Parenting - Prenatal to preschool/Parenting_PrenatalToPreschool.bin/dp/0015/00153.txt

Text File | 1993-06-14 | 6KB | 120 lines

$Unique_ID{PAR00153}
$Pretitle{}
$Title{Medical Advice:  Speech Problems and Stuttering}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{
Editors of Consumer Guide
Chasnoff, Ira J}
$Subject{Speech Problems stutter stutters Stuttering problem stammer stammers
stammering speak speaks speaking spoke spoken sing sings singing read reads
reading monotone nasal quality vocabulary vocabularies pronunciation
pronunciations brain centers larynx voice box throat nose palate tongue lips
hear hears hearing babble babbles word words sentence sentences sound sounds
alphabet deaf deafness mental retardation language languages exposure brain
damage physical abnormality abnormalities listen listens listening listened}
$Log{}

Your Child:  A Medical Guide


Speech Problems and Stuttering


     Quick Reference

     SYMPTOMS
     - Marked delay in achieving speech
     - Continued stuttering or stammering

     HOME CARE
     - Speak to and listen to your baby in order to encourage speech.
     - Correct a child's speech gently.  Never punish or ignore the child for
       incorrect speech or try to make the child practice speaking.
     - Do not get angry or anxious if the child stutters, and don't let other
       children tease or ridicule the child.

     PRECAUTIONS
     - Consult your doctor if your child's speech patterns do not appear to be
       developing according to the normally accepted timetable.
     - Children learn to speak by imitation.  Speak, sing, and read to your
       child.
     - A child who is not speaking clearly should not be forced to practice
       speaking, be deliberately misunderstood or teased, or have attention
       drawn to his or her speech.
     - Consult a doctor if your child speaks only in a monotone, has a marked
       nasal quality to his or her speech, or seems to be regressing rather
       than improving in vocabulary or pronunciation.
     - Stuttering between the ages of two and five years old is not a problem
       unless it persists for several months.
     - Severe, constant, or prolonged stuttering requires professional
       attention.


     Children learn to speak by imitation, but they learn at different rates
depending on their intelligence, their hearing, and their control of the
muscles involved in speaking.  Speech may be delayed or impaired if the speech
centers in the brain are not normal, or if there is any abnormality of the
larynx (voice box), throat, nose, tongue, or lips.  Speech development also
depends on how often a child hears speech and how much he is encouraged to
speak.  Because of the wide range of individual differences in learning to
speak, parents should not be unduly alarmed if their child does not reach a
certain stage exactly "on schedule."
     A general timetable for speech development includes the following
milestones:  By the age of four to six months, most babies have begun to
babble and to make letter-like sounds.  By eight months, most children have
achieved a typical baby vocabulary, using such "words" as "goo," "ba-ba," and
"da-da."  By 12 months, most babies will be using two-syllable "words"
meaningfully ("ma-ma" for mother, "ba-ba" for bottle), and by two years old
will be connecting words purposefully ("go bye-bye," "want cookie").  A child
of five years can generally speak five-word sentences, and by the age of six
can make all the sounds of the alphabet, except perhaps the sounds for s and
z.
     Children between two and five years of age often lack fluency and may
stutter or stammer at times.  If the lack of fluency or the stuttering or
stammering continues, the child may have a speech problem.  Speech that does
not develop normally may also be due to partial or complete deafness, mental
retardation, inadequate exposure to language, brain damage, physical
abnormalities, or malfunction of the speech centers.

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS

     Any impairment of speech or marked delay in a child's achieving speech
should raise the suspicion of a speech or hearing problem.

HOME CARE

     If your baby is to learn to speak adequately, he or she must be spoken to
and listened to.  Incorrect speech should be corrected, but a child should not
be scolded, deliberately ignored, or forced to practice speaking.  Stuttering
in children aged two to five years can be disregarded unless it is still a
problem several months after its onset.  It should not provoke anger or
anxiety, suggestions that the child speak more slowly or more clearly, or
laughter and taunts from brothers and sisters.  Stuttering warrants
professional attention if it is severe, constant, or prolonged.

PRECAUTIONS

  -  If your child's speech does not develop more or less in accordance with
     the general timetable, consult your doctor.
  -  Do not refuse to understand your child or try to force him or her to
     speak more clearly.
  -  Do not call the child's attention to stuttering.
  -  Read, sing, and speak to your child whenever possible.
  -  If your child speaks only in a monotone or with a marked nasal quality or
     if the vocabulary and ability to pronounce words are diminishing instead
     of improving, consult your physician.

MEDICAL TREATMENT

     Your doctor will perform a complete physical examination, checking the
child's throat, palate, and tongue, and testing the child's hearing.  If your
child is under the age of five you may be referred to a speech pathologist for
evaluation and treatment if stuttering is severe, constant, or unduly
prolonged; if the child seems to be severely frustrated in his or her efforts
to speak clearly; or if you need assistance in handling your child's
development of speech.  If your child substitutes sounds or stutters after the
age of five or six, your doctor may suggest that he or she be seen by a speech
specialist.

RELATED TOPIC:  Deafness