Mumbling is an example of poor articulation.

When you were younger and first began talking, you may have lisped, stuttered, or had a hard time pronouncing words. Maybe you were told that it was "cute," or not to worry because you would soon grow out of it. But if you're in your teens and still stuttering, you may not feel like it's so endearing.

You're not alone. More than 3 million Americans have the speech disorder known as stuttering (or stammering, as it's known in Britain). It's one of several conditions that can affect a person's ability to speak clearly.

Some Common Speech and Language Disorders

Stuttering is a problem that interferes with fluent (flowing and easy) speech. A person who stutters may repeat the first part of a word (as in wa-wa-wa-water) or hold a single sound for a long time (as in caaaaaaake). Some people who stutter have trouble getting sounds out altogether. Stuttering is complex, and it can affect speech in many different ways.

Articulation disorders involve a wide range of errors people can make when talking. Substituting a "w" for an "r" ("wabbit" for "rabbit"), omitting sounds ("cool" for "school"), or adding sounds to words ("pinanio" for "piano") are examples of articulation errors. Lisping refers to specific substitution involving the letters "s" and "z." A person who lisps replaces those sounds with "th" ("simple" sounds like "thimple").

Cluttering is another problem that makes a person's speech difficult to understand. Like stuttering, cluttering affects the fluency, or flow, of a person's speech. The difference is that stuttering is a speech disorder, while cluttering is a language disorder. People who stutter have trouble getting out what they want to say; those who clutter say what they're thinking, but it becomes disorganized as they're speaking. So, someone who clutters may speak in bursts or pause in unexpected places. The rhythm of cluttered speech may sound jerky, rather than smooth, and the speaker is often unaware of the problem.

Apraxia (also known as verbal apraxia or dyspraxia) is an oral-motor speech disorder. People with this problem have difficulty moving the muscles and structures needed to form speech sounds into words.

What Causes Speech Problems?

Normal speech might seem effortless, but it's actually a complex process that needs precise timing, and nerve and muscle control.

When we speak, we must coordinate many muscles from various body parts and systems, including the larynx, which contains the vocal cords; the teeth, lips, tongue, and mouth; and the respiratory system.

The ability to understand language and produce speech is coordinated by the brain. So a person with brain damage from an accident, stroke, or birth defect may have speech and language problems. 

Some people with speech problems, particularly articulation disorders, may also have hearing problems. Even mild hearing loss can affect how people reproduce the sounds they hear. Certain birth defects, such as a cleft palate, can interfere with someone's ability to produce speech. People with a cleft palate have a hole in the roof of the mouth (which affects the movement of air through the oral and nasal passages), and also might have problems with other structures needed for speech, including the lips, teeth, and jaw.

Some speech problems, like stuttering, can run in families. But in some cases, no one knows exactly what causes a person to have speech problems.

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How Are Speech Problems Treated?

The good news is that treatments like speech therapy can help people of any age overcome some speech problems.

If you are concerned about your speech, it's important to let your parents and doctor know. If hearing tests and physical exams don't reveal any problems, some doctors arrange a consultation with a speech-language pathologist (pronounced: puh-THOL-uh-jist).

A speech-language pathologist is trained to observe people as they speak and to identify their speech problems. Speech-language pathologists look for the type of problem (such as a lack of fluency, articulation, or motor skills) someone has. For example, if you stutter, the pathologist will examine how and when you do so.

Speech-language pathologists may evaluate their clients' speech either by recording them on audio or videotape or by listening during conversation. A few clinics that specialize in fluency disorders may use computerized analysis. By gathering as much information as possible about the way someone speaks, the pathologist can develop a treatment plan that meets each individual's needs. The plan will depend on things like a person's age and the type of speech disorder.

If you're being treated for a speech disorder, part of your treatment plan may include seeing a speech therapist, a person who is trained to treat speech disorders.

How often you have to see the speech therapist will vary — you'll probably start out seeing him or her fairly often at first, then your visits may decrease over time. Most treatment plans include breathing techniques, relaxation strategies that are designed to help you relax your muscles when you speak, posture control, and a type of voice exercise called oral-motor exercises. You'll probably have to do these exercises each day on your own to help make your treatment plan as successful as possible.

Dealing With a Speech Problem

People with speech problems know how frustrating they can be. People who stutter, for example, often complain that others try to finish their sentences or fill in words for them. Some feel like people treat them as if they're stupid, especially when a listener says things like "slow down" or "take it easy." (People who stutter are just as intelligent as people who don't.) People who stutter report that listeners often avoid eye contact and refuse to wait patiently for them to finish speaking. If you have a speech problem, it's fine to let others know how you like to be treated when speaking.

Some people look to their speech therapists for advice and resources on issues of stuttering. Your speech therapist might be able to connect you with others in similar situations, such as support groups in your area for teens who stutter.

