Updated on 01/22/2023 at 2:48 p.m
- Talking to other people is an important part of social interaction.
- If the flow of speech is disturbed by stuttering, those affected can suffer greatly.
- What is the cause behind the disruption? And why are there people who stutter when they speak but not when they sing?
Stuttering in itself is not a serious medical condition. Those affected can still suffer greatly. In extreme cases, people who stutter do not want to speak at all and largely isolate themselves socially. There are numerous counseling services through which those affected can at least learn how to deal with the disorder in a meaningful way.
The disposition to stutter is genetic. “That means you can say to parents that it’s neither an educational error nor do they have to think that their child has a mental problem,” says Patricia Sandrieser. The speech therapist has been advising people who stutter and their families for around 30 years.
Speech planning, the mental formation of a sentence, is usually undisturbed in those affected. But the path to motor execution – i.e. to actual speaking – is prone to failure. Those affected are basically able to speak fluently. The flow of speech is only disturbed in certain situations.
Trigger factors trigger stuttering
“There are so-called trigger factors, such as speaking speed or linguistic complexity,” says Sandrieser. This also explains why those affected do not stutter when singing or when speaking memorized texts as an actor.
“When you sing, you don’t have any linguistic complexity, because you don’t have to plan the sentence in your head, you know the lyrics by heart. And singing is usually much slower than spontaneous speech.”
Physical condition also plays a role in when stuttering events occur. Because they can often be observed when sufferers are agitated or tense, it is often wrongly assumed that stuttering has psychological causes.
“It’s a self-reinforcing system that when teenagers and young adults do not want to stutter, they get so excited that they can almost be sure that stuttering will come,” says Sandrieser. However, the cause is always neurological and not psychological.
Treatment options for stuttering
Stuttering is one of the best-researched logopedic disorders. If those affected suffer from it, they can choose from various forms of therapy following thorough diagnostics and advice.
It is important for parents to know that stuttering usually begins between the ages of two and five. “We see many parents who are in great distress because stuttering is not taken seriously because the child is still so young,” says Sandrieser.
The chances of a complete cure are highest as long as the stuttering lasts less than two years. Parents would usually be correct in assuming that a toddler stutters. “They are entitled to early diagnostics and advice and should under no circumstances be put off for another two or three years if they are worried,” emphasizes the expert.
Good life with stuttering
However, stuttering cannot always be cured. In adulthood in particular, the chances of completely eliminating the disorder are slim. However, those affected can learn to live well with the disorder.
“The reason why stutterers suffer or are excluded is not the stuttering events, but it is usually the so-called accompanying behavior,” says Sandrieser. Those affected try intuitively to solve the blockage, for example by jerking their extremities or squinting their eyes.
Many try to hide their stuttering with linguistic detours by avoiding certain words or spontaneously rearranging passages. The language can seem strange to interlocutors who do not know that stuttering is the cause. With children, teachers sometimes classify them as uninterested or ignorant because they do not like to talk or use unusual language.
Stutterers of all ages can benefit from a well-founded diagnosis and advice. The goal of therapy does not always have to be complete healing. According to Sandrieser, those affected can also learn to control stuttering better or to find a good way to deal with it in order to experience fewer restrictions in everyday life.
About the expert:
dr Patricia Sandrieser has a doctorate in speech therapy and is head of the clinical speech therapy department at the Catholic Clinic in Koblenz-Montabaur
Sources used:
- Conversation with Patricia Sandrieser
- Working Group of Scientific Medical Societies: Guidelines on Fluency Disorders
- German Federal Association for Speech Therapy: Stuttering
Lack of sleep has a negative impact on health – especially in children of primary school age. A large-scale study by the University of Maryland examined the consequences of not getting enough sleep. Photo credit: imago images / Panthermedia