Child Not Talking

Hi,
I wouldn't worry too much... bring it up to his pediatrician. I didn't start talking until right before I started school, however, I had water in my ears and needed to have tubes in my ears. Then in school I went to speech therapy class through 4th grade.

Hello, Boy have I been in your shoes. We went through the exact same thing, and then finally the "other" E.I. therapist (who I asked and got 3 weeks after starting home therapy due to severe doubts about our speech therapist) asked me directly if I was happy with his progress. The speech therapist had told me my son would need therapy at least until the sixth grade and that he had moderate-to-severe apraxia. I finally decided to risk offending her and take the advice of the other therapist and start clinic speech. While it was a huge pain to have to take him to clinic 3 times a week (we added OT once a week, and let me tell you, it made all the difference when added to twice weekly speech therapy!)I certainly was shocked at his progress. At the age of 27 months, after 11 months of home therapy he had 4 words, which he did not use purposefully. This was last November. By the time he aged out at the end of May, only 6 months later(I hope you know that when they turn 3, all the free therapy stops cold) with clinic speech, he had the vocabulary of a 4-year old!!!! I was so elated. I can't guarantee the same success as I don't know if your child has true apraxia, but it's certainly worth checking into another therapists opinion. I am not usually a person who "sugarcoats" things, but for some reason, which I'll regret my entire life, I waited 11 wasteful months to finally ask for better help for my son. Thank God this wasn't a more serious medical condition! We must be aggressive advocates, especially when the therapy offered is very limited (the public school system takes over when they turn 3.) My son still receives therapy twice a week at the local public school, but they are now considering discharging him. It's certainly worth asking. Good luck!

Good job mama on setting up the speech therapy. How are the social and developmental skills of your little man? If everything is on track except speech, I bet the therapists will get him where he needs to be. If he is displaying signs of social concerns too, than you may want to dig a little deeper. Congrats on #2 and know that you are a great mom!! Get some rest now if you can...it gets busier. : )

Has he been diagnosed with something on the autism spectrum or a physiological problem with his mouth? If not, rest assured, he will talk eventually. My 3.5 year old daughter was also slow to speak. I worried a lot and had her in programs that got her to say a word here or there. Suddenly, over the course of 3 months (just before she turned 3) she went from only having maybe 8-10 words to speaking in full sentences and even singing entire songs (some of which I hadn't sung to her in months and she remembered all the words!)

If your son understands you well and can follow orders, chances are he's internalizing everything. Unless the professionals find something else amiss, try not to worry (although believe me, I know it's hard!)

BTW, my second daughter who is 18 months old now already talks like a champ and sings entire songs. Go figure.

hi J.

you have all the answers that you need from the others the only reason i'm replying too is because i want you to know that your not alone. i had a post like yours several weeks ago. after 8 months of speech therapy at home through early step i was expecting more but he sure have made some improvements. he still not saying anything at all but at least he's trying to say some words now but still can't say them yet. he now knows that he has to communicate. he's gonna turn 3 next month and going to the school system. actually i don't know what to expect from it i'm gonna have a post on that. well don't worry just make sure that you wacthing him closely and do your homework by asking questions, looking for help everywhere possible. your a good mother i'm sure your doing a good job. take care

J.,

I have a niece who did not speak until about 3 1/2. And my father in-law did not speak until after he turned 4. I do not know much about this subject but wanted to reassure you that there are many instances where children do not speak until they are older and are perfectly normal going forward.

Good Luck!
K.

My son was going through the same thing. He had always suffered from ear infections, but I wanted to go the holistic route (didn't work). So, this past January I had tubes put in his ears, adnoids and tonsils removed. What a difference! He will now not stop talking:) He still has speech therapy, but due to timing issues, he has a private therapist that goes to his school - she is awesome! Let me know if you need her info. Good luck! L.

J.,
I just read your post, I know it is several days later, but had to share with you. I have a cousin that's child had a hearing problem that they knew nothing about and that was why he wasn't speaking. I am assuming since your child is in speech, that they have definatley checked all that, but you may want to visit an ENT (Ear, Nose & Throat) Dr. (if you haven't already)
Hang in there, I am sure everything will be fine and good luck with your family.
S

Have him tested for autism, sorry, but that sounds like what your son has. D.

Hi, my son is part of early steps and had to change therapy due to not advancing. My son was transferred to another facility that has two therapists. He is great with one, but the other one is too loud for him and he says nothing. I would try another speech therapist. I also work with him at home and tell him to use his words to get something he wants- otherwise he would yell to get something out of frustration. My son is now 26 months and is catching up. I hope you get results soon. Good Luck!

