20 Mnth Old Does Not Speak

Hi D., If there are no hearing issues, try not responding to pointing and just sounds. My youngest daughter didn't speak until 2yrs. old. I have 1 child 2 yrs. older and when my little one would point, the other just did what she wanted. I started ignoring her, and I'd say "tell me" what you want. In short, it worked. Today she's an honor student and seldom stops talking. Good luck.

Hi D., I know exactly what you are going through. At age 2 my son Ryan had about 10 words and still didn't even say "Mama". His hearing was fine and no physical problems, he was just not talking. Just like your son he was expressive and could follow directions so I knew he wasn't autistic. I called Early Intervention which is completely a free service, they will set up visits with speech therapists both at your home and in classrooms if you like and they work with kids up to age 3. It is very important that you call now to get into the program, I would suggest you try Meeting Street School and just ask for the Early Intervention program. We went through the Trudeau Center but I have heard that Meeting Street was better. Anyway Ryan finally started talking the month before his 3rd birthday, it was like everything finally just clicked for him. Now at 3 1/2 he never stops talking, lol. Good luck!

My son, too, took FOREVER to talk!! Even had Early Intervention coming to our house because I was so concerned. He sounded a lot like your son. I knew he wasn't deaf (in fact he'd been having regular hearing tests due to a kidney problem....kidneys and ears develop at the same time and so when one isn't right, they tend to check the other one, too) So I knew for a fact that his hearing was fine. He was and is just so laid back in personality! He took forever to do just about everything....crawl, walk, talk, etc etc etc. And then one day he just started talking. Sounds crazy, I know. But it happened. There will come a point when your son will just decide that something needs to be said. My son started talking with like 4-5 word sentences. He'd just been spending the time absorbing and soaking it all in. If medical conditions have been ruled out, I would just say to relax, keep using your words around him, reading to him, and enjoying the silence (while you can). My son is now 4 1/2 and a motor mouth!!!!! He doesn't STOP talking now!! I have a hard time remembering when he wouldn't talk now!! Be patient. Don't get frustrated in front of him. All in good time....... :)

My son is 21 months and says about 7 words, and some days he doesn't use any of them. He just point and groans and makes his doggy sound and pulls me around that house and chucks his empty juice cup at me to tell me it needs filling. We repeat everything we say with no effect on him. I am going to call my local Child Development Services tomorrow and see what they can do for him. I suggest you do the same. I hope it all works out in the end. I know I am praying for my son. He really needs to talk soon or I am going to lose my mind.

(I do want to tell you that my oldest Son sees a speech therapist and made great progress in his talking . . . mind you he talked all the time problem was he didn't make any sense to anyone and got so mad about it)

Do you do playgroups or playdates with kids who talk or are a little older? My oldest son really found his "voice" when he started playing with a boy just a few months older and more verbally advanced.

Hi D.-
I definitely agree with the other posts. He should see Early Intervention to rule out any speech delay issues. They should be able to help you try to sort this out. Good luck.

I wouldnt worry, like to doc says he is a sponge right now he will talk when he is ready and then all of a sudden he will talk in sentences and you will be like " wow how did you know that" he is absorbing all kinds of info and one day he will just spill it out. and about autism, if he wasnt showing you affection or eye contact then I would be nervous. but. also if you have an older child then that could be it too. I have a twin and my mom usto say that I wouldnt talk and the doc said to her that I didnt have too cuz everybody was doing and saying everything for me so just be patient and keep doing what your doing. everything will be fine.

Hi D..
I know how you feel. I have a 3-yr old son, who did not say any words at all until he turned 2 yrs old. And I have a newphew with a boy who will be THREE yrs old next month, and he JUST started saying a few words within the past couple months. So you see, you are not alone, this is a common concern. If everything else about your son seems normal, then he will be speaking before you know it. In the meantime, you could go to the library and take out some information on baby sign language....that's what helped me communicate with my son until he was ready to speak. Good Luck :-)

