15 months old with speech delay

Jessica - posted on 11/19/2010

I can't believe your doc said that. 15 months is really young! I took my first son to a speech therapist at about 22 months by his pedi's recommendation. It was a waste of money! The speech therapist said he was fine and sure enough he was - now at age 3 he talks like crazy.

Tiffany - posted on 11/10/2010

"Issue"?! I hope your doctor doesn't think this is an "issue"? This certainly is by no means an issue. For one, boys tend to talk later than girls. And ALL kids talk at different rates; some later than others. I see you have a photo with four children. If these are all yours, many times the younger children will feel less of a need to talk because their siblings do it for them-so what do they need to? I surely wouldn't be worried about this. If your son was 3 and only saying mama and dada THEN I'd be worried. My son doesn't talk a whole lot either for a 16 month old, but I know he will with time. Don't fret the small things. One day you'll look back and wonder where the little guy who didn't talk went:)

Joanne - posted on 11/02/2010

i do have the same dilema with my 1yo 4mo old baby. By now he should be saying mama or papa but nothing. We took him to a doctor and have his ears checked, they say everything is fine with his hearing. It just that he doesn't know how to say words according to the developmental pedia, not exactly speech delay.

So we always have a special time together and make him look at my mouth while I say the words. So far he can say Mama and Papa some couple of times, but now he imitates sound that catches his attention. I figured he don't say the words if he doesn't see what it is. So I take pictures or we look at magazines and point at objects. I thought at first its not helping but now he knows action words like run and clap... its a lot of effort but it pays.

Allison - posted on 10/30/2010

My 16 month old has a vocabulary of about 40 words that we understand BUT I think a great deal of that comes from the fact that he has an older brother who's 4 that spends a lot of time with him. The little one already says Elmo, Diego, Wiggles, most body parts (common ones) a slew of animals including elephant (ephant) mommy and daddy as well as 6 other first names, and I think most of it comes from his brother always playing with him and trying to get him to say words correctly. My 4 year old didn't say half of what the younger one says and he's very smart with an above average vocabulary now!! No Worries!!

Amanda - posted on 10/29/2010

i understand your dr just wants to rule out some problems that it could be(but very unlikely) i find drs make us mommas worry way too much sometimes. My daughter is 16mths old and has been saying mama and dada since about 10mths. until about 3 mths ago she only ever said it when she was upset or tried, now she will point to us in person or in a picture and say mama or dada. Also in the past mm i'd say 2mths she has picked up on alot more words, i swear everyday she says something new, or at least tries really hard to. It will come when they are ready, i was worried for the longest time that she wasnt saying as many words as other kids her age or some even younger, but then again she also was the 1st kid in our lil playgroup to walk, she completely skipped crawling, and she was the 1st to give up the bottle and move to a sippy cup. she was also the first to wave and give kisses, so in some areas she has been advanced and im sure other moms are sitting there watching her and wondering why their kid doesnt do that. its because every child has their own priorities and ways of learning things, some kids put more effort into their physical learning instead of their verbal, eventually they will learn to talk(real words) and when that day comes, watch out, because then it doesnt stop haha. I've also started telling my daughter the things I'm doing, like when im making her lunch, i tell her what im making, and kind of explain the things i do as i go, she seems to be very amused by it and it's also allowing her to hear new words that she might not hear every day. I found it was easiest for my daughter to understand and say animal noises, she caught onto those quick and says them all the time now, ex: Moo, Ruff, Meow, Hoo-Hoo(for an owl) she wiggles her nose and sniffs for a bunny(cutest thing).

Terri - posted on 10/29/2010

my daughter is 16months and 3weeks she only say dada and yeah and clap while saying that. she just had an Dr. appt 3 days ago and the dr. did asked me if I wanted her hearing to be evaluated and I was like no. she listen to my commands especially when I say no and plus she respond immediately when I called her. I wouldnt worried. I google this info and also other parents told me babies normally start to talk more when they are about 18months or close to 2yrsold. my daughter is physically well have yet gotten sick with a cold or anything.but she is an only child and she around me and adults more than other kids.