Hi there,

When my son was 3 (he's currently 9), he was not speaking either. I spoke to his pediatrician who recommended that he be tested through the state. We did an all day test through FIDLERS (sp?) and he was diagnosed with a language disability, meaning that he could understand everything completely but just had problems getting the words out. There are several wonderful Pre-K language programs in Pinellas County that he was eligible for. We went through San Jose Elementary and had a wonderful Pre-K Teacher. They got him on the right direction in order to start Kindergarten where he continued with the Speech Program at his current school. He was finally dismissed from the Program in 2nd Grade.

Last year he was diagnosed with a hearing disability where he has difficulties hearing several noises at the same time. We've seen specialists for this now and have found that this could have contributed to some of the problems in the early years.

If you are not happy with the current therapy, keep on until you find the right solution.

Hi J., My son is 2 1/2 and will be 3 Jan 18, he started speech therapy thru the state (early steps) the end of last October, so we are getting close to a year. At that time he only had 1-4 words and was a little over 18 months. I truly love our speech therapist and he looks forward to seeing her every week. He has improved some, I will not say greatly. I believe he is believed to have the vocab of an 18 month old now. When they turn 3, they can no longer participate in early steps, they then move to child find, which is still free and thru the state, so the other mom who said at 3 all state funding stops is incorrect. I am not thrilled with the idea of child find, b/c from what I understand it takes place in the school system. I dont know how I feel about my baby being in the school system at 3. But we will see. I do however think that if he has had no improvment with the therapy that you may want to speak to your pedi and have him evaled my a developmental pedi. And you may consider asking for a new speech therapist. You can call your childs "case worker" thru early steps and request this. And if your "case worker" is a pain like mine, you can always call Mr. Landy, the head guy of the local early steps office....him and I have had to talk 2x. If you have more questions about early steps and your sons speach and such I can always try to help, so feel free to message me if you want

HI J.: Not all kids are alike and some kids take longer to start talking I have three children now are big boys, my first one took three years to start talking well. And now he talk better and more than anyone.If he use a pacifier of toys to his mouth all the time I would recomend take it away. I use Barney's or Big Bird video's so he would repeat the words. and or you can put him in the day care if he is not. That would help him be more independable and will help excerise his speech.I have one after another one they are one year apart and is not easy expecting the second one with your first having this situation. So, would be best if you put him in a day care learning center you will see how fast he will start to talk. And God Bless

Great job Mom on making that first big step and getting help from the state on his speech therapy. I was wondering if the SLP (Speech Language Pathologist), who should be coming to your house, has ever did a complete evaluation on your son, to diagnose the reason for his speech delay. Has she ever said it has Apraxia or something else? If you are not comfortable with the speech therapist that is coming to your house, you can and should request a new one.
If your son has been diagnosed with any type of speech delay, especially Apraxia, do not worry, he will talk. My son was diagnosed with Apraxia when he was two years old and could only say two words at the time. Now, at the age of 4, he tells us stories, it's wonderful. But it is a lot of hard work. You must work daily on his words and sounds. Does the speech therapist give him "homework" or specific words that he needs to study or work on? If not, ask why not. If there is a specific sound that she is working on with him, you need to be able to re-enforce that sound or word while she is not around, and without the re-enforcement, it will take him longer to progress. I noticed that you live in Pinellas County. I would contact your local school district and see if they have any type of program available through the school system that is in place just for children with speech delays. My son has attended a specific speech delayed class in our local public school for the past two years and it has done miracles for him.

Having a child with a speech delay is not the end of the world, it's just a different word that you must live in. It is a lot of hard work and a lot of different ways of doing every day things. Don't get me wrong, you can still a lot of fun with your son and still learn at the same time. You just learn to make every learning experience a game, and you will be amazed by his improvement.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me!
Have a great day!
Remember, one day at at time and one word at a time!

Hi J.,
Something like this can be upsetting I know. My Daughter was slow in talking and her Son was also. He also had speech therapy and lots else.
When I flew out to visit she adked me lots of questions. I explained that she was slow(tho she is highly intelligent) amd that she never did begin to talk intil she really wanted my attention while I was busy. Internal motivation is often the key. Often children learn that they can get your attention in other ways and so they just don't have any motivation to talk.
She tried this & lo & behold it worked! I hope that yours is as simple.

A caring Grandma
S.

Have you spoken with your pediatrician? If so, and there is no real reason they are giving you I would go to another and get a 2nd opinion. My first son was a late talker at 2 years (which now I'm seeing isn't very late for the first born) and I started getting worried, but at 22 months he started talking and hasn't stopped! (he's 6 today lol)However, he was saying words like "mama, dada, dog, ball, baba".