Speech Delay on 23 Months - Is It Time to Go to Speech Therapist?

Have Early intervention asses him and see what they say-- he sounds a lot like my son-- I had him evaluated twice for speech delays between 1 1/2 and 3 -- he rated as the very lowest edge of "normal" both times. Now he's almost 5 and WILL NOT SHUT UP!

So have early intrevention evaluate him-- it's fun, free AND informative, and try not to worry/be careful what you wish for!

J., I have a lot of experience with this from dealing with my younger son, and he is NOT autistic. LOTS of kids without autism have speech and language delays.

Yes, you need to get him an evaluation. The expectations after 24 months are very different from before 24 months. Go ahead and get the appointment for right after his 2 year birthday. Ask them to send you the paperwork a week in advance. You should take time to fill out the paperwork very thoroughly. It should ask what words he knows - a lot of detail. Really pay attention to it. It's important, and MUCH better to do it at home than be under the gun filling it out at the center.

A team approach to an evaluation is much better than only one speech therapist, though of course, it's okay not to have the team approach - having had both, I prefer the team approach for a child this age.

It is amazing the strides a child can make with a little help. I promise you that his ability to handle school later will be greatly improved and increased if he has some help before he gets there. If there IS a problem, and you won't know until they have worked with him some, the difference in handling it before he's 3 will make a big difference.

For the kids out there who were just late bloomers, that's one thing. A problem is another, J.. You and your ped can't actually say which it is, and no one on a question and answer site can either. The way to know is to have him properly screened.

I hope you will do it.

Dawn

He sounds like my son. He is NOT autistic, but has a significant speech and language delay. I had him evaluated, and he started early intervention around that age. Also, once he is 3 he should start preschool, as it helps build social skills, as well as language and speech skills.

I urge you to have him formally evaluated. If he has a speech delay because of physical development or lack thereof you want to get him involved in speech therapy right away.

My grandson is speech delayed. His pediatrician suggested he was just a late developer and his mother didn't get an evaluation until he was 2 1/2 when the pediatrician suggested that it might be a good idea to do so. Even then she didn't seem too concerned.

My daughter got an evaluation thru the school district. They have a specific office for such things mandated by Federal Law. There is an Early Intervention program for which he was qualified but the program only goes up to age 3. He then went into a different program that has less resources. He's now 9 and is still speech delayed.

Your son may just be a late talker and the evaluation can suss some of that out. They may recommend and provide speech therapy or they may tell you to not be concerned. You really want to start with therapy now if he needs it.

Not to scare you but my grandson was not thought to be on the autism schedule at that time either. He also responded well, was able to communicate tho not with speech, and followed directions at 2 years. But he has not developed consistently and is now thought to be high functioning. We are so glad that he has been getting services to not only help him to learn but to also be able to identify needs early on.

Get an evaluation. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

That is about the age I got the referral for my younger son for speech.

My 2nd son was a slow talker (actually all of my boys were but I remember being very concerned with him). I remember that his pediatrician said that if he didn't have 10 words by his second birthday, that she would consider an early intervention evaluation but that she was confident that he would talk when he was ready and the he was showing adequate signs of non-verbal communication (could get what he wanted via gestures and understood what people were saying). At 24 months he has EXACTLY 10 words so no EI. He didn't really start speaking a lot or well until he was closer to age three and hasn't stopped talking since then. He is now 8 and talks loudly and relentlessly.

If you trust your pedi, I would follow her lead. A lot of kids, especially boys, wait until age three or older to really talk fluently.

Yes! Two of my three boys were speech delayed. I took them for their initial evaluation at 18 months. By 2y 3m they were done with speech and completely caught up! Every state has a free program that offers evaluation and services for children birth-age 3. It is not dependent on your income in any way. In Kansas the program is called Tiny-K. In Oklahoma it was called Sooner Start. Don't wait any longer!! My son (who was in speech) is now 27 months and has well over 200 words and learns 3-5 new words a day!

It would be good to call Early Intervention. Depending on who comes out, they can be alarmist or laid back. The EI baseline is 50 words by age 2 and starting to put words together. It is a little wierd that he knows his ABCs, truthfully. Another thing to consider if he using words functionally or descriptively. Like my son knew about 20 words at 2 but a lot of them were like ball and car. Not yes, no, give, ect.

Your school district or county should have a version of Child Find, where they can do an evaluation on your child and assess his needs and where his abilities are. Ask the pediatrician if the district's website doesn't have information.

I had an evaluation done for DD and they said that while there were areas she could work on, she did not specifically need intervention at this time. Your son may be within norms or may need intervention, but an evaluation will tell you where he is. He may understand a lot more than he can communicate. There are a lot of developmental behaviors and delays that have nothing to do with Autism, but if you are concerned, you should find out what you are working with. My friend's son has a speech delay and therapy has done wonders for his ability to communicate with his peers.

My oldest was the same way. Obviously paid attn, followed directions, communicated with other sounds and gestures...just very few words. She didn't "catch up" with what I read was average or normal until almost her 3rd bday. She is/was totally fine. She's reading above grade level in K this year and academically very sharp. So with the info you've given about your son, I would say not to worry. BUT if you feel, in a mom's intuition sort of way, that your son needs some help, then seek it out.

Will he make eye contact? Does he enjoy playing with other kiddos, or does he isolate himself? Those are signs of Autism.

I don't think I'd be worried yet (I have a 14 year old with Autism, he was diagnosed at almost 3 years). Just make sure you are talking to him, talk, talk, talk. Give him the name for everything from what is on his plate to the toys he's playing with.

Good Luck.

M

My advice. Pediatricians tend to say there isn't anything wrong (they said that to me and my son turned out to have autism). If you have a gut feeling that he needs speech therapy you are probably right. Getting him assessed at a children's hospital (speech pathology dept.) or with a speech pathologist would really help determine what is going on. Then you can proceed on how best to help him. Helping your son now will really help him have better experiences in pre-school and elementary school. Good luck.

My oldest son (now 21) had a severe speech delay. By severe I mean no words until about the age of 4/5. In that day and age no one would touch him till he was 2 1/2-3, and 2 1/2 was rare. The Shriners did take him cause they could see that this wasn't going to right itself. What that meant for me was that every kid that followed was watched a lot more carefully by me.

Here's what I can tell you from personal experience...most kids don't say anything till about 2- 2 1/2. I've had completely non-verbal children wake up one day after their second birthday talking as if they always have been. It's like once they have something to say they say it and they don't stop, and it's not just my children either.

Only 2 of my 8 spoke before the age of 2. My 7th spoke at about 20 months, and the 8th spoke at 19 months....and she never stops. From what you are saying, the ability is there, he just doesn't feel the need yet.

Theres a new study out, can't remember where exactly I read it, that shows the average age for child speech is between 2 and 3 years of age. The bigger question is really comprehension (which my son had none), can they respond to commands, are they meeting other milestones. If you can answer yes, then hold off a little longer.