People are part of a society and it would be difficult to live without communication. Therefore, caring for a good communication with other people begins at an early age, when we learn to speak. Everything starts in the family but the hectic lifestyle slows down the speech development of children. These days, children start learning to speak correctly later in their lives, specialists who treat speech problems say. Parents do not communicate enough with their children and the long time in front of the tablet or computer also hinders language acquisition. "In addition to technology, foreign languages, especially English, enter our children's speech early and also slow down the speaking of Bulgarian. And let's not forget that our language is difficult and requires special attention towards correct pronunciation and arrangement of the words in our speech," says Boryana Murgina, expert speech therapist with many years of practice.

For years, there have been specialized speech therapy offices in Bulgarian schools where experts work with children, especially with those having special educational needs.

"This is a great support for the parents but unfortunately the speech therapist at school has so much work that they can hardly pay attention to each of the children," Boryana Murgina says. Out-of-school speech therapy offices come to the rescue, where experienced specialists work and where students are also being trained.

Boryana Murgina has an office in Sofia but is also a consultant at the Bulgarian school "Abagar" in Rome and is very happy with the results she achieves together with the teachers and parents of the Bulgarian children there. "I am very happy that these families do not forget their roots and want to continue them. Bulgarian language is difficult, but the mother tongue is really important for the intellectual and emotional development of every child," the expert says.

"There are many problems related to speech and they stem from the fact that a child is in a foreign language environment and Bulgarian already sounds like ‘spoiled’ language. The structure of the sentences becomes incorrect and targeted work with a specialist is needed to improve speech skills. My advice to parents is to speak to the child in their language at every opportunity and then in the language of the environment they live in. Children pick up quickly when the environment is calm and then they will not experience stress if it becomes necessary to move to another country. Today's children are very creative, they learn quickly, so with a little more attention from the parents, a smooth transition to the new environment can be achieved."

There are no exact statistics in Bulgaria on the number of children with speech problems but in recent years their number has increased significantly. In Boryana Murgina's office in Sofia there are no less than 7 consultations per day for children with delayed speech development. The speech therapist's work also plays a very important role in the diagnosis of a number of neurological diseases:

"Three years ago we created an association of private speech therapists, in which we work on exactly these issues. We want to build a database for children and direct colleagues to work across Bulgaria to make it easier for parents,” Boryana Murgina says. “The support for the parents is very important, as for example, a child on the autism spectrum needs a lot of help from the family. A new method called ergotherapy is now entering Bulgarian practice. It is connected with the movements through which the left and right hemispheres of the brain are stimulated. These specialists complement the team of speech therapists and are of great help."

Publication in English: Al. Markov

Photos: Facebook/Boryana Murgina, Bulgarian Sunday School Abagar in Rome