This is an excerpt of chapter 7 from the book Stuttering and Your Child: Questions and Answers
 
By William H. Perkins, Ph.D.
 
Won’t therapy make him more aware of his problem? Make his problem worse?
 
For years, everyone, many professionals included, tiptoed around stuttering as if we were walking on eggs for fear of calling attention to the problem. Many presumed that this would make it worse. No longer. You should consider two things. 
 
For one thing, if your child’s stuttering is developing into a problem for him, he is already becoming aware of it and is frustrated by it. When parents pretend nothing is wrong, he may conclude that his stuttering is so bad they can’t even talk about it.
 
The second consideration is that early treatment has shown the best results of all. Instead of making stuttering worse, the sooner effective help is provided after stuttering is first noticed, the better the child’s chances of full recovery. If stuttering continues after puberty, it usually persists in one form or another.
 
Will he be cured?
 
If stuttering does persist into adulthood, he may hope for a cure, but hardly anyone, neither professionals nor people who stutter, realistically expect a great deal more than improvement. These adults may be able to sound normal much of the time, but most continue to think of themselves as people who stutter.
 
With children, the prospects are much better. By helping them before they begin to fear stuttering and develop reactions to it—fear and reactions which can complicate the lives of adults who stutter—these children have a good chance of becoming reasonably normal speakers. They may still stumble and hesitate in their speech from time to time, but that happens to everyone.
 
The important thing is that these children not feel so frustrated by their speech mistakes, hesitations and bobbles that speaking becomes a struggle, and they begin to identify themselves as stutterers. Prevention of a self-image of being a person who stutters goes a long way towards what could be called a cure for stuttering. Beginning therapy as soon as the problem becomes apparent goes a long way toward prevention.
 
Where do we begin to seek help?
 
First you need to find a specialist who has up-to-date knowledge of stuttering.  Although any speech clinician licensed by the state or certified by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association has at least minimal qualifications to provide professional help for stuttering, most refer this problem to clinicians who have specialized in it. For much the same reason even though legally qualified, most licensed physicians who have not specialized in surgery refer patients to a surgeon. Likewise, most speech clinicians refer for specialized problems like stuttering. Universities and colleges with training programs in speech pathology (communication disorders) will be able to direct you to such specialists, as will the Stuttering Foundation, which is devoted exclusively to serving the interests of people who stutter.
 
What do I ask my pediatrician? Whose advice should we take?
 
Pediatricians have specialized knowledge of the health problems of children, so all questions concerning your child’s health should be directed to them. Stuttering, however, is not a problem about which most physicians have adequate information, but they usually know a speech clinician to whom they routinely refer a wide variety of speech and language disorders. However, you would be well advised to determine if these speech clinicians are specialized in as well as successful in treating children who stutter. If they are not, then ask them for a referral to someone who is.
 
What if I’m told that my child who stutters will “outgrow it?”
 
The chances are good that he will. Approximately eighty percent of children whose parents think they have stuttered will stop before adulthood, and most of these will before puberty.
 
It’s the risk that your child may be one of the 20% that won’t that you need to consider. First, was it a specialist in stuttering who told you he is “likely to outgrow it?” Predicting whether a child will recover or persist in stuttering is difficult. It requires expert knowledge, experience and training.
 
The reason you may want to begin therapy early, rather than wait, is that his chances of full recovery decrease the older he grows. If in doubt, you have much to gain and little to lose by starting treatment as early as possible.
 
If we are uncomfortable with the help we receive for our child, should we seek a second opinion?
 
Yes, by all means. You would be wise to seek a second opinion even if you’re not uncomfortable with the first. And if you’re still uncomfortable seek a third opinion. Diagnosis and treatment are far from being exact sciences. Even the best authorities have honest differences of opinion, so it pays you to find out what more than one expert thinks.
 
If therapy is recommended, can he receive it at school?
 
Many schools do have clinicians who work successfully with children who stutter. Compared to the frequency of occurrence of other speech and language disorders, school clinicians see stuttering relatively infrequently, so they may not have much experience treating children who stutter.
 
Here are two suggestions for finding out if your school clinician can provide the necessary help. The first is to ask the parents of a stuttering child, who was treated by your potential clinician, what their experience was. See what did and did not seem to help them and their child. The other is to try speech-language therapy at school. Be sure, however, with therapy at school, as with all therapists, to give it sufficient time to show some influence, for example, at least 3 months or more.
 
How soon will we know if he’s being helpful? What should we look for?
 
With young children, positive changes begin to appear sometimes within weeks, certainly within several months. It is important to remember: Look for signs of gradual improvement, not a quick cure. As long as he is feeling better about himself, about his speech, and increasingly enjoys talking, you are on the right track. If he continues to struggle to speak, to avoid certain words and situations, to not want to talk at school or at home—these are signs that therapy is not helping much. Again, give therapy a fair trial, at least several months, before passing judgment. 
 
Will he have to go every day?
 
Intensive therapy (three or more times a week) has advantages, so if the opportunity for frequent therapy is available, take it. This is especially true for older children at the beginning of treatment. Later sessions can be spaced farther apart without slowing progress.
 
Intensive therapy may not be available, however, especially at school. This certainly doesn’t mean therapy won’t be successful, but it does mean it will probably take longer.
 
Above all remember, if a problem exists, seek professional advice and help.  Early treatment for stuttering can and does help.
 
The longest journey, it is said, starts with a single step. You have taken that step by reading this book. Now that you’ve taken that step, take another one. Ask for professional assistance, if you believe your child needs it. It can really help you reach your destination of having your child become a more normally fluent speaker!
 
Risk factors
 
Some factors place a child at risk for stuttering. Knowing these factors will help you try to decide whether or not your child needs to see a speech-language pathologist. Click here to read more about the risk factors.
 
No matter how long your child receives therapy, chances are very good it will help. Together with your love and guidance, there is every reason to believe that your child can be helped to become a more fluent speaker. For additional advice on how you can help, view free online videos and read If Your Child Stutters: A Guide for Parents.
 
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