FAQs for 1-1 Therapy

  • It depends which service you book. One-off information sessions and therapy for 3-7s can be in your home.

    Therapy for 7-11s is offered in your child’s school. I also offer one-off meetings in nurseries and schools to provide advice and support.

  • This depends on your child’s needs and your own family budget.

    I offer one-off information sessions as a more affordable way for families to get some support quickly and learn how to provide support for children who stammer.

    You can also book 1-1 therapy sessions between 1-6 sessions. Working in a block helps you to budget for therapy and also ensures we work on specific and helpful goals, chosen by you and your child. See the “services” page for more information.

  • Stammering is caused by very small, subtle differences in the “speech wiring” of our brain. It is often genetic in cause so there may be other family members who stammer/ have stammered. It is absolutely not caused by parents/carers, it is not “learnt” or “copied” from others who stammer, it is not caused by being bilingual, and it is not a personality type, i.e., they stammer because they are “shy” or “nervous”.

  • Absolutely, yes! I can adapt my support around your child’s communication style and needs. Sometimes you may feel that other things take more priority for your child’s needs and wellbeing, above their stammer. This is fine, it needs to be the right time for you and your child.

  • Stammering is very variable by nature. You may hear your child stammering a lot for a period, followed by a period of very little or no stammering. Sometimes we may be able to pinpoint a reason for this because stammering is sensitive to lots of internal and external factors. Sometimes there may not be an obvious reason for an increase or decrease in stammering but we can continue to provide a supportive environment.

    Examples of times you may hear more stammering includes:

    • a big change (school/house move, changes to the family)

    • -tiredness or illness

    • a certain situation or person that may be causing them anxiety or stress

    • feeling rushed or hurried

    • competing with others for a turn to speak and keep your attention

    • feeling excited! (Christmas can often bring about an increase in stammering)

    • having other speech, language, and communication needs or other diagnoses which impact on our learning and development.

  • About 8% (or 1 in 12) children will stammer at some point, often between ages 2-5, although some children may start later. Many of these children will go on to stop stammering. However, some children will continue stammering into adulthood. There is no definite way of knowing who will stop stammering and who will carry on stammering. Generally speaking, the longer a stammer has continued, the more likely it is that it will continue into adulthood. Many adults who stammer lead successful and happy lives!

    1. Avoid asking children to slow down, start again, think about what they want to say, or take a deep breath. Whilst very well meant, this advice can add to the frustration of talking. People who stammer know what they would like to say, it is very hard to slow our speech down, and starting again just adds to the pressure of talking.

    2. Wait. Allow children the time and space they need to finish talking. Show them that they have your attention by keeping natural eye contact, smiling, bending down, nodding etc. Focus on WHAT they have said and not HOW they have said it.

    3. Be open about stammering. You do not need to ignore it. This often creates a tension and anxiety around stammering. Let them know it is called a stammer and other people do it too, make time for talking about stammering and how it makes your child feel, acknowledge times when talking is hard for your child (e.g., “that was a tricky word wasn’t it? I will always wait for you to finish.”)

  • There are different types of therapy options for stammering, you can research these further at https://stamma.org/get-help/parents/children-stammering-therapy-courses

    My therapy offer does not involve changing speech or teaching strategies to sound more fluent (speaking more smoothly).

    Some people who stammer may choose to use these strategies for certain occasions or at different times in their life and it is within everybody’s rights to choose the options which work best for them.

    However, many people prefer to speak naturally and confidently with their stammer. It is important to understand that there are no “cures” for stammering and a safe, responsible therapist or course should never make these claims.

    My therapy offer focuses on supporting children’s wellbeing and enjoyable, confident communication. When we focus on these areas, talking often becomes easier and we hear confident and happy talkers, regardless of a stammer being present. We can do this by:

    • learning about stammering together

    • ensuring everybody feels confident to support children who stammer

    • building stammering friendly environments

    • building self-advocacy, resilience, emotional regulation, and self-care skills

    • raising awareness and acceptance of stammering

    • outdoors wellbeing and friendship groups for children who stammer