why my toddler started stuttering suddenly?

Chrystal Duncan - posted on 03/17/2013

When my oldest (of 4) was 2/3 we bought him a leap frog alphabet learning board. If you quickly hit the letters it would repeat them very quickly and incorrectly. Shortly after he began to stutter. Nothing in his life had changed and then we noticed when he would play with this board he would repeat what it did, we took the toy away, trashed it and a few days later the stuttering stopped and was never again an issue.

Aaran - posted on 08/19/2012

Why have u stopped the thumb sucking habbit it's for comfort either u or ur partner done this as a child I guarantee it it seems like you have a problem with ur son doing it maybe u should figure ur own problem out with it let your child be they do what's natural as they don't care bout looks etc

Nicky - posted on 03/15/2012

Its just a stage, he is trying to speak to fast. Hes thinking about a million things in his head that he wants to say and its just not coming out fast enough. Both of my kids went through the "stuttering" stage at about this same age. It will go away its nothing to worry about :) But I do suggest that if this doesnt go away in a few months i would talk to his pediatrician, but I dont think its anything to worry about hun!

Kristin - posted on 03/15/2012

My son also started stuttering at around 2.5 - 3 years of age. His pediatrician said that it's fairly normal for a lot of kids around that age to stutter, mostly at the beginning of their sentences, because they are really learning how to talk at that point and have so much to say but their brains aren't developed enough yet for their mouths to keep up. Hence, the stuttering. She told us to just keep an eye on it and that it should go away as he got older. She also said that if he started doing it throughout his sentences, then maybe we needed to refer him to a speech specialist.



Forward to age 4 and my son was still stuttering - sometimes worse than others - and was now starting to do it throughout his sentences. I spoke with his preschool teacher at the time who let me know that the city offered free speech testing/assessments. I called the number she gave me and set up an appointment. Turns out, they felt he did have an issue and set us up with free therapy sessions twice a week. Now that he's in kindergarten, he's continued the classes twice a week with the speech therapist on staff at the school.



We also discovered that our son was "tongue tied". We were referred to an ENT who did a minor procedure (right there in the office, took only a few minutes) to relieve the problem. It has helped a LOT and my son is now able to position his tongue to make the proper "K", "L" and "G" sounds which he's previously had problems with. His stuttering is now almost entirely gone too, except for when he's very excited or stressed, in which case it occasionally pops back up.



Bottom line, at your son's age, I wouldn't worry too much about it right now. Just keep an eye on it and I'm betting he'll outgrow it. And if not, just know it's not a huge deal and there are several treatment options out there. In the meantime, don't draw attention to it in any way such as copying him, poking fun (not that you would), etc.



Hope this helps.



Kristin

Deborah - posted on 03/14/2012

I agree with Michelle, my bright boy started stuttering at 3/4 and now does not at 5. Yep, he had a lot to say and his brain was going so fast, but it resolved on it's own.



Still it wouldn't hurt to talk to his teachers about it if he's in preschool (we did), or his Dr, if he isn't. I'd hate for you to miss a speech issue if there is one. If the Dr feels it's warranteed a simple speech evaluaiton could be covered under your insurance.

Heather - posted on 03/14/2012

We had the same stuttering 2 month before she turned 3. 1. It depends where and when they stutter. There is normal age appro. Stutter and non appro stutter. Normal is the start of a sentance. The bad is all the way through. Also some letters are harder. And may cause stuttering. My dd was all the way thru and out of the blue she was a very clear speaker. We went to speech. And learned things like say it slowly. And say it again smooth. And even talking quiter helped. And using her finger to set a pace. Like pushing it across words on a page. it can also be a sleeping issues. They will ask you of any changes. Anything like that could trigger it. I don't think its potty training, unless there are accident he is maybe embarresed about. The thumb sucking is a comfort thing. I would think something like that. Turns out my dd was scared of her room. (Out of the blue) we got her a new bed. Night light wall stickers and a little fish tank for white noise. And it STOPPED. She started sleeping better and was al better.I'm not saying you hae to buy a lot of stuff. We just wanted her happy in her room. And it worked. Maybe find something to comfort him and maybe he will feel better. Goodluck.

Sinead - posted on 03/14/2012

Hi, I never posted before so please forgive me if I do anything incorrectly. My son's vocabulary was very good for a 2.5 year old. It sounds like your sons is the same. He started to stutter. Very badly. At first we encouraged him to stop and start again and fInish his sentences. Brought him to a speach therapist. Our public health nurse advised me to ignore it. He had too many words and his brain wasn't keeping up. It lasted about 6 months and sure enough it stopped.

Michelle - posted on 03/14/2012

My oldest son stuttered when he was about 3/4. We found the reason was because he had sooooo much to say and his mouth couldn't keep up with his brain.



We were waiting to get into the speach pathologist so what we did was, when he started stuttering we would say: "Stop. Think about what you want to say and slow down." He would walk around in a circle while he thought about what he wanted to say and then would get it all out without stuttering.



He's now 10 and doesn't have a problem, it saved us a heap of money :-)

Katherine - posted on 03/13/2012

You may have to take him to a speech pathologist. That;s the only thing I can think of. And yes, the thumb sucking suddenly stopping could have contributed.