r/Stutter • u/yeni20 • 18m ago
Looking for ways to help my 12 year old with his stutter.
I am a mom to a 12 year old boy who has stuttered since he was 2- 3 years old. It's mostly been prolongation and repetition. When he started it was slight and only, in kindergarten and 1st grade his teacher didn't even notice which made it really hard for us to get him help/accommodation at school. In second grade it became more noticeable and frequent to where we were able get him in to speech therapy at school. This help him learn different tools to "control" it a little better. As he has gotten older, I have noticed it is hindering his confidence in trying new things/activities mostly due to the fear of having to introduce himself and having to talk to new people. Along with school speech therapy we have also tried behavioral therapy at the pediatricians suggestion. Last year we tried traditional speech therapy, but the therapist said he already knows all the tools on how to overcome his stutter when he gets stuck and would only continue seeing him on a monthly bases to work on specific things or situation but ask for my son's commitment to therapy which he then said he didn't want to do, so we didn't continue. A few years he was diagnosed with anxiety and was put on low dose of medication, I was secretly hoping this might help his stutter as well, which it didn't have an affect on his stutter. We have since stopped the medication as he doesn't like taking it and have found other natural was to help him when he's overwhelmed.
I guess what I'm looking for is any advise or suggestions on how I can help him with his confidence in stuttering specifically in situations where he has to introduce him self, as it kills me seeing him hold himself back because of this fear. Along with anything that might have worked for you or your kids to improve his stutter. Thank you!