People who stutter might show the following behaviours:          

1. Repetition of sounds, word parts, whole words, or phrases;
2. Sound prolongation, where sounds are stretched out in speech, eg. ssssssun;
3. Blocking of speech, where sounds get stuck and no sound comes out for a period of time

These speech features may be accompanied by additional physical movements including:

• Facial tics (uncontrolled facial spasms such as rapid eye blinking or nose scrunching);
• Lip tremors;
• Excessive eye blinking;
• Hand flapping;
• Tension in the face and upper body.

Stuttering is common, affecting approximately 1% of the population globally.³ Overall, males are more likely to stutter than females.^{4, 6} A large Australian study found that 8.5% of children will experience a period of stuttering by the age of 3 years, and 11.2% by the age of 4 years.^{2, 4} While many children (up to 65%) recover naturally from stuttering, this is not always the case. Early intervention is recommended from a speech pathologist.⁵

Stuttering can have long-term impacts on an individual’s day to day life.⁷ Stuttering impacts a person’s ability to communicate effectively in everyday situations, like meeting someone new or talking on the phone. Individuals who stutter might be teased or excluded from social groups. Other people may also react negatively to their stuttering.^{8, 9}  As a result, people who stutter might change the way they speak to avoid stuttering. They might choose to avoid using certain words, talk less or hesitate and pause before trying to speak.

The impacts of stuttering can lead to frustration, emotional distress and social anxiety in both children and adults.^{7, 8}

While many children naturally recover from stuttering, we are unable to predict who these children will be. It is therefore recommended that children who stutter receive treatment as early as possible. There are two broad types of treatment for stuttering that have been proven effective in clinical trials: The Lidcombe Program and Smooth Speech Treatment.¹¹

The Lidcombe Program is a behavioural treatment program for children under the age of 6 years. The Lidcombe Program is supported by the strongest level of evidence and has been shown to have positive long-term outcomes.^{12, 13} The Lidcombe Program is a speech pathology-based program, where a parent and child attend a clinic once a week. At these appointments, the speech pathologist shows parents how to perform the Lidcombe treatment at home. The child’s progress and progression through the program is monitored each week. The Lidcombe Program can also be effectively delivered via telehealth.¹⁴

Smooth Speech Treatment is an evidence-based treatment most commonly utilised by the Australian Speech Pathology profession.^{11, 15} This treatment is used for older children, adolescents and adults. It aims to restructure the way an individual speaks to avoid the stuttering. Smooth Speech treatment can be administered weekly on a one-to-one basis or through intensive groups. The group option is more common and can take place across the course of one week, with weekly follow-up appointments.

The McGuire Programme  is a more controversial approach used to treat both adolescents and adults who stutter.¹⁶ This program is administered, instructed and coached by people who have either made a substantial recovery from their stuttering, or are in the process of recovering. The McGuire Program uses a breathing technique as the basis of its speech re-training. It also provides training in areas of assertiveness, voice projection and speech making.