Talking concerns

Mamagingy · September 2014

Hi so my son Logan will be 2 in December and he really doesn't talk much at all. He does gibberish but the only real words he says are Da, Ma (on occasion), up and shakes his head for no. His pediatrician said if he isn't talking a lot more by the time he is 2 then we should seek a speech therapist? I'm just not sure he is my first so all of this toddler hood stuff is new

BelhurstBride · September 2014

Keep talking to him and reading to him and make sure he doesn't spend the day with a pacifier in his mouth. If the pedi recommends EI in December than follow through with the recommendation.

ashiscute · September 2014

My DD has been seeing a speech therapist since she was 17 mos. She had no words until 18 mos and maybe 5 by the time she was 2. It was a huge life saver for us. A speech therapist comes to your house and works with you. Everything is done through play and very stress free. The therapy is more to give you ideas on how to communicate with him and teach him to communicate with you.

Does your DS imitate sounds? Expressions? Words? Does he follow simple directions? Does he seem frustrated by his lack of words? I personally wouldn't wait until 2 to get an evaluation from EI but that's up to you. I would ask your pedi about getting him evaluated now because the process to start therapy can take awhile (took us 2 months). There is a very wide range of what's normal at this age but if he only has 3 words I would be concerned. If he isn't imitating you, following directions, or showing frustration I would be more concerned. Good luck

dufferoo · September 2014

A lot can happen in 3 months! I would just try your best not to stress about this, and then go with your doctor's recommendation come December.

pb_bride · September 2014

Disclaimer: my son is a late talker and I was *this close* to calling EI on him. He had 0 words at 15m, 5 words + 6 animal sounds at 18m. I was worried but I read that language explosion usually occur around 18m, so I waited on the EI. Now at 22m, he has at least 150 words and can do 2-word phrase without any therapy.

Having said that, your son is now 20-21 m? (you said his b-day is in December, but I don't know if it's early or late Dec). My feeling is that a 20m old should be saying more than just 3 words. Does he have animal sounds? Does he know sign language? Does he appear to understand you and follow commands? How is he expressing himself to you?

I started teaching my son lots of sign language by 14-15m. Even though he only had 5 words at 18m, he learned 40+ signs by then. While signs are not spoken words, they are still considered language.

If you feel like he's not really understanding and not making other sounds, I'd first have his hearing checked. And I would not hesitate to call EI at this point.

ashiscute · September 2014

pb_bride said:

Disclaimer: my son is a late talker and I was *this close* to calling EI on him. He had 0 words at 15m, 5 words + 6 animal sounds at 18m. I was worried but I read that language explosion usually occur around 18m, so I waited on the EI. Now at 22m, he has at least 150 words and can do 2-word phrase without any therapy.

Having said that, your son is now 20-21 m? (you said his b-day is in December, but I don't know if it's early or late Dec). My feeling is that a 20m old should be saying more than just 3 words. Does he have animal sounds? Does he know sign language? Does he appear to understand you and follow commands? How is he expressing himself to you?

I started teaching my son lots of sign language by 14-15m. Even though he only had 5 words at 18m, he learned 40+ signs by then. While signs are not spoken words, they are still considered language.

If you feel like he's not really understanding and not making other sounds, I'd first have his hearing checked. And I would not hesitate to call EI at this point.

This was part of the EI process. We called and were mailed a questionnaire. Based on our answers to that we then had a hearing test and the evaluation. There was a 1 week wait required between each part of the process which is part of the reason it takes so long.

DawnJM25 · September 2014

DS was preemie so he was behind in a few areas. He was a very quiet baby, and we expressed concerns to our pedi around 9 mo. He had some feeding issues, too. We've seen the speech therapist now for almost a year, and I have been SO thankful for her. She comes to our house, and I can watch how she interacts/plays with our toys with DS so I know what kinds of things to do with him. Of course listen to your pedi, and you might even need a referral from him/her, but the earlier the intervention, the better. Even if your DS does end up having a language explosion in the next few months, the peace of mind that DS was being seen by a professional was worth it.