Catherine - posted on 10/29/2010

My son is 16 months and although he has quite a few words, his cousin who's a girl has many many more lol. Also, my little brother (who is now 5 and recently had many tests done and the results being "gifted", or extremely intelligent both intellectually and emotionally for his age) didn't speak a word more than mom and hi until past his second birthday! I wouldn't worry too much unless he's not responsive or seems to be losing more responses he was previously able to use than gaining.

Susan - posted on 10/29/2010

Oh rubbish! 15 months old!! It's 18 months old they should have 3 words and that's including Mama and Dada.

Boys are notoriously slower than girls at developing their speech.

If he's listening to you and understands you and does babble in his own language then I wouldn't be too concerned.

My son is 16 months old only says Mama Dada and car.

I'm not worried as he talks loads in his own 'speak'
I think Doctors these days tend to jump the gun a bit in my opinion!

Pamela - posted on 10/29/2010

My 16 month old daughter only says a couple of words but she understands a LOT of things I say. I'm not worried at all. In a few months I'm sure they will all be talking.

Rachel - posted on 10/28/2010

My daughter is 16 months old and she is not saying anything other than Mom, Dad and Ball really clear. Her sound of choice is baa. She is saying alot in her own little laungage. She understands everything I tell her. My doctor told me to encourage more sounds to her. , and we have been. It has helped,but I am not too worried yet. I will see what happens between now and 18 months.

Kristina - posted on 10/28/2010

my 16 month old daughter can say hot bubba and baby oh and mama and dada but that is about it and has no idea what it all means. she just says it when we say it. dont be worried all kids develope differently and personally if there not saying 3 or more words but now that is perfectly normal.

Belinda - posted on 10/27/2010

my 16 month old only says parts of words. "AY" for amen, "AYE" for bye, "AY" for hey, and "AY" for yay. That's about it. She has failed all hearing tests on her rt side and half on her lt side. We have a hearing eval tomorrow to get a referral for an audiologist. So that may be part of her speaking probs.

Monica - posted on 10/27/2010

I think it's ridiculous to call it a speech delay at this age. All kids learn at different times. Expose him to other kids, read to him a lot and just point to objects all the time. He will eventually start talking. It's going to come a point that he will not stop talking. Maybe if by 3 years old he's still not saying much then I would start worrying.

Jennifer - posted on 10/27/2010

My 16 month old doesn't say anything either, besides dada and ba (ball). The doctor mentioned it, but didn't seem too concerned since he has great motor skills (apparently very active babies speak later), plus he's male (they often start later than females), and he babbles a lot using intonation that sounds like language...so it's coming. She just said that she would check it again at his 18 month appointment. I wouldn't worry too much...just talk to him a lot and read him stories so he picks up different vocabulary...I'm sure he'll be jabbering your ear off in no time! :)

Cindy - posted on 10/27/2010

My 16 month old son has ear infections as well and I think it may be why he's not said an awful lot. He does say some words, including mama, dada, ball, bad and bye bye. He hasn't, however, said many words on a regular basis, but he seems to understand a lot. For example, he loves to look at birds, and sometimes he'll actually say bird but so rarely. He'll also say bite and the other day he said bowl. I love the Baby Einstein videos. He said bowl the other day when we were watching one of those.

Samantha - posted on 10/26/2010

my little girl only says da da or daddy, never mama, she does say no and a few other words but nothing else really, when she was a year old she way saying eyes and nose and head ect, but she never says them now.

Nicole - posted on 10/26/2010

My 16 month old is still not talking, but his brother didn't talk until he was about 18 months, and nothing in english until he was almost 2. The one thing that seemed to pop open the talking of my older guy was watching Dora and Go Diego Go. They both encourage the kids to talk back to the TV. I am not a big TV mom, but I will say that it did help. All kids talk at different times. Don't let your Dr scare you. The usual is that kids that talk first, do physical stuff later, and vice versa. My guys both walked without assistance before 11 months, and ran before 1 year. Trust me ... enjoy the silence while you can LOL.

