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From: Woody
Date: 10/16/00
Time: 9:30:30 AM
Remote Name: 155.247.229.128
Betty:
As others have noted, it is difficult to form an accurate clinical opinion over the internet, but I have seen quite a large number of children whose stuttering (or disfluency -- it may not yet involve enough struggle to be stuttering) has come about as a by-product of advanced language. INdeed, it seems to be one of the "tracks" by which stuttering develops. Unfortunately, you can't undo what language she has learned. But it may be possible to slow the pace of future language acquisition and give the child's motor system a chance to catch up. None of this is to say that you have created the problem in any way. Some children simply learn language very quickly, and although we have little clear information about it, it seems that in some cases the motor system is behind the language system, that is, the child can think of and accurately construct long complex sentences containing multisyllabic words, but is nonetheless able to utter these sentences with the same dexterity that an older child, more advanced motorically, might be able to do. So, perhaps, the answer is to try to slow the rate at which language is being acquired, giving the motor system time to catch up. We have had some success using this approach with this type of child. IN any event, it would be helpful to consult with a speech clinician who is specialized in treating stuttering and particularly interested in the treatment of very young children. There are also a number of useful materials to be found on the Stuttering Home Page.