im dealing with the same issue with my daughter. the doctors starting questioning her when she was 12 months, because she didnt say anything but mama and dad. shes now 23 months old, and she started early intervention because she has a speech delay. shes starting to say some things now though, its mostly the begining of a word like for car, she'll say the "K" sound, and for eat she'll only say "ea". i wouldnt worry early intervention told me its just delayed, that once she starts i wont be able to get her to stop. the fact that your son gets frustrated is cause he cant get it out. trust me i understand, my daughters a screamer, when shes frustrated. i would also ask the doctor about wether it might be a muscle thing with his tongue. i am surprised that they have waited so long to say something and hes this old. when they first said something to me i thought it was too early to tell if she was delayed, cause every child is different, but they were right. definately bring it up with the doctor. early intervention is really good. they start off teaching them sign language as a way to communicate without getting frustrated so its kind of neat too. let me know what happens with your son.

Hi D.,
I have 2 sons and a daughter. My oldest son is now 4. When we went for his 2 year checkup he said one word...car. That was it. I spoke to my pediatrician about it and he could have sent him to a specialist but we decided to give him just a little while longer. In a couple of days he was talking up a storm. Your son sounds like a very intelligent little boy. He'll talk when he's ready. Just give him time. I'll tell you fom my experience, boys do everything just a little slower than girls.
Good luck! All good things come in time.
A.

Don't wait, I would ask to see the pediatrician again and just ask for an early intervention evaluation. It really can't hurt. Good luck

I wouldn't worry too much. Some boys will let everyone do everything for them. I have a cousin who didn't say a word till he was 4. Then only "Bye Bob" to my Dad. Now he is a fighter poilet in the Navy, and has a electrical enginering degree. And when I was a Nanny, the little boy didn't start talking till he was 3. When he did start talking it was in full sentences. He would ask questions like,"Dad, what happened to the Christmas tree?". In June. Or you cold take him to a speech theripist, to ease your fears.

I have no practical advice for you since I have the opposite "problem"- my son doesn't stop talking. But, I do have a story. When I was more than two years old I started going to my mom's best friens's day care. The day I started at daycare, my mom's friend said that she wouldn't get stuff for me just b/c I pointed. I kept whining and pointing. She kept refusing. After almost a whole day of not getting what i wanted by my usual method of pointing, I finally stormed into the kitchen and said "I WANT JUICE!" From then on, I spoke.
This may or may not be of any help or relavance to you, but I thought I'd share. My nephew spoke very late and still doesn't speak as clearly or as much as my son, who is 3 months younger, but my nephew has made HUGE improvements in the last year and only now at 3 1/2 is he speaking well enough to communicate a full idea.
It's good to be proactive and find out what your resources are around you, but it doesn't sound you like you have anything to panic about quite yet.
goodluck!!

My son was the same as yours. I went to Family Support Early Intervention Center. They were wonderful and there services are only good till they are 3 years old so the sooner you get in touch with them the better. It is free and depending on where you live there may be one right around the corner. They are wonderful and they will test him by playing games with him, blocks, peek a boo with animals covered up by a face cloth and things like that. They come to your house 1 a week and if he goes to a daycare setting or even to a sitters they will go there too. They give you progress reports and they will also give you anything that you may want to keep a eye out for in the future. I do not know where you live but I am in Salem, Mass and there is one in Danvers. Tel. number is ###-###-####. If you do not live near there you may want to call them and they would be able to give you the number to the one near you. They helped me out with my son so much and me as well. Good luck and if you need anything else just e-mail me : ____@____.com

N.

A friend of mines son did not speak at this age eaither, but it was because he was tongue tied. Since having the little "string" holding his tongue down snipped, he has been talking up a storm. He does go to speach therapy and there are times when you can't understand him, but he has come a long way since having it done. He turned 3 a few months ago. I see him every week and it still amazes me how much he picks up and says now.

I'd call early intervention and you can always start signing iwth him for communication.. you can go to www.americansignlanguage.com and it will give you all the key words to try.. it's not as hard as you might think.. say the word and do the sign and they pick it up really fast. it doesn't stop them from speaking either, it helps them speak. The Beverly School for the Deaf has classes all the time in babysigns and there are a lot of books and videos.. Blues Clues and Sesame street both have sign videos too.. Try not to worry.. some kids just don't want to talk.. I know of a few kids who just opened up at age 2 without an issue..