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Speech and Language Difficulties

What Parents Most Often Come to Us With

“My child cannot pronounce certain sounds correctly.”

“My child speaks, but their speech seems awkward.”

“We were told to wait and that it would improve with time.”

“We are already attending speech therapy, but progress is very slow.”

Speech and language difficulties are among the most common reasons why parents seek support.

Sometimes the difficulty is “only” articulation. In other cases, it may also involve reduced fluency, difficulties with understanding language or rapid fatigue when speaking.

And very often, there is a sense that we are addressing the consequence rather than the underlying cause.

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How Speech and Language Difficulties May Be Related to Persistent Primary Reflexes

Speech is not an isolated skill. It develops through the cooperation of movement, perception, breathing, oromotor function, sensory processing and the overall regulation of the nervous system.

For some children, persistent primary reflexes may play a significant role – automatic responses that should gradually have been inhibited during early development. If they persist, they may affect:

  • head and trunk stability, and therefore the physical “support” needed for speech,

  • muscle tone and coordination, including the fine coordination of the speech organs,

  • breathing and the ability to maintain a smooth exhalation during speech,

  • sensory processing, so the child may become overloaded more quickly and speech may become more difficult.

Typical Examples We See in Children With Speech and Language Difficulties

In some children, persistent primary reflexes may affect articulation and speech fluency – particularly through their impact on head and trunk stability, muscle tone and regulation.

  • TLR may affect stability and muscle tone throughout the body, making it more difficult to maintain the stable physical support needed for both the speech organs and breathing.

  • The Moro reflex may increase sensitivity to sensory input and stress. Under greater load – such as noise, rushing or pressure – articulation may become less accurate and the child may tire more quickly.

  • STNR may make sitting still and maintaining posture during structured activities more difficult. The child may fidget or frequently change position, making it harder to maintain the quality of speech-related tasks.

  • When the nervous system is overloaded, fine motor coordination may also deteriorate. This can appear as awkward speech, inconsistent articulation or the return of previously corrected errors.

The aim is not to “replace speech and language therapy”. The aim is to create a stronger foundation so that speech-related work can be more effective and more sustainable in everyday life. We want to avoid situations where a child can produce a sound correctly during calm, structured practice but does not use it in everyday situations at home or at school. This may not be because the child does not understand or is not trying, but because the nervous system does not yet have a sufficiently stable foundation to support speech consistently.

How We Address This Area in NDS

hen working with speech and language difficulties, we do not focus only on language and the mouth. We look at the whole body and at how the nervous system controls speech.

We focus, for example, on:

  • the presence of persistent primary reflexes and their impact on speech

  • stability and posture (head, trunk and postural support)

  • breathing and muscle tone, so that speech can be fluent and provide sufficient support for articulation

  • the connection between movement, sensory processing and speech

  • whether the nervous system is ready for targeted speech and language therapy, and the right timing for this work

💡 Important to Know

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Speech and language difficulties cannot be booked as a separate service with us.

The specific approach is always determined only after the initial assessment as part of Neuro-Developmental Stimulation (NDS).

This allows us to choose the right timing and form of support – so that the same things are not tried “again and again”, but each step makes developmental sense.

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Book an Initial NDS Assessment

Your initial assessment is with Marja. We will recommend a therapist for follow-up appointments based on the assessment results and your child’s needs.

We will look at key developmental functions, including persistent primary reflexes and sensory processing.

We will then create a plan together: what to support first and how to work on it at home for just a few minutes a day.

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  • Speech is built on foundations that extend all the way to motor development and sensory processing.

    1. Iverson, J. M. (2010). Developing language in a developing body. Journal of Child Language, 37(2), 229–261.

    2. Volemanová, M. (2020). Primární reflexy a jejich vliv na motoriku a řeč. Listy klinické logopedie, 1/2020.

    3. Volemanová, M. (2016). Vývoj řeči a přetrvávající primární reflexy. Sborník I. klinicko-logopedického sympozia, Praha, 45–49.

    4. Volemanová, M. & Květoňová, L. (2017). Links between SLI, Motor Development and Literacy Acquisition in Children. Gramotnost, pregramotnost a vzdělávání, 1(3).

    The complete list of scientific references can be found on the Scientific Evidence page.

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