Stuttering is considered as a kind of speech disorder that manifests through a persons hesitation to continue what they are saying, repetition of syllables or whole words and phrases and prolongation of sounds while they are speaking. This is usually experienced by children from ages two to five because this is the stage when they are only learning to form sounds, words and complete sentences.
There are some people who suffer from this due to genetic factors, but there are no proven studies to claim this point. Other people suffer from this speech disorder as a result of neurological events like traumatic brain injuries and stroke. The case is sometimes considered a psychological problem. It can get worse when the stutterer is faced with many stress factors or they are dealing with anxiety and nervousness. There are cases when people can sing without any hints that they have the condition and you will only notice such once they begin speaking in a conversational manner.
Symptoms
The known symptoms of this condition include extended pauses while delivering your message, creating long sounds in between words, repetition of words or certain parts of the words. If you have this case, you may also find it hard or feel hesitant in starting your phrases. There are also physical manifestations like too much blinking of the eyes, jaw jerking and involuntary movements of certain body parts without intending to do such.
Treatment
If the condition is only mild, you must learn how to handle it on your own. It will help if you are going to find out whats causing the problem. What makes you feel nervous when you are talking with other people? Why cant you speak to a large crowd or why cant you look directly to the eyes of the person you are talking to?
After you have accepted that there really is a problem and that you cant handle it on your own, you can go to a professional speech language pathologist to help you in this case. They can recommend you good medications to help you at the start. This must be backed up with therapy sessions and you should also initiate to practice facing your fears as you progress through the process.
If you are dealing with a child who has this problem, you have to guide them by giving them time to finish what they have to say. Allow them to talk in a slow manner and do not interrupt that much as they try to convey their message.
Both adults and children should also try doing regular breathing exercises. It will also help if you are going to practice singing your thoughts. While you are still in the process of finding a cure, you must avoid situations where you will feel very stressed out because this will only aggravate your condition.
Studies are still being conducted to find the right and the best cures for stuttering. Even if this is the case, this must not stop you from researching and applying good tips on what you can do to overcome the condition or help someone who is suffering from this.