saying what they want to. Encourage other family members and caregivers to do the same.
Don’t call attention to the stutter, and try not to show any stress/worry you may have about it. If we call attention to it, the child may then become more anxious/stressed, which can worsen the stutter. Even saying common things like “take your time” or “take a breath” can be calling attention to it--instead just wait as patiently as possible.
Model a smooth, slower rate of speech. Families that speak fast paced, loud or intensely may contribute to a child feeling like they need to go faster to keep up, so slowing down how fast you talk can help your toddler see how to slow down their speech too. Encourage other family members to allow your child time to talk, even siblings can practice waiting to let your little one talk.
When your child has a stuttered moment, model their phrase back to them, smoothly.
Example: Child says “I want I want I want I want to go to Grandma’s house right now!” Respond (without stress or anxiety) and model back “Yes, you want to go to Grandma’s house right now”. This is modeling their phrase back to them smoothly without any stutter, but is not directly calling attention to it
You can practice some general stress relieving activities with your child. This can be things like kids yoga poses, belly breathing, blowing bubbles, taking deep calm breaths, or using a sensory bin to play. You can incorporate these types of activities into daily life, without directly relating them to any stuttered moments. Then, when your child has a day/week with a lot of stuttering, you can do a little extra of these now-familiar stress relieving activities. It may help to calm your child, which in turn can help with the stutter.
Here are some other questions parents often ask about fluency disorders:
Written By:
Melissa Sartori, MS, CCC-SLP
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