Stuttering 2 Year Old - Should I Be Worried?

Updated on September 29, 2009
K.H. asks from Ankeny, IA
4 answers

Our DD turned 2 in June. She's always been really, really advanced in her verbal communication. By 18m/o she was speaking in sentences - even her ped was amazed. Every kid has their "thing" and verbal comm was/is hers.

A couple of months ago, I noticed some slight stuttering. Mostly when she'd get excited and with vowel sounds that started words (i.e. "I-I-I-I-I did it all myself!") Lately however (the past two weeks or so) its gotten MUCH worse. She stutters almost all the time and over simple things that she's known how to say forever. For instance, today on her way home from school she was retelling a story about when we went to the park a month or so ago and the slides were very dirty so we couldn't play on them. She has told this story for weeks with no problem. But today in the car, where she would normally say "Someone made the slides all dirty!" she instead got stuck for about 30 seconds saying "Someone, someone, someone made, someone,...." etc etc. After about 30 seconds of trying she got so frustrated she started to cry! :(

Back in August when the probs were minor, we asked her ped about it who told us it was very normal, especially for high functioning verbal kids - they know what they want to say but can't get it out fast enough and so get caught up. But now that its so bad, and so constant, I'm worried this isn't normal anymore? Anyone have any thoughts or experience with this?

What can I do next?

  • Add yourAnswer own comment
  • Ask your own question Add Question
  • Join the Mamapedia community Mamapedia
  • as inappropriate
  • this with your friends

More Answers

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

S.S.

answers from Madison on

I have to disagree with the post that only 4-5% of children go through a PHASE of stuttering. I am a Speech and Language Pathologist, specializing in 2-5 year olds. About 60% of all preschool children show some type of dysfluency in their verbal communication. MOST, about 95%, do not continue to be dysfluent. I have a few questions: Is there a history of stuttering in you family? Does your daughter show strain in her facial features or voice? It is most likely that your highly bright and verbal child is just that-Bright and Verbal. BUT, if you are truely concerned, get an evaluation from a PROFESSIONAL. Ask your doc for a referral if you need it. Do you live in MN? Contact your school district's Early Childhood Special Education for a FREE eval by a professional. Only they can have a correct answer for you :)

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

K.T.

answers from Minneapolis on

Any time you notice a regression in development it is cause for some concern. Only about 4-5% of children go through a PHASE of stuttering... and usually it is an obvious problem if the child stutters four or more time over the same word...like "Someone, someone, someone made, someone,....". And the fact that she was so stuck, and so frustrated about it also indicates the beginning of a real problem. The earlier she sees a speech therapist, the better. Even if it turns out that it's a phase and she grows out of it, speech therapy will only be good for her either way. I'd take her in to the doctor and push for an evaluation at least.
I wanted to add, since there is a tendency to question other's posts on this site...I looked up stuttering again to make sure that the 4-5% rate of stuttering that I previously wrote was still correct, and according to these trusted websites [and more that are not so well-known that I wont list here], it is. Babycenter.com, parenting.com, reference.com, doctorjenn.com, drgreene.com, chp.edu [Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh says 1%], parenthood.com, even allaboutstuttering.com says 5% Maybe I, and all of them, have it wrong though. Five percent of children in the U.S. is still a large number. I'm sorry for that side note but I wanted to be sure I had my facts right.

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

B.Z.

answers from Minneapolis on

K.,

My son who is now 21 also stuttered at about 2 - 4 years of age. We did have him evaluated with the school district and they said, after talking with him, that he was fine and if we just kept talking to him like normal he too would soon start to do that. Sure enough, they were right. His brain just was too fast for his speech. She too will be fine.

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

S.D.

answers from Minneapolis on

I would not be worried at all. It is normal. My 6 yo dd has been in speech for several years (for a different issue, but that type of stuttering was an issue at once). The speech therapist told us that it was her brain working faster than her mouth. Her brain would be thinking of what it wants to say, but, due to her age and development, her mouth couldn't spit everything out as fast, so it comes out as what sounds like stuttering. For my dd, it did take about a year for it to go away, but it did, on it's own. The speech therapist just told us to be patient with her, not say the words for her, let her say them on her own time. While she is trying to get the words out, get down to her level and make eye contact with her (when you safely can, :) obviously not while driving ), so she knows, no matter how long it takes her, you will listen and pay attention and what she says is important. This is very common for this age and, like any phase in childhood, will also pass. :)
S.

1 mom found this helpful
For Updates and Special Promotions
Follow Us

Related Questions

Related Searches