What is it?

A communication disorder in which the flow of speech is broken by repetitions, prolongations, or blocks. Sometimes people who stutter experience physical tension with their facial and speech muscles, and body movements associated with the effort to speak.

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Types of disfluencies:

• Repetitions.  Repeat parts of words, like "pu-pu-pu-puppy".

• Prolongations. Stretch a sound out for a long time, like "puuuuuuuppy".

• Blocks. This happens when a person who stutters has a hard time getting a word out. They may pause for a long time or not be able to make a sound. For example, "I want a ...… puppy".

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When to Get Help for Your Child:

• Many children have disfluencies in their speech. However, if your child seems to stutter for more than 6 months, this may indicate a need for intervention.

• Stuttering may be more likely to last if your child starts stuttering after 3½ years old.

• There is a family history of stuttering.

• Your suspect your child has another speech or language disorder. 

• Your child has trouble dealing with stuttering. 

• Your child avoids talking or tells you that it is too hard to talk.