Stammering is a neurological condition that disrupts speaking properly. Some of the common signs of stuttering or stammering are getting stuck on sounds or words and repeating the same words. World Stuttering Day is observed every year on October 22 to raise awareness about this condition. Statistics suggest that this problem affects one per cent of the world’s population, and needs your immediate attention.

The focus needs to be shifted to the problem because stuttering can lead to mental health problems like stress. To help you understand more about the condition, Health Shots got in touch with Lajja Shah, Consultant, Speech therapy and Audiology, Sir HN Reliance foundation hospital, Girgaon, Mumbai.

What is stuttering?

Before we jump into the discussion about the treatments available to treat stuttering, let’s understand more about the problem. As per Shah, stuttering is a significant problem that affects the flow of your speech. It is a combination of psychological and emotional factors. Did you know that stammering is not limited to the inability to speak fluently?

In fact, Shah points out that stuttering involves anxiety, fear and negative feelings about talking. “These negative emotions though not the definite cause, make stuttering worse for most people. When you are anxious before talking, your body gets tensed and leads to discoordination of breathing, voicing and articulation.”
There are several available treatments that can be of help to people who have difficulty speaking fluently. Scroll down to know how a fusion of physical therapy and speech therapy can help with stuttering issues.

Speech therapy combined with yoga can help

Speech therapists are a blessing for people trying to overcome stuttering. They are qualified professionals that help people manage this problem. Using an amalgamation of evidence-based techniques and exercises along with counselling, a speech therapist will be able to help in reducing the severity of the condition and improve quality of life. Shah highlights that speech therapy combined with yoga has proved beneficial for those who stammer.

“The practice of meditation in yoga is known to provide positive benefits in calming a person by reducing stress and anxiety. Asanas and breathing practices of yoga improve the coordination of respiration and speech production. With the help of yoga, a person with stuttering can gain more control over his physical and emotional health,” explains the speech therapist.

She further states that yoga, in addition to the standard speech therapy, can amplify the gains from treatment, for both adults as well as children with stammering.