Jess - posted on 10/26/2010

My son is the same, at 16 months he just babbles a lot and says ma ma ma and mmmoooorrre for more food etc, and ca ca for our cat and wooo for the dog. But I'm not worried, my daughter (who just turned 3) was exactly the same, by the time she was 21 months I was getting vaguely worried about her, I thought almost two year olds were supposed to speak a fair bit more than she did! But then from 22 months, till about 25 months she just started communicating and learning new words CONSTANTLY! She had a really big word explosion, and now at only just three, she has a language base that is as developed as most 4-5 year olds! I have learned that these things just happen when they happen! Stress doesn;t make it any easier on the child, by the time our kids are all school aged they will be about the same in skills anyway! :)
Don't worry, your son will speak in what seems like no time, and then you'll be like me, wondering if the questions and noise and CONSTANT talking will EVER stop! :)

REBEKAH - posted on 10/26/2010

My son doesn't speak either. He makes noises like hums for "uh oh" and "thank you" but he doesn't open his mouth and speak. I am not concerned and I would not say that you should be either. He used to say mama and dada but he stopped that too. I know he is just absorbing the world right now and when he is ready he will speak. My cousin didn't speak until he was 3 and now you can't get him to stop. As long as he is alert, can hear, and is learning, I would not worry about his speech development.

Zuzanna - posted on 10/26/2010

So we had a speech evaluation and Arthur's communication level was measured at a 12 months level (he was 15 1/2 months at the evaluation). They said that he qualified for early intervention and speech therapy, however there is a two months waiting list for the therapy! They said it's just play therapy at this young of an age, so now my husband and I are trying to work more on pointing out specific things while saying the word, reading more books, showing him how to play with a specific toy, etc. I have also set up weekly play-dates for him as I feel contact with other children is one thing he has definitely been lacking. His hearing test was normal, but he does still have fluid in his ears so they want to recheck that in a month. Physically his development is right on, and he interacts well with others so they said that they did not suspect any form of autism, just an isolated speech delay. I will keep you guys posted on our progress.

Amy - posted on 10/26/2010

My little girl can say around 15-20 words and I try to talk to her all the time. She also goes to nursery twice a week -- Try your best to encourage your little boy to talk and he'll soon get the hang of it :) x

Sheila - posted on 10/25/2010

My 15 month old is a walker, climber, immitator, babbler but definitely can't formulate words yet. I was getting worried but now I'm not because she is learning so fast to do other things and her reasoning skills and dexterity are top notch, I'm sure she'll talk only when she's good and ready. Doctors tend to fuss too much, trust your instincts if nothing shows up in the tests and stop worrying. Soon you'll be wishing he would just shut up already..lol..

Tanya - posted on 10/24/2010

My 16 month old says mama, dada, gamma (grandma), papa, meow, kittie, puppy, horsie, uh oh, hi, no, yes, ni ni (at bed time), juice, shoes, teeth, nose, eyes, ears, elmo, car car, cow. I think there are a few more....but thats just the ones hes used this weekend. Oh, he says coat, hat, shoes and gocks (socks).

Marianne - posted on 10/23/2010

Every kid develops at a different rate. My middle child is 3 and only at her 3 year check up did they worry about her speech being so far behind. She had very large adenoids and needed pressure eqalization tubes. she is fine. I think doctors make mommies worry even more than we already do

Janessa - posted on 10/23/2010

Both my boys, including my 16 month old now, didn't say much at this age. My 16 month old says uh oh really well, and Mama and Dada, and then everything else is your guess. I am not worried at all, my other little boy did the same thing, they figure it out eventually and at their level, as long as they are progressing it is fine. They progress fastest in the areas they think are most important, and both of my boys thought coordination was more important, whereas my daughter was talking at a really early age. He'll be fine.

Molly - posted on 10/22/2010

My first son did not say a word besides mama and dada till he was twenty months old! He is the smartest sweetest best little boy ever. Just a late talker. They all do things differently. Don't worry.

Jessica - posted on 10/22/2010

Something not often mentioned is that the major language development gains at 18 months. At that age, you should see a huge increase in vocabulary. Some doctors are more proactive in addressing "delays" prior to then while others see it fine as waiting and reassessing then. This is purely preference, but research does show that late talkers are late readers. Another thing to pay attention to is your child's comprehensive language. Perhaps they are not speaking many words, but are they comprehending many?

Erin - posted on 10/22/2010

My daughter is 16 months, and at her 15 month checkup, she wasn't saying anything other than mama and dada, and those not usually with much meaning. In the last month, she has added "hi," "kit ka" (which I'm convinced is kitty-cat), "nana" (which is definitely banana!), "baaw" for ball, and sometimes a sound that she uses to mean "shoe". She understands more and more all the time, and I keep listening for more words. I was worried at 15 months, but she's picked up those magic "3 words" in just a month, so I'm not worrying any more. She also seems to be developing her physical skills first like they say boys usually do. (Maybe I'll have a little tomboy, like her mother!) Your little one may surprise you and catch up like mine did. Be encouraging, and talk, read, sing, etc. to him, and watch to see if he understands you, but I think it's too early to worry just yet. (Although "don't worry" is easier said than done for us mothers!!) But if it puts your mind at ease, there's nothing wrong with having hearing tests or early intervention screenings. My daughter's doctor didn't suggest either of those for us, but if he had, I'd have done them.

Agustin - posted on 10/22/2010

My son is 16 and a half months now. He loves to babble alot in his own words from when he was before 1! But there are a lot of clear words he can say but it took me a while to figure out what he is actually is saying. We've just gotta try to listen carefully when they speak. They actually are saying proper words might be just a little off but its pretty close!



He copies words that I repeat alot and giving him a chance to say it. The more I repeat the word facing him like as i would when having a conversation with the more he would most likely to want to say it. I make it like a game. Lots and lots of nursery rhymes, etc. He says things other than mummy and daddy like "goggy" (doggy), "ba ba dadibadi" (bye bye daddy), "oka" (oscar, our dog), "bidi" (birdy), "brrbrr" (broom broom riding on his toy car), "nana" (banana)... and so on and so on. I must say it's really hard to catch what he said but if you listen careful enough you can actually hear words and watch what they point or look at when they say it! It's all words just in his own way! As he gets older they will develop into a much clearer and more unstanding words.

Elanor - posted on 10/22/2010

He's only 15 months! Don't worry. My 5 year old didn't say anything except mum and dad until 16 months (now he doesn't stop talking!!!!).
They all catch up soon enough. I would only worry by about 3.
You could always go to a baby signing class, it's good fun, and he may learn some signs!

Crystal - posted on 10/21/2010

is ur lil boy stubborn? bc i have a lil boy that is almost 16 mnths and all he says is mama n dada..but he is really stubborn!!!

Krystle - posted on 10/21/2010

It's really nothing to worry about, yet. My son just turned 16 m, and only says 'Dada'.....boy's are often develop late in regards to speech.

Don't let Doctors scare you - they have a range of "normal" but just because you child is a little outside that, doesn't make him "abnormal".

They all develop at their own pace and *YOU* will know, in time, if there is something wrong.

:)

Joannetimms - posted on 10/21/2010

sorry i would take no notice what so ever, i have 4 boys, from 13 to 1, my eldest is deaf yes he had a speach delay, they said my 10 yr old had speach delay when he was 2 and he was fine, these dr, and speach therapies half have no kids and go by books , they ll go bed one night and get up and can speak brilliant ,that happened to my 2 yr old now ...

Amanda - posted on 10/20/2010

thanks for all your comments everyone!

Alona - posted on 10/20/2010

Honestly at my dr's check up for 15 months she wasn't that concerned about my Daughters speech, she said that she's only suppose to really be saying mommy, and daddy, or mama, dada. I mean she does say hi every so often, but that's about it. And the Dr isn't too worried right now.

Nix - posted on 10/20/2010

wow thank goodness im not alone on this. the doc also said to us our little girl should be saying more words at this stage, cos she only really says dadda and mamma sumtimes, and iv tried to get her to repeat after me with words and nothing, just silence! we need help... :)

Jill - posted on 10/20/2010

My daughter is almost 16 months and the doc has been asking us for months now if she speaks 3 or more words.... Like other moms, I can report that she babbles A LOT and says dada and mum or mama. I'm not quite sure she knows what they mean. :-) She does point and grunt at things but she's slow using her words. We have also started reducing the use of her pacifier... That could have been impeding her progress so she only gets it at nap time and bed time... I think it is helping... she appears to be more vocal with her babbling. I am putting off the "early intervention" the pediatrician recommended... I just think she'll talk when she's ready... She was also a late crawler and walker...

