While the French team is currently competing in the Football World Cup, all eyes are on its players. Among them, Dayot Upamecano, the solid defender of Bayern Munich, stands out as a strong element of the selection.
However, behind the champion’s confidence lies a childhood struggle against an invisible but profoundly debilitating handicap. Drawing on his personal story, the player highlights a disorder that affects many children. But in the face of which concrete solutions exist.
The school ordeal and the mockery: the testimony of Dayot Upamecano
For young Dayot, school has long been synonymous with anxiety. During the World Day of Persons with Disabilities in December 2021, he confided in the columns of Le Parisien that stuttering had made his school career “very difficult”. Public speaking was his worst fear: “We had to speak up, those were hard times.”.
To the stress of speaking was added the weight of the gaze of others. “I got teased a lot, but I tried not to listen to them. I told myself that, even if I stutter, I had to keep talking. It wasn’t up to them to ruin it.”declared the footballer with resilience, before adding this guiding sentence: “While people were laughing, I was working“.
Football and the entourage: the keys to metamorphosis
If school was the scene of discrimination, the family unit played a shielding role. Dayot Upamecano was able to count on the unwavering support of his mother. “I always got it in my head that I had to talk. My mother was behind me telling me to talk more. She pushed me not to be shy“, he explained. Crucial support to avoid withdrawing into oneself.
But the real trigger came from the green rectangle. His passion for football proved to be the best therapy. “I would say that’s what helped me the most. I was captain of my team at a very young age, I had to speak up, even more so in my position which requires a lot of communication.”analyzed the player.
On the field, the embarrassment faded to make way for the leader: “I always had this little embarrassment, but when I arrived on the field, I was a different person. Little by little, I spoke more, I opened up to others.”
Understanding and spotting stuttering in children
Stuttering generally appears during the intense phase of speech acquisition, between 2 and 4 years of age. Around 8% of children go through a period of stuttering, without this reflecting any developmental delay.
“These children can, on the contrary, have a very good level of language, they often want to do well, but their language does not move as quickly as their thoughts.revealed Cécile Zamorano, speech therapist and author of 100 activities for DYS children, in a previous article True Medical. Fortunately, this disorder is transient in 80% of cases. “It can go quite quickly if their parents help them, on a daily basis, to overcome difficulties”reassures the specialist.
To act effectively, it is important to distinguish stuttering from simple stammering. “Some children may have difficulty articulating or will slur words indistinctly, but this is not the same as stuttering“, underlines Cécile Zamorano.
Stuttering is characterized by compulsive repetitions of syllables, blockages on sounds (such as “pe” or “be”), and physical manifestations (grimaces, tension, redness) exacerbated by stress or fatigue.
“The best thing, however, to be sure, is to seek advice from a doctor or speech therapist, in order to establish a diagnosis and take measures now to prevent the disorder from setting in and the child, becoming self-conscious, from withdrawing into himself.“, advises the expert.
Good reflexes to adopt at home on a daily basis
The behavior of those around you is decisive. An overly anxious attitude from parents can make the blockage worse, while a climate of trust will free up the child’s speech. Here is the speech therapist’s advice to support your child:
- Help him without blocking him: Place yourself at his height. “Never leave him in difficulty, help him by rephrasing what he says and taking into account the substance of the message and not the form“, insists Cécile Zamorano;
- Maintain eye contact: “Often, the blockage due to stuttering breaks the intensity of communication. If we remain attentive and available, if our gaze continues to support him, the child feels that we have confidence in him and pulls himself together.“, specifies the specialist;
- Slow down: Speak more calmly and establish quiet moments. “In the evening, take some special time with them, read a story or simply chat. By doing this, you create an exchange situation favorable to calm speech.” ;
- Value their efforts: Use positive reinforcement and “Finally, don’t forget to congratulate him when his speech is more fluent, this helps to give him self-confidence“, concludes Cécile Zamorano.
In short, the story of Dayot Upamecano proves that stuttering is not inevitable and that a passion, combined with a caring environment, can work miracles. If the disorder persists beyond six months to a year, a speech therapy consultation is necessary. As cerebral plasticity is maximal before the age of 6, early treatment (breathing exercises, relaxation, role plays) generally allows the child to regain perfectly fluent speech within a few months.