If you have a speech problem, achieving and keeping control of your speech might be a lifelong process. Although speech therapy can help, you are sure to have ups and downs in your efforts to communicate. But the truth is that the way you speak is only a small part of who you are. Don't be embarrassed to make yourself heard!

I don’t think there is one person who can say that at some point in their life someone has not told them to “Stop mumbling!” And while “mumbling” itself is not a “speech disorder” per se, for many it is a “speech pattern” that characterizes their speech a large proportion of the time. Whether you are a lawyer, teacher, actor, or in sales, marketing, or management- clear communication affects not only what we say, but how we are perceived by others. It is because of this fact, that many people come to Toronto Adult Speech Clinic to work with a speech therapist to stop mumbling.

To work with someone whose speech is characterized by mumbling, we have to understand what mumbling actually is and the processes that may be contributing to this pattern of speech. That is what I want to explore here.

Mumbling is a general term for a pattern of speech that is hard to understand because it is quiet and/or indistinct. That is to say, mumbling is the result of ineffective or inefficient speech production. If we assume a simplified understanding of speech production, we know it is composed of four major components: breath, voice (vocal fold vibration), resonance, and articulation. Breath is the power source of the system, voice is the origin of sound, resonance is the amplification or filter for that sound, and articulation allows speech sounds to be added or attributed to the sound. That means, that if mumbling is a result of inefficiency in the speech system, a breakdown at any point along the four components could result in mumbling.

Below I have outlined, by each of the four speech system components, why a breakdown could occur and how it may contribute to what people characterize as “mumbling.”

Breathing- breath is the power behind the speech system and it is largely in control of two things: 1) the volume of our speech and 2) how well it travels from our throat and mouth into the surrounding environment. People who mumble often have reduced power in their speech, which means that their “mumbled” speech is often softer, and doesn’t project well into the environment. This makes it difficult for the speech to be heard and deciphered by a listener’s ears, particularly in noisy environments. In addition, short and shallow “catch-breaths” can result in quick surges in air that create a pattern of low volume and/or rapid speech that can “clutter” together.

Voicing- to create vibration at the vocal folds in our throat (just behind the “Adam’s Apple”), we have to create a certain amount of pressure from below (see breathing from above). If the vocal folds do not vibrate when we need them to, sounds that require the voice are not produced (To understand this, try placing your index and middle finger on the front of your Adam’s Apple while holding the letter “fff” and then “vvv.” You should notice that for “v” you feel vibration, whereas for “f” you do not.). Without proper breath support, the vocal folds and surrounding muscles are forced to work harder to produce voicing. This means that people who mumble can sometimes experience voice breaks, periods of no voice, increased vocal fatigue, and difficulty projecting their voice.

Resonance- each person’s voice has a unique quality and that quality is largely created by the resonance of their voice in their throat, mouth, and nose (together sometimes referred to as the vocal tract). This unique quality is also why it is often easy to identify a person on their voice alone. When a voice is described as “resonant” it typically means that the sound produced at the vocal folds (see voicing from above) has a clear trajectory through the vocal tract into the environment. It also means that the ability of the vocal tract to naturally amplify the voice is optimized. With reduced breath or power, or a tense and overworked voice, resonance is understandably reduced. This means people who mumble often report softer voices, difficulty projecting, reduced clarity in speech, and sometimes a sensation or speech being produced “back” in the throat.

Articulation- arguably the most focused-on aspect of many treatments for mumbling. Articulation is simply the movement of the vocal tract, tongue, soft palate, jaw, and lips (referred to together as the articulators) to create the sounds that are combined to produce speech (e.g. “t,” “b,” “s,” “k,” etc.). There are two factors that impact clarity of speech when it comes to articulation: accuracy and speed. I placed accuracy first because often speed is hyperfocused on in traditional therapy approaches. And while there is the most evidence in the literature to support reduced rate improving clarity of speech, it is also the shown to be the leading cause of speech being perceived by listeners as “unnatural.” Ideally, a person’s speed of articulation is only reduced enough (if at all) that the accuracy can be consistent. People who mumble often report speech that is “lazy,” with reduced mouth opening and reduced range of motion of articulators, fast rate of speech, and overall reduced clarity in speech (particularly at the ends of words).

At Toronto Adult Speech Clinic, we approach the common concern of mumbling with our adult clients from a holistic system approach. This means understanding that the above-mentioned four systems interact and impact the function of each other, and together contribute to mumbling. It is rare that mumbling is caused only by one system, so treatment should rarely focus on one system. By meeting with our speech therapist to optimize all four systems during speech, it is possible to reduce the occurrence of mumbling.

Schedule your initial consultation today to find out how our adult approach to speech therapy can help you decrease your mumbling and increase the impact of your speech: tasc.janeapp.com