Verbal fluency refers to the rhythm or flow of sounds, syllables and words. The disorder appears when there is a loss of fluidity, as can happen with stuttering and cluttering. Fortunately, seeing a speech and language therapist is enough to develop an appropriate re-education approach to address these difficulties and, above all, prevent them from getting worse.
Fluency disorder: stuttering and cluttering
Among the learning disorders directly linked to dyslexia are specific reading disorders — and notably fluency. Traditionally, people affected by this type of difficulty struggle with stuttering or cluttering. In other words, they show a change in speech rate, repeat several words, hesitate or get stuck.
Stuttering is thought to be caused by a delay in the message sent by the brain to the mouth’s muscles. As a result, the child may end up repeating words or syllables, or falling into an involuntary silence mid-sentence, unable to produce the sound at that moment. Note that while this fluency disorder is not caused by stress and anxiety, it can trigger them later on, in adolescence.
Cluttering, for its part, affects the rate of speech, making it both irregular and rapid. As a result, the child may slur their words or leave them unfinished, struggling to properly synchronise their thoughts and speech. This fluency disorder is diagnosed when it is combined with other oral difficulties, such as poor stress patterns, dropped or tangled syllables, or a high number of speech disruptions.
What role does the speech and language therapist play in speech flow?
A source of great frustration for the child, it’s important to address any fluency disorder as early as possible, particularly within the family.
The child needs to feel safe in order to communicate more easily and reduce their stuttering: be patient, look them in the eye, avoid constantly correcting them, and acknowledge their successes. As they also need to be able to speak calmly, don’t hesitate to slow down your own rate of speech to encourage them to do the same. Finally, if they are part of a sibling group, it’s important to properly balance turn-taking in conversation.
If the fluency disorder persists, make an appointment with a speech and language therapist: this professional will be able to carry out a personalised assessment to begin treatment. Typically, in cases of mild stuttering/cluttering, sessions will focus on fluidity, while for a more pronounced disorder, they will lean more towards relaxation, breathing and fluency work.
If you can’t find a professional near you, don’t hesitate to turn to an online speech and language therapist on the Ora-Visio platform! Rest assured that remote sessions are just as effective as the intervention, while considerably lightening your schedule.
