Developmental delay?

[uptheduff]

Well, we had an appointment with CYH this morning....my son has just turned 2, and he still doesn't speak...not a word. he has good comprehension, and i'm sure his hearing is fine. They're sending us off for a hearing test (in about 5 months time!!), and they're going to test him as well for a developmental delay.

anyway, just wondering if anyone has been through this before, what sort of things are they going to be looking at?

[JasmineLouise]

I have not been through this myself... but my youngest sister did not start speaking until 3. My mother and i were reading a magazine which suggested her vocabulary should include 400 words and at that time she only knew about 10. My mum just left the situation and eventually she just caught up. She's now at preschool and can communicate just as well as any other child.:)

I'm not suggesting you dont take the test iykwim... but just trying to show that it can be perfectly normal for this to be happening (unless of course it is a hearing problem). Hopefully they can put your mind at ease!!

Goodluck with it:fingerscrossed:

[li'l mac]

Hi there,
First of all, I can imagine you are worried about these suggestions and tests. I think it's great that your CHN is on the ball enough to look out for these things, because IF there is something to be looked into, the earlier you intervene the better. I work in special ed and though no expert on the matter, I hope I can fill some gaps. As a mum, you would have the best idea about how he is going.

If your DS's hearing is fine, it may be that your little one has developed receptive language skills (understands what you are saying) but hasn't yet developed expressive language skills (ie. communicating with you). If that's the case you will probably get a referral to a speech therapist to assist in developing language skills. A simple 'test' you can do for yourself is to give your DS a simple instruction (eg. sit down on the mat) and see how well he follows it. Then try adding additional steps (eg. go and pick up your dinosaur and give it to me). This is by no means a replacement for professional opinion, it is just a super quick way to see how much info he can process. Please forgive me if the egs I gave are above a 2yo, I'm used to working with older children! Just replace those egs with something more age appropriate if necessary...

In terms of testing for a developmental delay, I imagine they look at developmental milestones and see if there are a number of them outside the range of expected attainment. Again, if they find anything, you will probably get a referral for intervention which is great.

I'm sorry if this is really general but without knowing your son, it's hard to know. PM me if you want to ask anything or find the results confusing. I might be able to suggest some resources to help gather info.

Good luck!!:wave:

[TwoBlue]

My Ds is 27 months and says very little.. what he does say is "unclear" .
I believe while he can hear he cant hear well... iykwim?
We have an appointment with a specialist tommorrow so should be interesting...

I also believe he could just not be a big talker

i did have a friend who's DD didnt talk at all until she was a little over 3, she then started talking in complete sentences !!!

[MizzSocial]

My son is 19 months old, and he hardly says anything either.. but he is also just a quite boy in general..
The only words he has really said is cat, duck, and tries to say Dog and now is beginning to say Ball (says dool) instead..

He says mum and dad, but not directly to us...

He understand a lot though, follows simple instructions just fine..

My MCHN told me that i needed to check his hearing, so we did, it was fine..

Im not going to wait till he is 2 before i go and take him to a speech theorpiest as i personally think its just him being quite.. but i guess we will know in time..

let me know how you go..

[reAllytee]

i did have a friend who's DD didnt talk at all until she was a little over 3, she then started talking in complete sentences !!!


We also know someone with a child like this !
He waited until after all his appointments etc where they were sending him for more tests etc. Turned to his parents one day & asked for something in a complete beautifully worded sentence !

Some kids are like this & same with their motor skills they just wait until they are ready & confident !
My DS didnt start walking until recently so it meant we didnt have falls or anything he had taken his time to make sure he could do it & now even walks up & down stairs with a little of our help but isnt fazed at all ! He still only has a few words he says at 16mths but overall either say nothing or complete gibberish & thats fine he will do it all when he is ready.

Taking your DS to get tested of course is a good idea as someone said earlier this way you can rule anything out that may be hindering him. Just try not to stress as it may end up being nothing to worry about :hugs: