Early Intervention Question

Maya - posted on 09/24/2011

Early intervention can't hurt and it could be a lot of fun for your son.

Jen - posted on 09/24/2011

My pediatrician recommended we apply for EI when my son wasn't speaking (except "ball") at 15 months. We started him on speech and occupational therapy at 18 mos, and it was a huge help. I know a lot of responders have said that their children were diagnosed with autism or other problems after entering Early Intervention. Just for a different perspective - my son is now almost 10, and he's totally normal and healthy. His delays were caused by being a third child (brother & sister did his talking for him) and some medical problems he went through as a baby. Whether your son is just taking his time to begin talking or has other issues, getting him speech can only be a help, imo.

Vivian - posted on 09/24/2011

We started Early Intervention at 24 months n it made a huge difference. My son was saying less than 10 words, its been 31/2 months n he said about 100 words! Less tantarums, he points at things or holds my hand n walks me over to whatever he's trying to get. I would recommend it. Im very happy that he can finally communicate with me other than crying for things. Getting him help will make your life so much easier for both of u. Good luck!

Michelle - posted on 09/24/2011

I work with children every day in an early intervention setting. Not talking is not the only sign of autism, not social, scared of loud noises, doesn't like to be touched. Some children are late bloomers, some are just laid back lazy movers and talkers. Be involved with therapist and your child can only benefit from the help.

Julie - posted on 09/24/2011

my son couldn't even say mommy at 2&1/2. We started early intervention and then got free pre-k because he qualified for special services. He is now 4 and he will be declassified from special ed at the end of the school year because he now speaks at a completely average level for his age. Early intervention is a great help and it's free!! You'll be so glad you did this for your baby and the earlier the better!

Monique - posted on 09/24/2011

try the birth to three program and speech therapy which is sometimes offered through your local early childhood center or school district. if not the speech therapy is sometimes covered by insurance or at least partially. you shouldn't compare babies to other babies they all talk in their own time, but he is delayed if he is 20 mos and can only say 2 words. look at a development timeline for his age and it will tell you where his development is supposed to be for his age.

Jessica - posted on 09/24/2011

At 18mths my son was talking up a storm so when my 2nd child, my little girl, hit 2 and wasn't talking hardly at all I was concerned by my ped wasn't as concerned. She expressed herself through grunts, pointing, and whining and crying and maybe 3 or 4 words like "no". My ped said if we were understanding her needs and she was trying to express herself, she was probably ok but to watch her over next few months and bring her back if she didn't develop. This was in July...by Thanksgiving she had a full vocab. It was as if she had been working on her vocab the whole time and then just all of a sudden started spouting it out. I agree with what someone else said, that age 2 is a milestone for talking but all kids are different, some take a little longer! You might be surprised what a few months can do! But there is no harm in trying EI, I doubt it could hurt at all.

Katie - posted on 09/24/2011

My son was not speaking by 18 months either. Made two sounds to repeat "dog" and "dad". He made no gestures or express his wishes, only displeasures. We have had him in early intervention program ever since. We too started him out teaching him sign language and using sing language DVDs. "Signing Times". He is now 4 and has since been diagnosed with autism. Definately starting early intervention is important. We met with our case worker for the first time and wish we had him from the beginning! Some one who knows the system and can be your advocate. Good luck! I know once you start intervention you will notice some progress.

Amie - posted on 09/24/2011

I teach early intervention and believe it is a wonderful program that is really beneficial to most children who attend.
Although some of the children who attend our program are likely to be diagnosed with disorders such as autisim as they get older most are with us because of delays with speech, fine or gross motor and most will go onto a mainstream kindergarten program when they are old enough. My own son went through early intervention and when he reached school his teacher commented on how well he held a pencil and used a pair of scissors, it was all that practice he got when he was at EI.
Don't fear it, I'm sure you and your child will love it.

Edith - posted on 09/23/2011

Both of my children had speech problems ( 1 "normal", 1 with Downs) You would never know the first one had a problem. The younger (18 yr.old) stell gets speech and can be understood most of the time but uses sign when he needs to. Every child learns at his or her own rate. My baby knew things my nephew 2 months older "normal" did not know. We worked with our child on many things that the nephew was not taught but my child can not do many things the other child could do. Never underestatment what any child can do. Our child reminds us of that regularly. He lets know he knows something when it suits him. When we went for his last IEP with a new teacher I told her we needed to be sure that sign was part of his speech. Then explained when he was young he was tested by a teacher at a school for deaf when she was visting his caregiver. She was shocked at what he knew for his age and not using it all the time. My child had not even told the new teacher he knew any sign. Today she told me he is a big help to her with a new student to his class. Never think a child can not do something because you have not seen or heard it. I am not saying to just dismiss the fact your child does not do something. Get the help your child needs to be sure he can function at the highest level possible. Good luck

Danielia - posted on 09/23/2011

My son is on the spectrum. As an infant he had sleep problems. We couldn't seem to get him on a sleep schedule. He had skin allergies ( eczema, and mastocytosis). He didn't eat quite as much as other children at his age. He was a picky eater. I think it's a sensory issue. He likes bananas, yogurt, grapes, hot and cold cereal...nothing tart, spicy or with a lot of texture. He also seems to have seasonal allergies. There seems to be a correlation between allergies, inflammation, and autism.

