If you want to know more about this, how it occurs, who to contact for a consultation, and what is the treatment of Rotacism, in this article you will find all the answers you need.
Many of us know the tongue twister “R con R cigarro, R con R barril, rápido corren los carros cargados de azúcar del ferrocarril. R con R cigarro, R con R barril, rápido ruedan las ruedas del carro cargado de azúcar del ferrocarril”. But for many, reproducing it verbally is an ordeal.
What is rotacism?
Rotacism is defined as any defect in the articulation of the simple ‘r’ phoneme (oro, cara) or multiple ‘r’ phoneme (carro, ratón), whether by omission (amó instead of amor), by substitution (adena, toge, instead of arena and torre) or distortion (French ‘r’).
It should be noted that the ‘r’ is one of the most difficult letters to acquire and, therefore, one of the last to learn to pronounce. In this sense, not pronouncing it correctly is not considered a concern until the child is 5-6 years old. When it occurs, it should be corrected as soon as possible, since the later rehabilitation begins, the more time will be needed for it.
Rotacism can occur if, at a physical level, there is a problem with the lingual frenulum, as being too short makes it difficult for the person to raise their tongue due to physical limitation; ogival palate, which refers to a higher and narrower palate, so the person cannot properly support the tongue on it; and hypotonicity, which implies a lack of muscle tone in the orobuccophonatory organs (lips, tongue, masseter muscles) and a lack of control over them.
Similarly, if at a functional level there is a lack of strength and coordination in blowing or lingual malocclusion or poor tongue positioning (it is usually advanced and touches or extends beyond the teeth, so there is no vibration), rotacism can also occur.
However, rotacism is not associated with developmental delay and/or any psychological affectation in children, although certainly, as they get older and become aware that they do not pronounce certain words correctly, they become frustrated by such inability and, on many occasions, can be a source of ridicule among classmates, which affects their self-esteem and, consequently, their social skills, leading in some cases to resorting to strategies to avoid the problem, such as using synonyms that do not contain said phoneme, or even deciding not to speak with certain schoolmates to avoid ridicule or the appearance of dysphemia or stuttering due to the tension this creates for them.
Rotacism Treatment
The treatment of rotacism in both children and adults is 99% effective. The activities normally carried out to solve it involve re-education of the point and manner of articulation of the ‘r’ phoneme. Initially, the most complicated part is, first, making some people aware of the problem, and second, eliminating the bad habits they have acquired when pronouncing the ‘r’ in their oral language so that it sounds similar. In this sense, it is very useful to start treatment with progressive breathing techniques.
The ‘r’ phoneme is alveolar in that it is pronounced by placing the tongue on the alveoli, the area just above the teeth, like other phonemes such as l, n, s. However, the difference between these sounds and that of the ‘r’ is that it not only requires placing the tongue in this specific place but also requires the vibration of the tongue, as is the case with the multiple ‘r’ for words like carro, ropa, etc. To achieve this tongue vibration, the point of articulation and the breath must be coordinated.
Exercises and Praxias for Treating Rotacism
When carrying out rotacism treatment, it is very important that it is supervised by a speech therapist who has the appropriate training in rotacism treatment. In these sessions, breathing should be worked on:
– Take air through the nose, hold it, and exhale through the mouth two, three times.
– Take air through the nose, hold it, and exhale through the mouth quickly.
– Take air through the nose, hold it, and exhale through the mouth two, three times.
– Take air through the nose, hold it, and exhale through the mouth quickly
This exercise should be done lying down and sitting up.
Through blowing, the force, direction, and amount of expelled air are controlled, so it is necessary to know how to use it to articulate the different phonemes. Very frequent blowing exercises involve blowing out candles, inflating balloons. You can also work with pinwheels, a whistle, a flute, or any other blowing instrument.
Likewise, lingual praxias should be worked on to maintain control of movements, flexibility, agility, and sufficient strength in the tongue. These activities can be performed during tooth brushing, in front of a mirror, or in any other situation that stimulates this type of exercise. Some of them are: placing the tongue up and down outside the mouth, to the sides of the mouth, both inside and out, making rotations around the teeth and around the lips, first in one direction and then in the opposite.
Another important exercise to solve rotacism is to be able to click the tongue, and this is achieved by having the patient simulate the steps of a horse. In this way, it is verified that the tongue is capable of resting on the roof of the mouth and that the person has the strength to support and maintain it.
Progressively, repetition exercises of words with phonemes that include the ‘r’ are introduced, from larger to smaller size, from lesser to greater difficulty. Different videos, worksheets, specific stories in which the ‘r’ is found can be used, with the aim of supporting the child to increase lexicon/vocabulary and literacy.
At the beginning of the repetition exercises, it is observed that articulation is achieved in repetition but that it is not generalized in spontaneous speech, which is normal, and the child should be given time to automate it and correct the bad habit they had acquired, thus beginning to introduce the new patterns.