stuttering question
Hello,
I am a graduate student currently at my externship site at a school. This is my first experience working with children who stutter. I have learned so much so far! However, I do still have questions. I recently had a student ask why he stutters. At first, I did not know what to say, but I replied by explaining we are all different and unique in our own way and that is something unique to him. Is there a better way to answer the student’s question?
Thank you for your time!
Hello Rob, that is a great question. I find that explaining the brain in a child-friendly and fun way is often helpful (i.e., understanding neurons, neural connections and pathways, etc.). I believe it’s important for children to understand how the brain controls speech and that “glitches” or “hiccups” in the neural pathways involved in speech production can affect the fluidity of speech. I often tie this to the variable and unpredictable nature of stuttering, and also explain it in a way that helps them understand that stuttering is not their fault and that they’re not doing something “wrong” because they stutter. My son has Tourette Syndrome (with involuntary motor tics, and sometimes vocal tics), and our pediatric neurologist was AMAZING when explaining his diagnosis, drawing out the brain for him and talking about how brain function affects the involuntary movements (tics) that he experiences. She explained it all in a very matter-of-fact and clear manner, which helped him understand the condition and relieved him from any guilt or shame he might have felt because of the visible tics. In the same way, it’s so important to openly talk about stuttering with children who stutter and answer their questions to alleviate fears, doubts, misgivings, etc.!
Hi Rob!
When following Ana in her great explanation about the brain, I would like to add some more specific issues related to this topic.
Stuttering has been associated with less efficient connectivity between neurological structures serving motor speech control and motor speech timing (here for example the work of Connally, Ward, Howell, & Watkins, 2014; Ingham, Ingham, Euler, & Neumann, 2018 may be of relevance). These findings are supported by the work of Chang and colleagues (2015), who found changes in white matter connectivity in younger children who stutter, as well as in adults. These findings in children suggest that neurobiological differences may underpin stuttering rather than arising as a result of stuttering (Chang, Zhu, Choo, & Angstadt, 2015). However, for many people, stuttering is much more than just a motor speech difficulty. For some, the stuttering can affect social experiences in daily life settings, as well as psychosocial and psychological aspects. The result or consequence of being a person who stutters, may therefore be explained and acknowledged within a multifactorial frame.
You are pointing out that each person is unique, and I find this aspect very important to confirm also in my practice. Even though we highlight that each person is different, we could also underline the fact that the brain is working very differntly too, even though we, in the same time, may acknowledge and make it even more clear to the person himself that stuttering is neurological based (and not psychological based).
My experience is that many people who stutter appreciate to know more about stuttering and the brain, because still there are lots of stigmas related to stuttering (ex PWS are basically nervous people). To develope more knowledge about stuttering and how the brain is functioning, may change the people’s attitudes about stuttering.
Thanks for your question, Rob!
All the best wishes from Hilda