Condition : Stammering

Stammering is when words get stuck as you’re trying to speak, or you unintentionally repeat sounds or syllables or make sounds longer.

A stammer may get worse during times when you have strong emotions, such as excitement or worry, or when you’re trying hard not to stammer.

If you have a stammer, you may try to hide it by speaking less or avoiding certain sounds or words.

Involuntary movements when trying to speak, such as tapping, stamping, blinking, quivering, and grimacing, can develop with a stammer. These are not the same as tics seen in Tourette syndrome, which happen when the person isn’t speaking.

Stammering should also not be confused with a speech sound disorder, which is when you struggle to form words clearly because of a problem making certain sounds.

• Read more about Tourette syndrome
• Read more about speech sound disorders

Speech requires a complex process that involves communication between different areas of the brain, and between the brain and the muscles responsible for breathing and speaking. Stammering is caused by a problem in that process.

The most common type of stammering is developmental, which means it happens in early childhood, usually between the ages of two and five. It is caused by differences during development of the speech areas in the brain, but the reason why this happens is usually unclear.

Developmental stammering is more common if there is a family history, or if your child is a boy.

Stammering in older children and adults is quite rare and is known as ‘acquired’ or ‘late-onset’ stammering. It happens when there is damage to areas of the brain that play a role in the speech process.

The damage can be due to:

• a head injury
• stroke
• a neurological illness
• certain drugs and medicines
• psychological or emotional trauma

Stamma

Support for people who stammer, and parents of children who stammer. 

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