Stuttering toddler making me so anxious

amother

Thu, Mar 02 2023, 10:11 am

My just turned 3 year old started stuttering. I know that it's normal for this age and can go away on it's own but I am an anxious person and all I keep thinking is that he inherited that and this is how it's manifesting itself. It's so hard to wait while he gets his words out and takes so much patience not to just finish all his sentences for him. And of course my mind goes to worst case scenario and I'm already picturing him in kindergarten getting made fun of.
Please help calm me down or any suggestions for what to do/not do for him would also be appreciated.

amother

Thu, Mar 02 2023, 4:51 pm

amother Cyan wrote:

Check for strep

I was reading about pandas and stuttering but I really don't think thats what it is for various reasons. I also think my pediatrician doesn't beleive in it and the idea of finding a new one is really overwhelming.

amother

Thu, Mar 02 2023, 4:54 pm

amother DarkCyan wrote:

SLP here.
Please don't finish his sentences for him. Try not to project either, he will pick up on it

What do you mean by project?
Do we literally just stand there staring until he gets his words. That's what I’ve been doing but I hate that there’s nothing I can do to help him. And I’m also debating whether I should say something to my other kids and other people who spend a lot of time with him who I do see finishing his sentences and guessing what he wants.

amother

Lotus

Thu, Mar 02 2023, 5:13 pm

How long has this been going on for? My 3.5 year old does this and it comes and goes…a few weeks yes a couple months no and then comes back. I have found a couple of patterns when it comes…for some reason when he has a stuffed nose/bad cold and also gets much worse in social situations with peers because he’s trying to get his words out much faster. I had him checked out by my doctor…no tics of any sort so we don’t think it’s pandas. He basically said it’s most probably developmental and will go away. I wouldn’t worry.

amother

Cyan

Thu, Mar 02 2023, 5:16 pm

amother OP wrote:

You cam try giving him ibuprofen. If it helps the stuttering, you'll know it's brain inflammation.

You can also try the supplement NAC.

honey36

Thu, Mar 02 2023, 5:47 pm

SLP here,
Please don't worry about it. Your anxiety will spill over onto him and can make the stuttering worse.

You can try the Lidcombe program which is geared towards kids that age if you really want.

But at the end of the day it's really not such a big deal. Most kids grow out of it, and if not, not. There are plenty of wonderful people out there who stutter

amother

Begonia

Thu, Mar 02 2023, 5:50 pm

Happens to each of my kids on and off from 3-5 when they’re vocabulary is growing.

I used to get nervous but after 2-3 weeks it gets better and you notice they have more to say. Then a few months later again for 2-3 weeks and it goes away. My now almost 6 year old doesn’t stutter when his vocabulary enhances.

amother

Clover

Thu, Mar 02 2023, 5:54 pm

I get it. You're not nervous about the stuttering, per se, but about the fact that it might stem from anxiety. And youre anxious and don't want to have passed it on to him.

So I'll tell you...I have three kids who stuttered horribly at that age, and even a couple of years older. One of them outgrew it by second grade. Another took a year or two past that. And a third is in seventh grade right now and hasn't outgrown it yet. Of all three of them, only one is an anxious kid, and it's the one who hasn't outgrown it. But it's mild anxiety, and I've given him tools, and he's an overall happy, successful, confident kid. When I tell his teachers that he has some anxiety, they think I'm talking about a different kid...No one else can even tell. He's actually more well-liked by his peers, academically successful, and has better middos at this point than the other two. He's a great kid.

So stuttering at this age doesn't mean stuttering always. And it also doesn't mean anxiety. And anxiety doesn't mean he'll have a miserable life.

amother

Thu, Mar 02 2023, 6:05 pm

honey36 wrote:

I think I actually do a good job of staying calm and not letting him see that it makes me nervous. No one in my day to day life thinks of me as an anxious person so I guess I’m a good actress for better or worse.
Can you explain a little about that program. I would love to help him but the SLPs I speak to just say it’s normal and not to try and treat it.

healthymom1

Thu, Mar 02 2023, 6:10 pm

amother Begonia wrote:

This! I noticed this too with my kids

amother

Thu, Mar 02 2023, 6:11 pm

amother Blueberry wrote:

Another SLP. Its normal. Is there stuttering in the genes? Otherwise it's a normal age where many kids start to stutter for a little while. Anxiety does make it worse.

And to answer this no stuttering that I know of in either family.

amother

DarkCyan

Thu, Mar 02 2023, 6:44 pm

amother OP wrote:

Yes, that's exactly what you do.
I would say something to your older children to be sensitive about the stutter and not make fun, or comment on it.

To answer your question about the Lidcombe method, the program focuses on behavioral feedback administered in response to a child’s fluent speech (with the main goal being to reduce and eliminate stuttering). Parents are taught to reinforce their child’s stutter-free speech and to respond to the disfluencies. The SLP will teach parents methods and techniques to utilize at home- it focuses on encouraging parents to provide verbal reactions to their child’s stuttering during everyday activities. These reactions can be acknowledging the stuttered speech (e.g. “that was smooth” or “that was a little bumpy”), a praise response (e.g. “that was great talking”), and asking the child to self-correct (e.g. “can you try that again?”)

amother

Purple

Thu, Mar 02 2023, 7:14 pm

amother Clover wrote:

I stuttered until seventh grade

amother

Purple

Thu, Mar 02 2023, 7:19 pm

amother DarkCyan wrote:

Would they do the Lidcombe method on older children? As an older child who stuttered, I would’ve been mortified if my mom would acknowledge every word I said if it was or wasn’t correct. It bothered me enough without other people rubbing it in.

amother

DarkViolet

Thu, Mar 02 2023, 7:53 pm

Even if you and your doc don’t believe in pandas, taking a strep culture won’t hurt, it’s a good place to start. If you notice it comes around the time your child gets sick then there can be a correlation . Like someone else wrote, you can try Motrin like twice a day for two three days and see if there’s any change in the stuttering . If there is then that can mean Brain inflammation …. And I would look further for a pandas literate doctor .

amother

Thu, Mar 02 2023, 8:50 pm

amother DarkViolet wrote:

My kids never get strep. I have a few kids and think maybe one had it once so it just doesn’t seem likely to me but maybe we can figure out a way to get a strep test.