Son is almost 2 1/2 and still not talking...should I be worried???

lala1608 · July 2011

My son turned 2 in March and is still not talking...he babbles alot but does not form any words or sentences. The only thing he can say is "bye" and "bu-bye" which he actually says very well but other than that, nothing...his motor skills are fine, it's just the talking. I am starting him in speech therapy now but after reading some previous posts I realize that he is WAY behind and I'm worried...has anyone else dealt with this?

DG1 · July 2011

What does the pediatrician say?

Have you seen the speech therapist yet? If so, what does s/he say?

He won't be 2.5 until September, so that's not as alarming as if he were closer to 3.

Is he communicating otherwise? Pointing to things and indicating his desire for them? Letting you know what he likes or doesn't like? Engaging with you in play? Making eye contact and smiling/laughing?

Shayna0182 · July 2011

My first stop would be at the pedi, and he or she might be able to point you to the resources for an EI evaluation. Ds has just started speech therapy and has been in occupational therapy for over a year now. It doesn't cost a thing to have the evaluation done, and they do it right in your home.

KathrynMD · July 2011

my friend's son was like that. At 2.5 he was just grunting and pointing about 90% of the time. I think he had ~3-5 words. They put him into speech therapy and he's doing great now at 4. He's very chatty, friendly, outgoing, he just didn't want to talk.

DreamGirl21 · July 2011

According to our doctor, kids with an older sibling often don't talk as much or as early as the older sibling did. She said the older one will often speak for the younger one (or the younger one can't get a word in).

One of my coworkers had two daughters. The first was talking quiet early. The second one (born 3 years later) hardly said anything until her older sister started kindergarten. Once the younger one was alone more often, she was speaking in complete sentences.

lala1608 · July 2011

DG1:
What does the pediatrician say?
she just gave me the number for a speech program through the public school system...she didn't seemed concerned at his 2 yr appointment but now she seems more concerned
Have you seen the speech therapist yet? If so, what does s/he say?
We will be starting in a few weeks, I am nervous but excited to see if his speech improves with therapy
He won't be 2.5 until September, so that's not as alarming as if he were closer to 3.
Is he communicating otherwise? Pointing to things and indicating his desire for them? Letting you know what he likes or doesn't like? Engaging with you in play? Making eye contact and smiling/laughing?
Yes, he definitely points and can identify objects in books when I ask him to (animals, flowers, toys) and he plays well with his brother and my DH and I but is also content playing alone. He smiles and laughs, gives hugs and kisses...it really just seems to be the speech but I'm still concerned.

lala1608 · July 2011

DreamGirl21:
According to our doctor, kids with an older sibling often don't talk as much or as early as the older sibling did. She said the older one will often speak for the younger one (or the younger one can't get a word in).

One of my coworkers had two daughters. The first was talking quiet early. The second one (born 3 years later) hardly said anything until her older sister started kindergarten. Once the younger one was alone more often, she was speaking in complete sentences.

I have heard this too...and they are ALWAYS together, I just arranged to have my mom watch him one day a week while my sitter takes his older brother just to see if anything improves.

lite-bright · July 2011

Yes, I would be concerned. You say you're starting speech therapy -- is this private speech therapy, or has he been evaluated through your local Early Intervention program (that's likely the school district program your doc pointed you to)? If he has not, I would make that call ASAP. They should do an evaluation first in order to figure out your son's needs, and then provide services accordingly.

For some perspective, we had our DD2 evaluated by EI at 15 months because she had only one word (still no mama and dadda) and I had some social concerns. My DD1 is on the autism spectrum, so I'm hyper-vigilant about some of these things.

According to the evaluation, DD2's expressive speech level was at 13 months. Everything turned out fine, she was right on with social/cognitive stuff and her words actually started picking up a few days before the evaluation and exploded right after it. But if she had continued to have just her one word for a longer period of time -- say, 18 months -- it would've definitely qualified as a delay that was severe enough to require speech therapy.

You might also look into doing sign language with your son. That's frequently a recommendation that goes along with speech therapy, to encourage communication.

Soter1 · July 2011

lala1608:
DreamGirl21:

According to our doctor, kids with an older sibling often don't talk as much or as early as the older sibling did. She said the older one will often speak for the younger one (or the younger one can't get a word in).

One of my coworkers had two daughters. The first was talking quiet early. The second one (born 3 years later) hardly said anything until her older sister started kindergarten. Once the younger one was alone more often, she was speaking in complete sentences.

I have heard this too...and they are ALWAYS together, I just arranged to have my mom watch him one day a week while my sitter takes his older brother just to see if anything improves.

This theory has been true for 3-4 close friends and family members in this situation that I know as well. Maybe try to encourage more and watch your older one to make sure they aren't dominating everything? Good luck!

on_the_move · July 2011

DS is the same way and we did speach therapy for about 6 months before we moved. It didn't help at all now we have an appointment with an ENT and audiologist. MOst states have an early intervention program that you might want to look into. I hope both of our guys start talking soon!

BlinkingLight1 · July 2011

DS1 was the same around age 2. He was saying maybe 10 words total. I was really worried too. It seemed like all his friends were saying so much more than him. It wasn't until 26-28 months his words/sentences EXPLODED. He talks a lot now in pretty much full sentences and has who knows how many words. The main thing my pedi said (she wasn't concerned) was it was good that he understood what I was saying and could respond in other ways. He just started talking when he was ready.

I'm not saying you should/shouldn't see a speech therapist, but that was my experience with my late talker.

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Son is almost 2 1/2 and still not talking...should I be worried???

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