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Late talkers

YapYap0813YapYap0813 member
in South Florida Babies

I was wondering if anyone has dealt with a late talker before. Hannah will be 15 months May 1st, and she has yet to say her first word. I'm somewhat concerned because Kaitlyn was saying 2-3 word sentences at this point and I can't get a peep out of Hannah. She's super smart though; understands everything I say and follows simple commands, points, claps, laughs like crazy, sings, dances etc. Based on that I know there's no hearing issue.

The biggest concern I have is that she just makes no effort to attempt to speak. She doesn't babble much unless she's really excited about something, so overall she's just really quiet. I keep thinking that since she was an early walker (10 months) and Kaitlyn was the early talker/late walker (almost 15 months) that there is some sort of correlation between the two. Hannah is a much more physical baby than Kaitlyn was, she runs circles around Kaitlyn!

Her paci is limited only to sleeping, so it doesn't interfere with her speaking. I talk to her all the time and make sure to point out what I'm doing, or what she's playing with. If she wants something I try to get her to say "more" or "up/down" etc. She just looks at me and smiles or grunts, as if she's saying "Mom, I know you know what I want so why should I have to tell you?"

This is probably rambling on and on but I'm just starting to get a little worried. I know I'm going to hear about this at her 15 month appointment, I did at her 12 month.

Thoughts?

TIA!

Erin

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Re: Late talkers

  • taxbridetaxbride

    Well, Cedric didn't say much more than "uh-oh" at that age, IIRC.  I know for sure at his 18 month checkup that he only had 4 regular words besides uh-oh (no, door, bus, & mommy--and sometimes daddy) and one sign (the sign for "more").  I started to keep track of his words, and by the time my list reached 50 words (in English and Spanish combined), I think he was around 21 months old.  Then I stopped keeping track.  He turned 2 this month and now makes 2 words sentences (in English, Spanish and Spanglish).  We're taking him for his 2 year checkup later this week, so we'll see what his doctor says, but we think he's doing fine.

    Oh, and he was a late walker, too--didn't take his first steps till 14 months.  But he seems reasonably intelligent, so we're not concerned.

    Hope that's encouraging!

    Tania

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  • FSUSammyFSUSammy
    Mikey only says a few words and he's 18 months. He said Ball to anything that is round and loves to say No. When he gets frustrated at me he'll say mom. There are a few others that he has said but so randomly that I don't even count them as words. The doc asked me how many words he's saying at his appointment on Friday but she then followed it with does he understand me, which he does. So I don't think she's worried about it at this point. Does Hannah say mama or dada at all? My friend is a speech pathologist and she did tell me that a lot of late walkers tend to be late talkers. But I have heard it the other way where early walkers tend to be late talkers. But who knows!
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  • ANJ410ANJ410

    At 15 months old Nicholas had no real words at all except for ma-ma and da-da. At 18 months he had only about 4-5 real words that he used everyday and that is when my pedi told me to have him evaluated by Early Intervention.  Their conclusion was that he had a very minor speech delay and he has just started speech therapy, although I've noticed that he has picked up a couple of new words on his own over the last few weeks and he is just about 21 months old now.

    Truthfully, I think your pedi will tell you to wait a bit longer before becoming concerned. 15 months old is still very young.  And if it makes you feel better, the speech pathologist that evaluated Nicholas said that speech delay is almost always in boys...she told me she rarely ever comes across a girl with a true speech delay.

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  • taxbridetaxbride
    Oh, and the pointing is apparently a very good sign.  I was told that the more important thing than words at that age was whether the child is expressing him or herself and communicating, such as by pointing and responding to what you say.  We always felt that Cedric was communicating with us somehow, even if we couldn't quite explain how he did it.
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  • YapYap0813YapYap0813 member

    Thanks so much girls, you have definitely eased my fears a bit. To answer Sam's question- no, she doesn't say mama and dada consistenly at all, I think she's said mama 2-3 times and dada once since maybe 11 months.

    I research a little and glad to hear that her ability to understand what we say is not a problem...she definitley hears and comprehends everything we say. I guess I'm just not used to having such a quiet kid....Kaitlyn hasn't stopped talking since she was probably about 7 months old! :)

    Thanks again for your input, appreciate it!!!! :)

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  • SnshineSnshine
    Noah didn't talk until he was two.  Strangers didn't understand him until he was 2.5.  He was running by 10 months.  I know how hard it is, especially since you have Kaitlyn to compare her to, but try not to worry.  Also, does Kaitlyn communicate at all for her?  That may cause some delay too.
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