Many parents today still believe the myth that tickling their children will cause them to stutter. I hadn’t heard of this myth, and I have a bit of a tough time getting past whether someone, who would believe it, is fit to be a parent. But, I have been assured by an expert that some people still believe this old wives tale. Doctors and stuttering experts do verify that there is absolutely nothing to this notion. It is pure fiction.
But, there are some interesting and true facts about stuttering. The act of stuttering is frequently reduced during activities such as singing. In the movie, Liam, you may have seen how sad it was (but cute at the same time) when the young boy would sing and rehearse over and over in attempts to get important points across. I even saw a television documentary once showing people who usually stuttered, but who did not when talking to their pets. Apparently, stuttering is also usually reduced when talking to babies.
Quite a few reasons are thought to contribute to decreased stuttering when singing. For one, the brain works differently when singing versus talking. Different regions of the brain are activated, and singing is associated with more activity in the right hemisphere. Also, lyrics are extended over longer periods of time when sung than when spoken. Familiarity with song lyrics is a factor too. In fact, even when spoken, material that is familiar or rehearsed or read in unison provokes less stuttering than that which is unfamiliar or read alone.
Groundbreaking stuttering research is taking place right here in my hometown; although, maybe I shouldn’t be bragging, because it’s a local doctor who assures me that her patients, members of my own community, are the ones who still believe the stuttering myth.
Dr. Ehud Yairi is a University of Illinois professor in the Department of Speech and Hearing Science, who is doing this research. Along with his associate, Dr. Nicoline G. Ambrose, Dr. Yairi literally wrote the book about the subject in 2005. It is entitled Early Childhood Stuttering.
Dr. Yairi is also the principal investigator in the Stuttering Research Project, which has been funded by the National Institutes of Health for over ten years. The project studies the onset and development of stuttering in young children. Is there a genetic basis for stuttering? How do stuttering symptoms change over time? These are just two of many questions being researched.
It’s really interesting. Check it out if you would like more information or if you or your child would like to participate in the research.