Ava - posted on 10/20/2010

Yeah, my daughter doesn't really say words at all either. She says 'mama' and 'dada' as sounds. She doesn't know what they mean and rarely says them. I think it's purely on accident. She can sometimes mimic sounds like 'oh yeah' or 'i know', but she doesn't know what they mean either and she can't say them without being prompted to repeat like a parrot. The only saving grace is that she obviously understands a lot of commands. She knows what her bellybutton, nose, tongue and mouth are. She knows how to high five and fist pound when asked to. She knows to go find something when she's asked to find it. So I'm not worried about a speech delay even if she can't talk.

Liz - posted on 10/20/2010

Another boy here! 16 months and like many of your sons will only really say mamamamama and in quite a general way, not directed at me with real meaning or I'm not sure enough to say he is anyway. He also has dadada which he hardly ever says and meyum which is miriam his childminder. Miriam says he say Pa for Pat her son, and Ah for Aslan the dog but I'm not convinced! He is verbalsing lots though and as others have said communicates with pointing and quite a lot og squawking! I'm not really worried yet but I have an eye and I think I will take him for a check up if he is not showing more progress at 18m. The PHN and doctors haven't expressed any worries to me yet. HOpefully they are all just fine! He is still trying to walk and my mum said to me that they don't talk when they're trying to walk so maybe that is it.

Madelaine - posted on 10/20/2010

My son is 16 months and he doesnt have many words, he says da da da all the time, mum mum mum when hes distressed, uh (uh Oh) when he drops something and gat, which i used to think meant cat but now its just anything he points to.He babbles in his own language and makes lots of different sounds wit his lips and tongue. Notice all of us who have posted have sons? it must be a boy thing. My friend Jess Lyn has a daughter who is 2 months younger than my son and she has far more words, i believe its a gender issue. Stanley walked long before she did, age wise.

Theresia - posted on 10/20/2010

My son is now 16 months, he can wave goodbye and say ai (meaning bye) but he is not calling anyone except he can say ya ya ya or da da da, recently he said wow(In our language you say that when you hug someone that you haven't met for sometime and so I do say wow to him everyday when i get hopme from work) He also communicates by showing, for example if he wants a banana and he see it he will come touch you and show you the banana while saying i i i something like that. I am not worried right because they also have told me that boys aren't quick talking. He is physically fit and definately he can hear because I can send to bring me a phone by just talking without pointing at the phone and he understands and brings it.

Sara - posted on 10/19/2010

My 16 month old son only says da. He'll walk around all day going "da da da da" but won't say anything else. He also doesn't point at things or any other motion when he wants something. Our Dr has checked his hearing three times now and he has passed each one. He told us that as long as he is responsive to us that we shouldn't be too worried. I had worried about autism. We were also told to wait until he was 18 months old and if he didn't start talking by then that he would set us up an appointment with a speech therapist.

I have heard that some children, usually boys, will develop their physical attributes before working on other attributes, like speech. My son is definately very physical and has developed, in that area, really quickly. I am still worried though. The advice our Dr gave us was not to pressure him into saying words. Like, don't withhold things until he asks for it but to just talk to him alot and read to him alot.

Zuzanna - posted on 10/19/2010

Oh, I did have a friend that had a similar experience tell me that her Dr recommended more play dates, that kids learn well from other kids. My son definitely could spend more time with other kids. We live far from family and don't have many friends with kids our son's age so unfortunately his play dates are few and far between and I work from home so he has not been to daycare.

Zuzanna - posted on 10/19/2010

My son is almost 16 months and also barely speaks, well he does talk a lot, but nothing understandable. I also only get a mama when he is upset, wont call me mama otherwise. He is physically very well developed, but doesn't want to form words. At our 15 month appointment he was diagnosed with a mild isolated speech delay, our dr recommended a hearing test and speech evaluation which we have scheduled for this Thursday, I will post again after those. She said she wanted to rule out any hearing problems as he had had a few ear infections.

Honestly I feel like my son is perfectly fine, he listens and responds to me, just not with words that I can understand, he is also very happy and very interactive. I've spoken with many friends/family members and they all tell me not to worry, girls talk and boys walk, and been told by many that their son's did not speak until almost 2 years...well speak legibly :)