23 month old still not talking

amother

Blue

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 9:38 am

Would you worry? Start therapy?

He says maybe 6 words. The rest is just babble or singsong. Had his hearing checked and some issues there. Very thick fluid so we have visit in 2 weeks to ENT for tubes evaluation. He seems like he DOES hear me and follows commands or is responsive when I say I'll bring his passy or bottle. He does point to body parts and when he wants something he physically shlepps me to what he wants. Should I be doing an evaluation other than ENT?

bsy

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 9:41 am

It doesnt hurt to be evaluated. Typically at this age we expect 2 words to be used together, but that usually happens once the child has about 50 words. It's possible he's a bit behind because of fluid and will catch up, but why not have an eval to make sure?

mha3484

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 9:48 am

I had a similar situation and made an apt for an eval. Joke was on me because he went through a verbal explosion a little after his second birthday.

Was he delayed in any other area. My son had physical delays and the PT said sometimes they focus so hard one skill (ours was walking) that they ignore the other stuff. She was right. He speech improved dramatically once he had made enough progress to graduate from PT.

MyUsername

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 9:48 am

I would get him evaluated. It's likely that his small vocabulary is due to the fluid in his ears, but it's worth checking out. And if he needs help catching up, starting earlier is always better. Either they'll tell you to come back a few months after the tubes to see how his speaking advanced, or they'll tell you he's fine, or they'll tell you there is something they can do to help him now. No losses here.

Miri1

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 9:52 am

Evaluate, and get the ball rolling, it can only help him. The turn around time from the first phone call to EI until the first therapy session can be a good few weeks.

amother

Pink

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 10:00 am

I would say evaluate. You're going to get a ton of comments here from people whose kids didn't talk till 4 and then woke up one day speaking full sentences and is in no way delayed, but the fact is, those stories are rare. Better safe than sorry. Maybe he has a bit of a delay and a little bit of help can correct it sooner. Maybe there is more going on that will be uncovered and you can get right to work on addressing it. Or maybe it's nothing. But you have nothing to lose by looking into it and everything to gain.

amother

Blue

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 10:04 am

He never crawled. He would scoot on his bottom. He started walking at 14.5 months. Can his lack of speech me linked and if so can it be reversed?

OMG!

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 11:06 am

My son didn't say a single word till after his 2nd birthday. Then he started with one sentence at a time. So clear and beautiful. And hasn't stopped talking with perfect language, since then.
My pediatrician told me all the time not to worry.

SixOfWands

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 11:11 am

OMG! wrote:

For every child like this, there are 10,000 who benefited, or would have benefited, from EI.

If you're concerned, start the ball rolling. If you're in the US, its free. If all is well, you'll be relieved. And if he needs EI, he'll get the help he needs, and you'll still be relieved.

FranticFrummie

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 11:13 am

amother wrote:

Absolutely. Another vote here, evaluation won't do any harm, and you'll feel better.

DD only had 4 words at that age, and a month later she was talking in paragraphs (and hasn't shut up since. LOL

) My sister's boy didn't speak until after he turned 4, and it turned out that he has Asperger's. There are a million other reasons and results in between. Only a team of professionals can tell you for sure what's going on.

amother

Pink

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 11:19 am

OMG! wrote:

My pediatrician also told me not to worry. "Every kid is different" and "boys talk later anyway". My son ended up diagnosed with autism. Baruch Hashem I listened to my mom and got EI as soon as I was concerned. Early intervention is known to make a HUGE difference, especially in cases that are very borderline.

greenfire

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 11:21 am

I've been trying to get my niece to evaluate her 2 2/3 son ... she won't budge & while he is certainly getting better he also gets frustrated not being able to communicate ... I think there is nothing to lose

some kids are early, others are later ... but there is wonder when a kid wants to communicate & most kids their age do talk

FranticFrummie

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 11:21 am

amother wrote:

Yep. Don't EVER let a doctor brush you off. Let them think you are a hysterical mom, but follow your instincts at all costs. Remember, they work for YOU!

amother

Crimson

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 11:58 am

amother wrote:

He never crawled. He would scoot on his bottom. He started walking at 14.5 months. Can his lack of speech me linked and if so can it be reversed?

If he walked at 14.5 months, than there isn't a significant problem here (my daughter didn't walk until she ~2, so we know all about motor delays). Not all kids crawl, and it usally doens't mean anything if the rest of their gross motor skills are on time. The speech issue would most likely not be related. You can always mention it at an evaluation to be sure though.

Iymnok

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 12:12 pm

Whats thenorm in your family?
My son wasn't talking much at 22mo. At about two he picked it up, as if it just clicked. He's almost three now and we have a constant running commentary from him.
There were about ten babies born within two weeks of him in our community, so I was comparing milestones with those other kids.
It sounds normal, but it could very well be an intervenable problem as well.
You could wait a month or two or just get him evaluated now.

thunderstorm

Tue, Jan 17 2017, 12:21 pm

OP, I'm happy to hear that you have an ENT appointment. I have huge regret that I didn't get my DS tubes sooner. He understood all my commands but heard them like he was underwater. He spoke the way he heard. For example: What happened? He said "Uh Ah-in? The day he got tubes he went to the bathroom and flushed the toilet and jumped from the sound. He was shocked when he heard an airplane flying above him. He never heard those sounds before because of the fluid. He ended up getting tubes three times until about age 10 and Baruch HaShem that made a huge difference. But that fact that I didn't take him sooner affected his speech. Even with speech therapy afterward . Please don't ignore this. As I was someone who did and regret it.