Jennifer - posted on 09/23/2011

My daughter only says 6 words and is almost 3 years old. Your child might have other medical problems, I would call early intervation.My daughter is in early intervation, we are learning sign language together (including my 1 year old daughter too and she is healthy), she is with kids her age with the same signs, giving me adult time with other parents going through the same thing. My daughter teacher picked up on things that I was over looking.

Elizabeth - posted on 09/23/2011

When we went for my sons 2 year check up ( he's 4 now) we were worried about his speech. Our pediatrician said if he got to 2 1/2 w/o picking up stuff, then we would worry. I think that 2 year mark is a big step developmentally. They are still just babies, don't worry. If you start the program, and don't care for it, don't take him anymore. It's worth a shot IMO. I wouldn't stress about it though. If he is happy as can express himself in other ways, I wouldn't be concerned.

Julianne - posted on 09/23/2011

words are not whats important at this point. Its how many different SOUNDS he can make.

Nikki - posted on 09/23/2011

My son is turned 3 last month and I can only understand like maybe 10% of what he says and he only has like 10 words he can say and he doesn't even say those clearly. Back in April his doctor referred him to a speech therapist, (who's been seeing him once a week since then, and hasn't made much progress) who reffered him to early steps,( try this program, the therapist comes to your home, but when he turns 3 they can no longer see the child, but this program works well) who them got him into school in pre k in an ESE program. Hopefully school will help and he'll be talking by the end of the year. Just don't wait. If he's not speaking and you are worried about it then you do something about it. Unfortunately when my son was 2 and I told his doctor I was worried she said to wait untill he was closer to 3 and I listened. I shouldn't have listened, I should have told her that I wanted a refferal when he was 2. If I had he would probably be speaking well by now. Goodluck.

KAREN - posted on 09/23/2011

hi, i haved similar situation, when my son was 3 he barely said 8 words, and my pediatrician told me that i need to wait cause every kid is different, but i wasn`t sure, she decide to send him to make a hearing test and everyting was ok, thnks god, but then i recived a call, from de hospital and the was talking to me about early intervention. i was so scare, cause every one want their kids are perfect,with no problem but the reality is other. but im my case i use it, when my son was 2 he was talking like he was, 1, and that time he has a speech delay, he gets therapies twice a week and let me tell you he really improve, now my angel is 6 and he speak perfect, jus thanks cause i made the right desicion on time. please dont loose time help your child if he need the help, trust me you never going to regret. good luck, god bless you and your family.

Amellia - posted on 09/23/2011

Every child does learns differently and at different paces because of many reasons one could be that there's more than one languages in the home and that sometimes can cause more difficulty. I requested an evaluation for my daughter at 18 months because she only used 1 word and that was juice after the evaluation I was told that she was perfectly fine and within 6 months up until today I can't quiet her down because she's a talker now at almost 6 years old and is in a gifted program. I was not hesitant when I thought she might have needed extra help because I  work in a school with children with special needs and can see the major changes just 1 year can bring. It is absolutely of a greater benefit the younger the child is to get that child the help they need in order to be performing at their age level. Never hesitate because of stigma or fear after the child is evaluated if services are needed it's best before age five.

Heather - posted on 09/23/2011

When me son was turned 2, my husband and I saw that there was something wrong. He didn't say anything even though we would try basic easy words like dada or mama, dog, cat etc. I know that two year olds have temper tantrums but he's was beyond that. He would point to what he wanted and when we couldn't understand that he would bang his head on the floor, table, you name it, it was bad. We took him to his ped's and he recommended EI. They came out to our home, took an assessment, worked out a routine for us. He was 22 months when they took the assessment and it turned out that he was operation at an age of a 12 month old. They sent a lady out once a week to our home to help with his speech and cognitive delays until he was three which is when they helped enrolled him in our local school district with EI also for preschool. He still has speech and cognitive delays. He is now 9 years old and has speech twice a week in school and is in "special needs" classes in school and even though he is 9 years old, he operates at about 6 maybe 7 years old. But wants to be so like all the other kids. I couldn't love him any less. He's my world and I love him. EI will only help your child so I would recommend it. It worked mirocles with our son. Good luck.

