My 2 year old isnt talking. Advice needed.

sexyntexy · February 2012

My DD has a speech delay. She is almost 2 and has no words. She has been in speech therapy since 15 months and started ECI at 18 months. None of the therapists think she has autism but clearly something is going on. I dont even know where to begin to look at possible issues. Our pedi thought she had a hearing issue but we got that checked and she is fine. She doesnt have behavioral/eating/social issues. She babbles but doesnt have any real words, doesnt wave, or know body parts. She can do puzzles, sort shapes on her own, points, loves books, is social, smiles, etc.

I'm filling out a form right now to see a dev pedi but it takes weeks to get in if we qualify. I thought I would post here and see if any of you ladies had a similar experience or any advice. TIA.

torrey111 · February 2012

My LO just turned 2 in January and only has about 10 words- most of which are baba (Brittany, his nanny) CoCo(Cole, his brother) nana (grandma) mama, dada, hi, bye (sounds more like ba) yellow, and Elmo- which is said as two completely separate long syllables.

His receptive language is very good, so I know he understands everything and who knows, maybe he's just a "late talker"- but if not, I'd rather get services started sooner rather than later. (We have our eval with EI in a week).

Sorry I don't have any advice but it sounds like you're on the right track to sorting it out. GL!

finsup · February 2012

Appt w/ a developmental Pedi is definitely your next step here. Its good that you have already gotten EI services going. There are lots of things that could be going on and a full assesment will help point you in the right direction.

My son had less than 30 words at age 2, and he qualified for EI and since aged out and attends an integrated preschool program. We are currently undergoing evaluations for ASD.

Good Luck and let us know how it goes.

lite-bright · February 2012

Hey there, I remember you from the tri/age boards.

It sounds like you're doing just what you should be, and it's very good that she's already receiving services while you take steps to figure out exactly what is going on.

Sometimes a speech delay is "just" a speech delay, and there isn't anything else going on. But the developmental evaluation will look at all of her skills (fine and gross motor, etc.) and help determine that. There are a couple of kids in my DD1's preschool class who have speech delays for which they are receiving therapy, with no other issues diagnosed.

Are you doing sign language? How does your DD communicate now? Does she make animal sounds, babble, etc.?

I don't have any real advice because it sounds like you're doing all the right things, but if you want to share more detail, feel free.

ntyravgmom · February 2012

Have any of the therapists thought about apraxia of speech?

sexyntexy · February 2012

Apraxia of speech hasn't been mentioned. One thing I saw when looking it up is a severe mismatch between what they understand and what they can say. She understands words but not a ton. She knows come here, snack, dinner, go get your bib, ball, book, kitty, bath, her name and that may be it. She doesn't having eating issues which is a symptom. She didn't babble as a young child and only has a few sounds she makes. She babbles a ton now but only has a few consonants. Dada, mama (which she quit saying a lot), the g sound, w sound, b sound. She will whisper the h sound. She doesn't know animAl sounds. She also won't eat fruits so maybe she has texture issues that I'm overlooking? She gets frustrated and screams sometimes. I lpoked at all the sensory disorders and she doesn't fit into any of them. Maybe it is apraxia if speech. I'll ask the therapist next time she comes.

sexyntexy · February 2012

Oh and she communicates by going to the pantry, going to what she wants and whining. She only knows the sign more but to be honest we only use the other ones here and there and need to get better. But we have received conflicting info on using signs from the therapists.

atyler727 · February 2012

Hello there

I work in Early Intervention in Colorado as a case manager and ALL the speech therapists I've ever worked with recommend using sign language (or at least they agree it doesn't hurt) to help kids with speech delays, so that is very suprising to me that you've "recieved conflicting info on using signs." It decreases frustration level and actually helps them to communicate verbally in the future. I strongly encourage you to keep using signs and expanding your sign language vocabulary--maybe to 10 words that are really important to your child.

Another option may be using pictures to communicate. The speech therapist should be able to show you how to use them. Again, the research shows this increases the likihood of verbal communication in the future.

I've seen many two year olds who are not talking. I know it's easy for me to say don't worry, but I've seen so many of them catch up to their peers by the time they turn three (when early intervention ends). I think early intervention has expanded it's definition of what is considered to be a delay. Back in the day when it first started, the only babies getting services were ones with down syndrome or autism or something where there was a serious life-long disability. I hear SO many stories of parents who "didn't start talking until they were four" who turned out to be just fine. Those are the people who just may have struggled in school a little more because they never got speech therapy.

Another thing you may want to consider is switching speech therapists (even for a few weeks). Sometimes it makes a huge difference to just get a fresh perspective on you kid's situation.

Apraxia is also another possibility, but based on the fact that it sounds like she also has a receptive language delay, I don't think she has apraxia. Only one child on my caseload that I can think of has actually been diagnosed with it. She was a very smart little girl and understood everything, but she just couldn't seem to get the words out. it may be worth bringing up though to the speech therapist.

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My 2 year old isnt talking. Advice needed.

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