Speech problems which are not diagnosed or treated in time might affect the kid’s life negatively. These problems might cause the kid to have different psychological and social problems such as social phobia, lack of self-confidence, school refusal, and anxiety. Therefore, the kid having speaking difficulties should be treated as soon as the problem is diagnosed.
Speech problems are mostly defined as the difficulties experienced in fluency or grammar structure of the language. These issues might stem from neurological causes as well as some physical disorders such as tongue tie and cleft lip.
The kid must, first, hear and listen to enough verbal conversations to be able to produce sounds and complete his speech and language development in time. There are two key factors for the kid to produce the sounds correctly. The first one is perceiving the sounds correctly, and the second one is using his speech organs without any problem. Some of the speech problems are late talking, articulation problem, language problem, and stammering.
Late Talking
Late talking can simply be defined as the case that the kid cannot speak as good as he is supposed to talk at his age. The kid should complete his speech development at the age of 2.5 years. If the kid cannot speak at the age of 3 at all, then this case is considered as the late talking. The cause behind such a case might be serious, so it should never be ignored. If the kid cannot pronounce the single words at the end of the age 2, then the parents should take it for their kids as a serious sign of a possible speech problem. The causes of late talking might be the lack of communication in family, physical disorders, autism, or Asperger syndrome.
Articulation Problem
The kid might sometimes substitute a sound for another. Such a case is called articulation or phonological disorder. Some physical problems such as not being able to use the speech organs correctly, swallowing disorder, not being able to use the mouth and face muscles correctly, cleft lip, adenoid, and tongue tie might result in articulation problem in the kids.
Language Problem
Some kids may not have any problem with pronouncing the words but might have difficulties to put them together to make logical sentences. Some neurological issues such as epilepsy and some other problems directly related to the brain such as lack of oxygen goes in the brain of the baby during birth and serious damages to the back of the head might cause language problems.
The kids with language problem normally have a limited vocabulary knowledge compared to those the same age, have difficulties in memorizing new vocabularies, and repeat the same words constantly.
Stammering
Stammering is a type of speech problem. A stammerer typically experiences difficulties in fluency, dithers over what to say, elongates the words, repeats the syllables, and pauses a lot when speaking. Any kid might stammer in his speech and language development process for two months. If the kid stammers more than two months, this case might turn into a habit for him. Therefore, the parents should be very careful and take all precautions for their kids to overcome stammering problem in such a case. The causes of stammering might be genetic, family stress, and any trauma.
Do Not Ignore
If your kid is over 5 and still pronouncing some words wrongly, there is a possibility that he might be experiencing a kind of learning disability. In such a case, you should immediately consult with a speech-language pathologist. Speech disorder might cause the kid to be shy and introvert. Furthermore, this problem might turn into social phobia, and the kid might refuse to go to school in the next years.
All Speech Problems Can Be Treated
Early diagnosis and treatment are very important. If the treatment starts before the kid turns 5, his psychology and so his future will never be affected by this disorder. The treatment process should be managed in psychiatric, psychological, and neurological disciplinaries together.
Sources
1- asha.org
5- cdc.gov
