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From: Woody Starkweather
Date: 10/23/01
Time: 7:43:36 AM
Remote Name: 64.12.101.158
Hi:
The most recent research shows that children react emotionally to their stuttering from the very beginning, that is, at age two or younger for the typical onset. It seems equally clear that it is these same emotional reactions that cause the disorder to develop into a genuine problem. So, yes, of course the emotional aspects of stuttering need to be treated from the beginning. Clinicians can do that with a combination of direct work with the child to increase the child's sense of confidence and self-esteem as a communicator, to help them see that stuttering is not something to be afraid of, to reduce the self-imposed time pressure that many children seem to feel, and to show them easier ways to be dysfluent. In addition, the family needs support in dealing with their disappointment, anger, and fear, and they need to learn how to help the child become more fluent by showing the child that it is OK to stutter, by rewarding stuttering in some cases (which is a desensitizing maneuver), by demonstrating easy stuttering for the child, and by making the environment around the child as fluency-enhancing as possible. The more the parents can reduce the occurrence of disfluency by changing the environment, the fewer opportunities there will be for the child to become frustrated, angry, or sad about the bumps and stickies in their speech.
Woody