15 month visit - Early Intervention???

GreenBride624

Leah had her 15 month check up on Friday.  When the Dr. found out that she isn't walking yet, she suggested we call E.I. for an assessment.  She cruises well and is a fast crawler.  She can even climb a flight of stairs.  She just hasn't taken any steps herself yet. 

Has anybody else been recommended for E.I for not walking by 15 mos?  I thought the average range was up to 18 mos.

She also fell from the 10% in weight to 3%.  Her height is still 50%.  The Dr. isn't concerned but I just wish she would eat more!!!

jbl126

My LO has been getting EI since she was 6 mths old.  She is still not walking at 15 mths but we have the therapist come once a month (decreased from once a week).  She told us my LO is at the point where she will walk when she is ready.  And turns out, just yesterday she stood alone and took a step for the first time.

I have nothing but good words and praise for EI.  You can always call for a consultation.  It is free and they will come to you for the evaluation.  They will let you know if your LO is behind or not. But yeah, 15 mths is not cause for concern yet.

ljlkm

The Dr is probably just being conservative. DS doesn't walk yet, either. I wouldn't think it's necessary and probably would hold off in your position. That said, an evaluation won't hurt anything.

GreenBride624

jbl126:

My LO has been getting EI since she was 6 mths old.  She is still not walking at 15 mths but we have the therapist come once a month (decreased from once a week).  She told us my LO is at the point where she will walk when she is ready.  And turns out, just yesterday she stood alone and took a step for the first time.

I have nothing but good words and praise for EI.  You can always call for a consultation.  It is free and they will come to you for the evaluation.  They will let you know if your LO is behind or not. But yeah, 15 mths is not cause for concern yet.

I'm glad someone from PA responded (I'm sure each state is different).  The Dr. did mention what you said above.  Unfortunately, I was a bit suprised when she mentioned it so I don't remember everything that she said.  I just know that she said something about being "25% behind" and if that is the case, therapy might be needed.  I think I am going to wait a bit before calling.  Since the appt, Leah has already shown signs of progress so I want to see what else she starts doing by herself.

Just curious, when you had your initial assessment, who did the eval?  What is a therapist?

July_2009

DS is the same. He climbs stairs, cruises, crawls and babbles a lot. But he hasn't walked yet. We were recommended EI and DS was found eligible with delayed gross motor skills. We will be starting Physical therapy for DS in 2 weeks time. It never hurts to get them checked out if you ask me. It might be surprising and confusing in the beginning, but the ladies who came out to evaluate DS were very sweet and put my mind at ease. We also have a picky eater on hand and should see how his 15 months weight check goes. He doesn't seem like he gained much weight though. ETA: For evaluation the state sends a couple of experts in child development. They come home and evaluate LO for about 2 hours in all areas. Then they come up with an analysis of what they think the status of development is. Once they figure out which areas LO is delayed, they will hook you up with the appropriate therapists. They charge per hour and the cost depending on income levels. The first evaluations are free but the therapy itself is not free and the payments are dependent on the family income levels.

jbl126

GreenBride624:

jbl126:

My LO has been getting EI since she was 6 mths old.  She is still not walking at 15 mths but we have the therapist come once a month (decreased from once a week).  She told us my LO is at the point where she will walk when she is ready.  And turns out, just yesterday she stood alone and took a step for the first time.

I have nothing but good words and praise for EI.  You can always call for a consultation.  It is free and they will come to you for the evaluation.  They will let you know if your LO is behind or not. But yeah, 15 mths is not cause for concern yet.

I'm glad someone from PA responded (I'm sure each state is different).  The Dr. did mention what you said above.  Unfortunately, I was a bit suprised when she mentioned it so I don't remember everything that she said.  I just know that she said something about being "25% behind" and if that is the case, therapy might be needed.  I think I am going to wait a bit before calling.  Since the appt, Leah has already shown signs of progress so I want to see what else she starts doing by herself.

Just curious, when you had your initial assessment, who did the eval?  What is a therapist?

No, it wasnt a therapist.  The social worker (i guess they are something like that), came out and played with the girls to see what they were and werent doing.  Then they were rated and if they were 25% delayed, we got services.  My girls were preemies which is why I had them evaluated.  So they were already delayed but ava even more so.  i truly believe because of the therapy, she has achieved so much.  And now walking is our next thing to accomplish.  She can cruise with the best of them and walk with her push toys, she just didnt have the confidence or balance to stand alone. 