Mamagingy · September 2014

He can follow simple commands and does sometimes seem very frustrated he can't say what he wants to. He gabs a lot and gestures while he does it like he is talking and we go with it and talk back to him. I'm wondering if the reason he isn't talking much is I haven't read to him as much as I would've liked

ashiscute · September 2014

Mamagingy said:

He can follow simple commands and does sometimes seem very frustrated he can't say what he wants to. He gabs a lot and gestures while he does it like he is talking and we go with it and talk back to him. I'm wondering if the reason he isn't talking much is I haven't read to him as much as I would've liked

No I don't think his lack of speech production is linked to how much you've read to him. Reading is hugely beneficial to children but his delay is pretty significant. I read all of the time to my children. My DD has a speech disorder. That's just it. It has nothing to do with me.

The fact that he's frustrated at lack of speech is good. I would work on teaching him basic signs. All done, more, milk, eat, drink, etc. We watched the "Baby Signing Time" videos and those are a great way to learn them.

I'd still call EI soon and see about getting an evaluation. If he doesn't need it then great and if he does you got him help.

leesa031906 · September 2014

My daughter is going for a hearing test because she is the same way. They want to take a look at that first before anything.

Destiny1922 · September 2014

My daughter will be 2 in Novemeber. At her 18 month appointment I mentioned to her pediatrician her not having many words. She gave me the phone number for speech therapy and told me to call if I noticed her not progressing. After that appointment she was learning a couple new words a week so I just thought I would wait and see. The last couple months though she hasn't been progressing so I called last week. They told me it could take 45 days to get a call about an over the phone evaluation. And then if she qualifies it could take another 45 days to get appointment. I don't know if it takes that long for everyone but now I am wishing I called sooner. It couldn't hurt right?

jlpev · September 2014

My friend waited until her dd was 3 because her Dr kept saying let's wait till 2 OK shes saying a couple more words let's wait till 3. She started speech at 3.5 & now 4.5 yo and can only say about 20 words clearly that a stranger can completely understand. My friend is so upset that she didn't start earlier. Her dd is still doing a speech therapist outside school & trying to get her with the speech therapist at school.
I wouldn't wait especially if he gets frustrated that he can't communicate with you.

pmduggan01 · September 2014

My son was referred to speech therapy (ST) at 18 months. Due to the time for an open appt, Hewas evaluated and had his hearing tested a couple of months later. His hearing is fine, but his expressive language tested at a 10 month old level; receptive language skill was higher -- 16 months.

He qualified for the county's in-home ST and was put on the waiting list for Children's Mercy Hospital's ST clinic.

Since working with the ST for about six weeks (DS will be 2 in a couple of weeks), frustration has gone down for both DS and me because he is signing what he wants and is being "heard." His speaking skills are still delayed, but with ST, things are much better.

They also hooked us up with an occupational therapist since DS has some sensory processing issues. She's helped us immensely.

I wanted to add a couple if things --- we've been reading several times a day to DS since before he could crawl, so I doubt that is a reason for delay.

Second, no one has anything to lose getting your child evaluated -- even financially. This is covered by insurance and if you LO is on Medicaid, it is covered.

Best wishes to you and your LO.

michelle7482 · September 2014

At 18 months my DD had 7-8 words ( pedi told me she should have 10-25 by then ) so we got her in EI. She had a 32% delay at that point and has been receiving services for 10 months and at 2.5 she's talking in full sentences. I would absolutely contact EI if I were you.

Anne Mommy · September 2014

We called at 18 months and they wouldn't look at DS1 until 2. We had the hearing test because I worked for an ENT and got him in within a week. After he was 2 we saw the EI through the school. He did summer school a handful of times that summer and then once a week preschool. They came to daycare and our house once a month. Once he turned 3 the EI stopped but he was able to attend their preschool. He goes half days during the school year. He loves it and has learned tons!

honeydew01 · September 2014

Definitely call EI for an evaluation. It can only help. My daughter wasn't babbling until 12-13 months so we got her evaluated and she started speech therapy right away and she is doing pretty well. It takes a while to get in with EI so the sooner you call the better. You have nothing to lose really and the sooner you get the help your son needs the better.