At my wits end! (speech therapy related)

fauxshelley · August 2011

I am beyond frustrated with Jack's lack of speech. I seriously am thisclose to canceling his speech therapy because I feel like it is a waste of time and money! The child only says a few words, Ah-ma (Momma), Ah-Da (Daddy), An-na (Hannah), Uh huh (yes), Uh-uh (No). He has been is speech therapy for over 6 months, and yes these words are new since he started, but I don't feel like he is making enough progress. I don't even know if this progress is related to speech therapy at all.

Jack sees the ST every other week, and the ST focuses on signs. I totally understand why he does that, to give Jack a way to express himself before he can talk. Jack can sign with the best of them, but he refuses to use his words. I think it's time to move forward. I feel like signing is holding him back. He will sign all day long for something, but if I ask him to say it, he will give me blank stare.

Can anyone offer advice or tips?

emowens · August 2011

Can you switch ST? or go every week/more often? When Danielle was in ST (for pronunciation issues, not really lack of speech so i don't have first hand insight as to adivce to tell) we went once a week and were there for 13 months before we were deemed "good" :-)

I'm sure you are beyond frustrated. All i know is talk talk talk to him...all the time. don't give him the something he wants until til he says it?

emowens · August 2011

I had to come back out to see your ticker to see how old Jack is. He's almost 2. I will tell you that with Darren, I was really concerned with his lack of speech also. It was hard coming from his big sister who literally was singing her abcs and talking tons by 17 months old...to him barely having a 5 word vocabulary at 2. I brushed it off that he was a boy, and got the impression that boys were "slower" verbally than girls...and I had a girl that was very advanced verbally. We talked to the pedi about starting him in speech at his 2 year apt and she suggested we wait til our 2.5 apt. and if he still had limited vocab we would start ST then.

The past 6 months have been astonishing, he's 2.5 now and seriously speaks in 4-5 word SENTENCES. It might just be something that will click for him?! I hope so, good luck!

dbryson · August 2011

If he isn't 2, I agree with Emily. Hold off until he is 2.5. Some kids just focus on other things. And they say 2nd kids are slower to talk because their siblings talk for them. And if he is signing for things and you understand him there is no push in his mind.

But maybe try a different ST. My friend's son went at 2.5 every week for the first few months and then they tapered down. I think he did ST for 8 months but by month 4 or 5 he was completely caught up.

Temp925407062502290 · August 2011

My son is in speech therapy and he had many words but couldn't do sentences or answer the why,when, what how. This was over the age of 3. ST has worked wonders for us. We went twice a week and today we found out today he can go once a week. He has done wonders in the 2 month period.

I think that you should get a 2nd opinion. Are you able to go into the speech class with him? I found a ST that lets you sit in with you and she teaches you how to communicate. If you would like her information let me know. She is great to talk on the phone too. She is in John's Creek.

I do know that it does take time with some kids. You may think this isn't helping but then one day he will explode with so many words. Just have patients and always get a 2nd opinion if things are not working the way you think it should.

cookielady · August 2011

For what it's worth: Something else to take into consideration is the fact that if he is learning sign that is considered a second language. Kids that have 2 languages are slower to speak than those that have just one language. If I remember what I was told, it was that they are thinking in both languages and have to process twice as much.

Roci26 · August 2011

DD will be two in December and says very few words. She says several words clearly like mama, dadda and loves to make the noises that animals and other things make. She is growing bilingual so I know that getting "it out" might take some time. Looking at your ticker I really do think that he is probably still to young to start getting worried about his speech. Talk to your pedi and see what he/she says. Good luck!

slwprincess · August 2011

I think you should take a break from ST. He's pretty young still. Then when you come back, you can ask them to work on the verbal stuff instead of so much sign language. I think they must just be focusing on signing b/c he's still under 2? That's all I can figure, becuase they were really trying to wean Gavin OFF of sign language when we did ST. Of course, we waited till 2.5 to start ST. My pedi was reluctant to refer us before then in case he was just a late bloomer- which he was... VERY late. I do think that ST helped show ME ways to work with him to encourage him to use his words. And I saw some improvement but not a ton while we were doing it. Then we switched him to a new daycare and that's where things really took off. But even so, he really wasn't using sentences at all until just a few mos ago- well after he turned 3. And just a few weeks ago we took him back for another speech assesment thinking that he was still behind and needed more ST. We were shocked to find out that he's actually on a 4 year old level or higher. So clearly, our expectations needed adjustment this time. Anyway, I'm just saying that taking the break from ST and working with him ourselves as well as daycare working with him actually seemed to help. So I think if you are frustrated right now, taking a break may actually be beneficial.

fauxshelley · August 2011

I should mention that I am hyper aware of Jack's speech issues because his genetist sent me a letter when Jack was a year old and mentioned that I should watch his speech development as delayed speech is common with his chromosomal anomaly. That's why I put him in ST so early. In a normal situation I might not have even thought about it until after he was 2.

slwprincess · August 2011

fauxshelley:
I should mention that I am hyper aware of Jack's speech issues because his genetist sent me a letter when Jack was a year old and mentioned that I should watch his speech development as delayed speech is common with his chromosomal anomaly. That's why I put him in ST so early. In a normal situation I might not have even thought about it until after he was 2.

