Hi, our son started stuttering a lot about 6 weeks ago, with blocking and tension like you describe your son has started to do. I have stuttered my whole life, so I recognized it immediately, and we have started treatment with stuttering specialists. It's a lot of garbage information on the internet, and sadly most doctors know VERY little. The old saying "wait and see" is still used by many, but that's not recommended by specialists. One more thing to keep in mind is that many SLPs (Speech-Language Pathologists) also know little about stuttering. They deal with a wide variety of disorders/problems, and stuttering is not that common. So I can't stress enough the importance of finding someone who specializes in stuttering. You can probably get an online appointment with someone? Not sure where you live and how it works there, but many have adapted to online services because of the virus. From what I've read, developmental stuttering is usually light stuttering without the physical tension, and usually repetitions of the first syllable or some whole words. Blocking with tension and the fact that he has stuttered for more than 6-12 months is a sign that you should seek help from professionals. An important risk factor is genes, do you have anyone in your family that stutters? Here's an explanation of risk factors for persistent stuttering, the whole site in general has great and accurate information:[https://www.stutteringtherapyresources.com/blogs/blog/how-do-i-know-if-treatment-is-indicated-for-a-young-child-who-stutters](https://www.stutteringtherapyresources.com/blogs/blog/how-do-i-know-if-treatment-is-indicated-for-a-young-child-who-stutters) We bought one of their books, "Early Childhood Stuttering Therapy: A Practical Guide". It's made for SLPs, but we want to understand the whole process, not just what the SLP tells us. With young children it's the parents/caregivers who will do almost all of the treatment, so understanding the process is important. I posted a question about my son on this forum as well, look at the top comment for some great resources:[https://www.reddit.com/r/Stutter/comments/p4h5ux/our\_son\_started\_stuttering/h8z3ue5/?context=3](https://www.reddit.com/r/Stutter/comments/p4h5ux/our_son_started_stuttering/h8z3ue5/?context=3) Edit: I wouldn't wait starting treatment. In the meantime your family can try to do what's called indirect treatment. You should read up on it, but the core is that your son must feel he has enough time to say what he wants. So slow down your speech a little, break up longer sentences with pauses, talk one at a time, it's OK to take a little second before replying etc etc.. The point is creating an environment where he stutters less. And obviously don't bring negative attention to his stuttering, support him and love him. If you think he is aware of the stuttering it's ok to tell your son that you see he struggles to get his words out sometimes, tell him it's ok and that he has so much interesting to say, or something similar. At almost 4 I guess he already knows, and that it bothers him on bad days. But every kid is different, you know best :)