Every lo is different and will do it in their own time.  I just wanted to be proactive when the girls were younger to make sure they didnt fall too far behind. 

wellfleet04

DD was not walking at 15 months and our pedi specifically said to give her until 18 months before worrying.  I did, and she walked (perfectly!) 4 days before she turned 18 months old.  I think your doctor is just being conservative.  It can't hurt, but really, she's probably just going to be one of the later walkers.  No shame in that game!

jbl126

July_2009:

DS is the same. He climbs stairs, cruises, crawls and babbles a lot. But he hasn't walked yet. We were recommended EI and DS was found eligible with delayed gross motor skills. We will be starting Physical therapy for DS in 2 weeks time. It never hurts to get them checked out if you ask me. It might be surprising and confusing in the beginning, but the ladies who came out to evaluate DS were very sweet and put my mind at ease. We also have a picky eater on hand and should see how his 15 months weight check goes. He doesn't seem like he gained much weight though. ETA: For evaluation the state sends a couple of experts in child development. They come home and evaluate LO for about 2 hours in all areas. Then they come up with an analysis of what they think the status of development is. Once they figure out which areas LO is delayed, they will hook you up with the appropriate therapists. They charge per hour and the cost depending on income levels. The first evaluations are free but the therapy itself is not free and the payments are dependent on the family income levels.

We do not have to pay out of pocket for our therapy.  I wonder if it varies by state.  Our therapist would come to daycare and work with Ava.  Now that she only comes once a month, we have her come to our house. 

July_2009

jbl126:

July_2009:

DS is the same. He climbs stairs, cruises, crawls and babbles a lot. But he hasn't walked yet. We were recommended EI and DS was found eligible with delayed gross motor skills. We will be starting Physical therapy for DS in 2 weeks time. It never hurts to get them checked out if you ask me. It might be surprising and confusing in the beginning, but the ladies who came out to evaluate DS were very sweet and put my mind at ease. We also have a picky eater on hand and should see how his 15 months weight check goes. He doesn't seem like he gained much weight though. ETA: For evaluation the state sends a couple of experts in child development. They come home and evaluate LO for about 2 hours in all areas. Then they come up with an analysis of what they think the status of development is. Once they figure out which areas LO is delayed, they will hook you up with the appropriate therapists. They charge per hour and the cost depending on income levels. The first evaluations are free but the therapy itself is not free and the payments are dependent on the family income levels.

We do not have to pay out of pocket for our therapy.  I wonder if it varies by state.  Our therapist would come to daycare and work with Ava.  Now that she only comes once a month, we have her come to our house. 

I think it does vary by state. In NJ they charge you per hour and based on income levels. Some states the therapy is completely free irrespective of income levels I suppose.

kes3237

My opinion would be to hold off and give it some more time.  We saw a different pedi at DD's 12 mo appt. and he recommended an eval because she wasn't pulling to stand or cruising at that time.  We had a complete evaluation and the PT found her to be behind but consistently progressing (according to my anecdotes) and didn't recommend therapy.  Since then DD does everything except walk on her own (she's 15 mo now).  Her regular pedi isn't worried and I've learned not to worry as well, as long as there is progress of some kind.  I don't think she'll walk for another month or so.

DD is getting speech therapy now, which her pedi rolls his eyes at   I kind of do, too, but figure it's fun for DD and it can't hurt!

outnumbered

I have not read the previous posts.  My DC#1 started EI at 18 months due to gross motor skill delays.  She aged out when she was 3 and moved on to receive physical therapy through the school system.  My biggest regret was that I did not have her evaluated sooner.

Here is what happens in MA when you call.

1.  A social worker comes to the house to determine if the child even needs an assessment.

2.  The assessment team (SLP, PT and an RN) comes to the house to perform the evaluation.  It took 2 hours.

3.  The team meets to determine if the child needs help and if so they set up a plan for therapy (IFSP).

4.  The PT came to the house once per week until my daughter aged out.  Every 6 months she was revaluated by the team and a new IFSP with new goals was written.

I LOVED EI.  It introduced me to valuable resources in my area.  I joined a playgroup and I met tons of moms.  EI helped my navigate to school system to  receive therapy after the age of 3.  As I said my biggest regret was waiting until 18 months.  It is not a big deal to get the ball rolling.  Why wait?  If your DC needs help nothing good comes from waiting.