Is my child behind?
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@Natacia thank you
@Liinae thanks for your really sensitive reply…
When I need a more sensitive GP for me or a family member I will do the consult and just explain to reception I'm a bit anxious and could they please assign me to someone with a softer approach. So far I've had some wonderful doctors, may want to try this if you feel you're not being heard
At 18months my son could only say ‘ball’ and ‘no’, with lots of babbling. It was around the 20months mark we started seeing a real surge in his words. He’s 2 and a half now and can speak in full basic sentences. We did a 6 week free speech therapy class through our local family hub when he was around 18months as I was worried and they taught us things like to narrate everything we did, see what he was interested in and say words like that ‘oh a car, fast car, what a cool red car’ etc rather than things they’re not interested in. Try to avoid ‘can you say’ just say the word and related words. Speak slowly and clearly, read books with them when they’re cooperating. Let them see how your mouth is moving when you pronounce words if you can. Apologies if any of this is obvious or you’ve already been doing them 😂 even if you don’t think it’s working it’ll be going in. Mine will randomly come out with words or phrases from months ago when I didn’t think he was paying attention 😂
She’s only 18months old!! Please don’t worry yourself sick and just enjoy your baby. Her speech will come along, you don’t need to worry yourself unnecessarily.
Mine said about 5 words at 18 months, mama, dada and some sounds. Sounds count as words. It’s normal. But what does the doctor say? Some babies talk early and often and some take their time. Also keep in mind that 18-24 months is a huge language development stage. Some babies just explode their vocabulary at 2 years old. Give it time. Talk all day long to her. Keep talking to baby, reading books and singing songs. That is how she will learn. Also tell people to keep their comments and judgments to themselves.
@Natacia thank you. I’m definitely going to be seeking advice
@Rosie thank you. It’s really helpful!
@Lola thank you 😭
@Rebecca thank you so much. I will be seeking advice too for their opinion but it’s so helpful to get the opinion of other mums too
These messages are like a huge mum hug! Thank you so much! I’ve been on the brink of tears all morning and your comments have really really helped me! ❤️
You can get your child referred by GP for full developmental review and that can diagnose or support if needed
But it doesn’t sound too bad for you anyway so that will just give you peace e of mind
@Lorna-Jean thank you so much. I am going to seek some help
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She doesn't sounds being at all. Every baby goes at his own time. Please enjoy your baby. They are small for a really short time. Just distance yourself from shitty people messing with you about that and go out and enjoy your time with your baby. This is not gonna get back. If the anxiety is too much, please help yourself with therapy. Your baby is enough and doing great. So do you.
@Aurélie 😭❤️ thank you so so much!
It’s not normal. I would speak to your health visitor again . Read to her each day for 2 hours . Also watch miss Katie on YouTube
Don’t worry, and just get the help that you can. My son was behind, and it killed me seeing other kids way more advanced . He is now getting catching up and doing it at his own pace. I stopped comparing and just accepted that he’ll get there when he’s ready.
@Jay two hours!? Come on, be serious. No one has two hours to read to anyone. It sounds like she's doing a great job, babies are all on different timelines, and she's obviously doing all the right things and seeking help where she feels unsure. Don't worry incognito, developmentally if your baby was born a month early they'll be a month younger from a developmental perspective, hence people often refer to "corrected" ages. You're doing so amazingly ❤️
@Clare thank you so much. I try really hard. Trying to get her to focus on an activity at the moment is hard as her new found freedom of running is just too exciting! I used to read loads of books to her every day but that decreased when she got on the move. Now we have activity time at the table in her high chair. Thinking about the month early thing too she’s only just going into her 17th month.
@Salina thank you. It’s so hard when others are saying what their child is doing and my little girl isn’t. I’m going to try my hardest not to compare, especially with all of the amazing support I’ve got from most people on here. It’s really helped me. But that’s exactly it what you said, it killed you, and that’s what it is doing to me. No matter how hard I try and not let it bother me I can’t help but think it’s somehow my fault, I’m not doing enough and just the constant worry for her. Thank you for sharing this with me ❤️
Hey, my son was nearly a month early. He turned 17 months on 24th Sept so isn't too much younger than your daughter. My son says mama, dada, baa and quack at the moment. He has been behind in pretty much everything compared to our friends babies of similar ages, but I really try not to worry about it. They will all do things at their own pace and I think what you've described is not majorly behind at all (based on my limited experience / knowledge!) Try not to be so hard on yourself. Have a think to yourself about whether the level of anxiety you seem to be feeling about your daughter is normal / not causing you any problems... if you think it's excessive or it is causing you problems, then perhaps consider speaking to someone for yourself. Because maybe it's just worth checking you're not suffering from post partum anxiety or anything like that. And if you are still not going out and socialising because of comparisons/ unhelpful comments people have made, see if you can work on that too, 1 step at a time 🥰
Also my son knows his name but will only respond to it about 20% of the time. He seems to find most things in life more interesting than me 🙃, so if his focus is on something else, he won't respond. That's completely normal x
@HL thank you so much for sharing. That’s made me feel so much better! I’m definitely taking steps, small steps but still. I’m heading out on a play date tomorrow and everything in me goes “don’t go! What if someone makes a comment?” And I know it’s ridiculous as I’m going out with my friends. It’s so easy to hide but I’m going tomorrow and it will be fine! Thank you and to everyone for the reassurance and confidence boost!
You've mentioned them being born early so technically you'd expect them to be closer to 17 months anyway developmentally. I used to do speech and language checks as part of my job. Expectation at 18 months is more around understanding and saying a few words (animal sounds count as words at this age too. Sounds like you are doing amazing and they'll get there when ready :)
My almost 18 month old is not saying Mama. Just Dada and making sounds and made-up words. Your daughter is a month early, and she's developing perfectly, in my opinion.
I totally get you. I remember hearing kids say “I love you” or “mama” and I’d get so sad because I thought I’d never hear him say that .My son is 31/2 and he now says both of those things. Your baby will be there ! But know you are definitely not alone & as long as she’s healthy and happy everything else will happen in due time🙏🏽
They say to keep reading even if busy and if not paying attention fully can still get the overall idea of it. Let them participate in reading as much as possible in their own way. Speech delay runs in both of our families and my son is still struggling (he was similar at that age) I’ve done like literally everything - many programs assessments etc. final outcome is expressive delay that’s unfortunate you felt so judged! Ppl should not make comments honestly it’s between you and a professional. We love our time with our toddler and every day is full of special moments regardless of this. To ease your mind always best to ask gp as others say :)
@Natalie thank you ❤️
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@Eva thank you so much for sharing ❤️
@Salina thank you. That’s exactly it. Feeling like we’re falling behind and alone. It’s so comforting to read these messages and know I’m not alone ❤️
@Sandra thank you for sharing ❤️
Another tip for speech is to not have background noise (TV, radio, music etc) as it can make them struggle to separate the words from the additional noise so takes them longer to pick them up.
Bad health visitors can be absolutely awful. I stopped seeing ours. Personally I went through my GP when my son wasn't speaking alot. A good one can be really helpful and get you under a paediatrician if little one needs it. In terms of speech, things like glue ear are very common and it may be worth getting a hearing test. This can be done privately or through the NHS. There are so many possible reasons why your little one isn't speaking yet and the vast majority are going to be really simple things that alot of parents go through. Try to find a good healthcare professional that can assist you rather than make you feel judged.