Stuttering, which is defined as interruptions in the fluency of speech in any form, is not a disease, experts state that early stuttering is seen during language development. Stuttering, which occurs in 4-5% at the age of 3, can disappear between 3 and 6 months. Chronic stuttering, also called persistent stuttering, affects 1% of the population.
October 22 is recognized as World Stuttering Day. On this special day, it is aimed to draw attention to stuttering and raise awareness
Prof. Dr. Ahmet Konrot, Head of the Department of Speech and Language Therapy at Üsküdar University, said that stuttering is any interruption in the fluency of speech.
There are three types
Stating that stuttering usually manifests itself in three types, Prof. Dr. Konrot said, "These may be some interruptions that appear as blocks. It manifests itself in the form of prolongations. Or fluency disorders that occur in the form of sound repetition and syllable repetition."
It occurs during language development
Stating that stuttering usually occurs during language development, Prof. Dr. Ahmet Konrot said: "It is more common between the ages of 2 and 5 and the frequency of occurrence is around 4 to 5% in this age group. It is possible for stuttering to occur at later ages, but this is mostly neurogenic or psychogenic stuttering that occurs due to neurological and other factors. Early stuttering is a condition that occurs at the beginning of speech and language development, mainly around the age of 3 years, during the sentence formation stage of language, and may resolve spontaneously in some children over time. There is a possibility that early stuttering may disappear within 3 months, 6 months from the time it starts, but this is a situation observed with a 70-80% probability. Therefore, while stuttering has a rate of 4-5% in this age group, it is a condition that affects 1% of the population when it turns into a form we call persistent stuttering or chronic stuttering in later ages."
Stuttering problem should be managed
Emphasizing that stuttering is not a disease, Prof. Dr. Ahmet Konrot said, "When there are complaints about stuttering, people ask if there is a treatment for it, but since this is not a disease, I think that an approach to treatment is not very appropriate. Generally, I think it would be more accurate to talk about the management of the stuttering phenomenon, situation, problem, whatever you call it. Therefore, as speech and language therapists, how can we help an individual, how can the individual solve it on his own, how can he develop a tactical strategy for its solution? Speech and language therapists focus on this in both children and adults while working with the individual."
The environment also needs to raise awareness
Prof. Dr. Ahmet Konrot pointed out the importance of the awareness of the environment in stuttering and said, "The environment should also be made aware. Especially in early stuttering, it is very important to involve the family in the therapy and education processes because the family has an important place in the child's ability to cope with this problem because they are with the child for a much longer time. If everything goes correctly and as desired, especially in the early period, the likelihood of stuttering behavior decreasing and the possibility of stuttering behavior disappearing is much higher."
Prof. Dr. Ahmet Konrot stated that when stuttering becomes chronic in advanced ages, it can turn into a problem that is much more complex to manage.
Noting that studies have been carried out for many years about the causes of stuttering, Prof. Dr. Ahmet Konrot made the following evaluations:
"In fact, it is perhaps one of the oldest known speech disorders. However, until today, it is not possible to say which cause stuttering is due to. There are three factors that cause stuttering. One of them is predisposition, the second is the direction of the factors that reveal this predisposition or behavior. Another one is the persistent persistence of stuttering in the life dimension after it emerges, regarding the passage or continuation of stuttering. Human beings are biological beings, and since all our language and speech development is related to our other behavioral and learning characteristics and biological structure, we see that there are certain relationships when we look at the researches on whether there is a genetic predisposition. If stuttering is seen in parents or first-degree relatives, it constitutes a risk group with a very high probability of being seen in children. Sometimes it is possible to be seen in second and third degree grandparents and cousins, but gradually this risk factor may decrease a little more as the generations differ."
Stuttering intensifies as anxiety increases
Prof. Dr. Ahmet Konrot stated that if people who stutter realize that there is a problem in their speech at a certain age in the early period, that is, at an age when awareness begins to form, this time, problems related to themselves, situations related to other psychological factors related to confidence related to self-perception will also arise. Prof. Dr. Ahmet Konrot said, "The person's anxiety increases in the form of 'I can't do it, how will I solve it'. Therefore, individuals who stutter during periods of anxiety and worry enter into much more intense stuttering processes."
Prof. Dr. Ahmet Konrot gave the following advice to the close environment:
"In that respect, the most important thing we can suggest to their parents or people close to them is to focus on what the person says rather than how they speak. Because if we focus only on how they speak and not on what they say, then they may exhibit stuttering behaviors much more intensely with the anxiety and worry that we will evaluate the performance of the person, or at least they may experience it in themselves even if they do not exhibit it. Therefore, perhaps it is a much more correct way to focus on what the person says, not how he/she speaks with one word, to be patient, and to support the person in a way to reduce his/her anxiety as much as possible, especially in situations that increase anxiety. "