Amy - posted on 09/23/2011

Did his dr check his hearing? My son was having trouble also when he was little & the hearing test showed he had fluid behind his ears. We had ear tubes put in & his adnoids taken out & he started talking less than a month later. Good luck!

Karen - posted on 09/23/2011

My 2yr old only had a 10 word vocabulary. We did do speach therapy (it was done in a group because he was rated as being mild because he could understand everything that was said to him) in a matter of months he was speaking sentences! I would definately get him evaluated, there is nothing wrong with getting an opinion. Early intervention for anything is key!!

Kim - posted on 09/23/2011

Our son was 12 months old and not even babbling. We did a year of early intervention speech therapy, 2 x week 45 minutes each session. By age 2 he was discharged at now at 2 1/2 speaks in 4 to 5 word sentences. Sometimes our children just need a little help to get started. The sooner you refer him the better.

Amanda - posted on 09/23/2011

I agree children learn at different times but it wouldnt hurt to sign him up. My middle child had speech issues, I listened to everyone around me with their bs of "boys speak later" blah blah blah. Once he enter school no one could understand him he went through years of speech theorpy and a ton of picking on. So when I noticed around 2 years old that my youngest also wasnt speaking well, I rushed her off to speech, shes now 3, hasnt even started her speech yet (not sure what is wrong with them.) but has started preschool. In 3 weeks shes gone from a child no one can understand to a child who never stops talking. Though she never has recieved the theorpy she deserves yet, it was such a relief to know I was doing something to help this child do her best.

Amy - posted on 09/23/2011

My daughter is 18 months old and only says mom and when she feels like it hi! I will be calling birth to three to have an evaluation done on her expressive language. Our doctor is not overly concerned but since it's 6 months till her next appointment he feels that's to long for a wait and see. Our daughter does do some sign language but a lot of its random stuff like elephant and bird so it doesn't necessarily help with every day stuff. A good signing website is www.signingsavvy.com. I just wanted to let you know you're not alone, it could be we have late talkers but everyone says early intervention is best, so it's best to have the evaluation done and figure out your options!

Denikka - posted on 09/23/2011

My son was a late talker (not quite so late, he had about 3 words at 16mo. mom, dad and KITTY! (always said with an exclamation XD))
He was more concerned with walking and doing the physical things. Talking was last on his list of things he cared about XD
Even up to his 2nd birthday, he didn't care much about talking. He had some words and could make himself understood, but wasn't really expressing himself to any extent.
It's only been recently, in the past 6 months or so (since after his 2nd birthday), that he has started to REALLY verbalize (and now it doesn't stop XD he even talks in his sleep!! XD)
If you're concerned, get your kiddo evaluated :) There's nothing wrong with that at all. There's a TON of things out there that you can try, from speech therapy to the sign language.
Just know that there may not be anything *wrong* with your child. There's a chance that he'll hit his second birthday and start chattering away like mine did (and yes, I had the same concerns as you). Go with your instincts :) Mommy knows best :)
Good luck with your little one :)

Gillian - posted on 09/22/2011

Clair, thank you as well for commenting, i bought a 26 disk set off amazon when my son was first born, it was random movies but there was 1 sign language movie, ill try that out i know a friend of his is 2 months older and thats how she started out, by leaning to sign. i will pm you if i have any other concerns. thanks again!

Gillian - posted on 09/22/2011

Jenn Im sorry to hear that he went back to live with his mother but it wasnt for nothing, you helped him with the most important lessons of all, speech and basic letters! thank you for sharing your story with me!

Claire - posted on 09/22/2011

Hi Gillian! Our little guy is about to "age-out" of EI in a few weeks. He had a similar timeframe as your son and has improved over the last year of speech therapy. Try with all your might to learn basic sign language for everyday items so you all don't end up in a mess of frustration. We got the Baby Einstein 3-disk set and although he has only mild interest in it, the little bit he's mastered has helped on a daily basis. As for EI, if you know a caseworker, REQUEST HER!!!! If you just don't mesh well with the assigned worker, request another person. Having someone on your side will make all the procedural talk and paperwork that much easier. The actual services he will receive are based on his evaluations, and everything is age-appropriately play-based.

PM me if you want to talk more.

Jenn - posted on 09/22/2011

About a little over s year ago I gained custody of my nephew, whom was in the same boat but wa 4yrs old and couldn't speak, know his alphabet, colors, shapes, animals, cried when he was happy and vice versa. We used a child therapist whom was accredited in his "special needs" area, and it helped unbelievably. As well I worked one on one with him with all these things and he was able to overcome it. But sadly the court system gave his mom custody back and it was all for nothing it was reversed automatically. The sad thing was my son was a full 1.5yrs younger than him and was way above his level. Yes all kids develop differently, but it had a lot to do with my nephews upbringing.