Ahhhh, this makes more sense. I would still take a break from ST. Just because I think you will be able to assess the situation more clearly once you've taken a step back. If he regresses, then you have a clear cut answer that YES, he needs to be in ST. If he progresses during that time, then you know you can stay out and re-evaluate in a few months. And if he stays the same, then again, I would ask for a new evaluation in a few months and go from there.

emowens · August 2011

slwprincess:

fauxshelley:
I should mention that I am hyper aware of Jack's speech issues because his genetist sent me a letter when Jack was a year old and mentioned that I should watch his speech development as delayed speech is common with his chromosomal anomaly. That's why I put him in ST so early. In a normal situation I might not have even thought about it until after he was 2.

Ahhhh, this makes more sense. I would still take a break from ST. Just because I think you will be able to assess the situation more clearly once you've taken a step back. If he regresses, then you have a clear cut answer that YES, he needs to be in ST. If he progresses during that time, then you know you can stay out and re-evaluate in a few months. And if he stays the same, then again, I would ask for a new evaluation in a few months and go from there.

I can totally see why you are apprehensive/proactive now. I like and agree w/ Stacie's approach (and a few others said it too) of a break for now.

Daisy22 · August 2011

Personally I would try to find another ST. I'm really not in the wait and see camp through especially if there might be underlying issues. With that said we didn't start Bailey in ST until he was 21 months old. His lack of speech is due to chronic ear infections. They started with signs b/c he was under 2. He picked those up quickly and by 24 months he was trying to say the word with the sign. He also does go every week.

do you get to watch the ST? Does he communicate with you about why he's doing things? Does he give you homework to do with your son? I would definitely ask him about the lack of words vs number of signs. Get him to explain it to you even if you have to go in before the session is over to talk to him. If you don't feel you are getting answers I would switch to someone else. I think it's very important that you and the ST is on the same page which means there is an open communciation about progress. For instance our ST gives us stuff to work on at home. Today she gave us flash cards to work on over the next week. We've moved on to getting sounds down now that Bailey is getting the vocabulary down. He leaves off sounds and doesn't know how to get his mouth to work with certain sounds.

lala_slp · August 2011

I am a speech pathologist and I would love to shed a little bit of light on the use of sign with young children. Many parents are afraid that it will inhibit speech development but research shows that sign can only enhance overall language development and ultimately speech. In my experience the use of signs takes the pressure off of some kids and allows them to be confident to use words.

After reading your post, my main concern is that he is only being seen 2x/month. I'm not sure if you're getting speech through Babies Can't Wait but I know the 2x/month thing is often their stance on speech. I think this is mostly due to the vast number of kids who need therapy and the tiny number of therapists who can provide it. As others have stated, make sure you are communicating with your SLP and learning ways to help him at home.

Feel free to respond to this post or PM me if you have questions, etc.

frlcb · August 2011

2x a month stood out to me as well, is that the norm? I have a nephew who is 5 and has been in speech therapy since 2, he has apraxia and has to go every week. He may have gone twice a week for a while but he is still there every week. I would talk to them about going more often if you are concerned.

fauxshelley · August 2011

lala_slp:

I am a speech pathologist and I would love to shed a little bit of light on the use of sign with young children. Many parents are afraid that it will inhibit speech development but research shows that sign can only enhance overall language development and ultimately speech. In my experience the use of signs takes the pressure off of some kids and allows them to be confident to use words.

After reading your post, my main concern is that he is only being seen 2x/month. I'm not sure if you're getting speech through Babies Can't Wait but I know the 2x/month thing is often their stance on speech. I think this is mostly due to the vast number of kids who need therapy and the tiny number of therapists who can provide it. As others have stated, make sure you are communicating with your SLP and learning ways to help him at home.

Feel free to respond to this post or PM me if you have questions, etc.

Jack is seeing the ST through Babies Can't Wait. I am pro-signing, but I am also ready for words. :-/ I have a lot to think about. Thanks ladies, for your replies.

Can someone recommend a good ST? I am switching jobs in a few weeks, so I'll probably make a change in a couple of months, but I would like to be ready, when the time comes.

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