Fluency Disorders
in Baton Rouge, LA
If you’ve ever tried to learn a new language, you probably understand how being fluent in that language is important for effective communication. For children with fluency disorders, this can be a real challenge, especially since it is their primary language with which they’re struggling. From difficulties expressing themselves to feeling self-conscious in social situations, these challenges can significantly impact a child’s confidence and overall well being. That’s why our expert team at Dynamic Therapy Specialists offers support for children who struggle with fluency. Keep reading to learn more about fluency, fluency disorders, and how we can help your child overcome their communication challenges.
What Is Fluency?
Fluency refers to the smoothness, flow, and ease with which a person speaks. It includes factors such as the rate of speech, rhythm, and the ability to produce understandable speech effortlessly.
What Are Fluency Disorders?
Fluency disorders are speech disorders identified by disruptions in the flow of speech. There are two main types of fluency disorders:
Stuttering – where sounds, words, or phrases are repeated or prolonged involuntarily, or where a child is unable to make sounds at all for short periods of time.
Cluttering – where speech sounds rapid and hard to understand, as though the child is uncertain about what they want to say or frequently changing the topic.
What Causes Fluency Disorders?
There is no singular known cause for fluency disorders. Some children may struggle with fluency if other people in their family also do, while others may experience fluency challenges after an injury to their brain or nervous system. Even though the exact cause is unknown, there are many ways that pediatric speech-language pathologists can help children overcome fluency disorders.
Signs and Symptoms of Fluency Disorders
The most common signs of fluency disorders include:
- Repeating sounds, syllables, or words (e.g., “b-b-book”)
- Prolonging or holding sounds (e.g., “sssssnake”)
- Pausing or interruptions in speech
- Struggling or being tense while speaking
- Avoiding situations where speech is necessary
- Feeling frustrated at having to speak or being misunderstood
How We Address Fluency Disorders
At Dynamic Therapy Specialists, we take a holistic approach to pediatric therapy. Rather than simply teaching children how to compensate for the skills they struggle with, we take a bottom-up approach by focusing on remediation first. By evaluating the foundational areas of your child’s development, we can identify and address the root causes of their fluency challenges.
Think of it this way: you have to learn to walk before you can learn to run. It’s not that you can’t learn how to run, but if you never learned how to walk first, you’ll be missing the basics that you need to support learning how to run. By prioritizing skill remediation over compensation, we empower children to build a strong foundation for future growth and development.
Schedule an Evaluation Today
If your child is struggling with speech fluency, our team at Dynamic Therapy Specialists will go above and beyond to help. Call us at (225) 767-5032 to schedule an evaluation, and let’s work together to improve your child’s quality of life.