Should I worry about my nearly 2yo not talking?

[SarahW]

Babypants is turning 2 at the end of September. His spoken vocabulary consists of "no" "mine!" and "bye bye" (the first two are sometimes used together). He also has some syllables which I recognize as referring to "car" "truck" "bike" "moon" "cheese" and a handful of other things he finds important, but I only recognize what he's trying to say because I'm his mother and with him 24/7, other people don't realize what he's saying unless I "translate." He grunts and points for most of his communication needs. He's social. He babbles. He understands a great deal. He can follow multi-step directions like "put your book back on the shelf and your monkey in the bin." He knows colors. He is rather onomatopoeia-ic, when I point out a car he'll say "beep!" When he sees dinosaurs he'll make low growling noises. He'll refer to the vacuum by pointing to the floor and saying "vroom vroom." He'll refer to ducks by quaking.

 

I'd just take him to a Pediatrician, but we recently moved and I have yet to set up a new ped. We're moving again in a few months, so I thought to just ride out the transition and worry about doctor visits at our permanent home.

 

How worried should I be about meeting verbal milestones. Enough to seek out a ped for one or maybe two appointments? Or should I wait to worry for a few months, and bring it up with a permanent ped if he's still doesn't have a larger spoken vocabulary?

 

Part of my worry is that I was a non-talker as a child. Everyone says it was because my older brother always answered questions and talked for me, and seem to find it funny. But spoken communication never came easily to me, and even now I have strange intonation (but at least now I can blame my "accent" on living overseas). I've never thought to look up a possible diagnosis for myself. But now I'm wondering if there is a label, and if I should start looking into possible early interventions if I see Babypants having the same issues I did???

 

 

[Mimm]

I would probably wait a few months, but definitely follow up with the pediatrician and follow up with a speech therapist even if the pediatrician blows off your concern. I'm not an expert in this area, but my sister's concerns weren't taken seriously by her doctor and my nephew is eight and very speech delayed to the point of sometimes being hard for me to understand, and I see him a lot. If your son needs intervention, it's probably not for only a few months, so it's probably best to wait till after the move.

[wendyroo]

All of my boys have been speech delayed (moderate-severe).  Spencer turned two at the end of July and his vocabulary sounds very similar to your son's.  He has been flagged as not meeting verbal milestones, but this did not come as a surprise to anyone since he is exactly following in his brothers' footsteps.

 

I don't think there is anything vital you can or should do in the next couple months, but once you are settled in your new location I would takes steps to get him started with Early Intervention and/or speech therapy.  All my boys started speech therapy at 18 months and it has helped them tremendously, though it has been a very long process, with Peter "graduating" just this past spring right around when he turned 6.  The younger boys will continue speech therapy for the foreseeable future.

 

Wendy

[gingersmom]

I would start therapy at current location and continue at new location.

 

Don't rely on your pediatrician, many of them are clueless about speech delays.

 

The sooner he receives therapy, the quicker any issues are resolved.

[Kiara.I]

All of mine were "delayed" by which I mean that they didn't meet the "accepted milestones" by age 1, or even by age 18 months or 2 years.  My first two were FINE.  My instinct said they were, and they were.  They both started talking substantially more about a month before their second birthdays, and by age 3 they were so far ahead of the milestone charts it was laughable.

 

My third, though...She didn't have the just-before-two language explosion, so by about a month after her second birthday I submitted a referral for speech therapy.  I know it isn't hearing, both because the receptive language is very good, and because we'd had a full audiology panel done at 9 months (and seen no warning signs of any new problems since.)  And the wait-list here is 14 months for an assessment.  :(

 

That you're asking this question tells me that your instinct says something is off.  So I'd be inclined to do as much as possible toward getting something set up ASAP.  Where I live, any parent can request an audiology panel through Public Health.  Do you have anything like that where you are?  If so, do that!  Get a copy of the report.  (I know you said hearing is fine, but just to rule it out anyway, you know?  And to see if there are any frequency-specific issues, too.)  And either go through a pediatrician, or go for a private assessment, if your insurance will cover it.

[EmilyGF]

Maybe.

That is way more vocab than my oldest had at 2 (at two he said "da" - that was it). Older people would tell me, "Don't worry about him, you can tell he's taking everything in." When he did get tested, he tested 8 months ahead in receptive speech and 8 months behind in expressive speech.

 

Worry if he doesn't seem to be "clicking" with the world. Get therapy quicker if he doesn't seem to understand people talking to him.

 

But he's a boy. Boys generally talk later to begin with. There should be a boy's chart and a girl's chart. If he hasn't blossomed in 6 months at all, do something more.

Emily

[Chelli]

My son was like your son. I worried about him too, but the pediatrician assured me that he was in the range of normal for his speech. I was just comparing him to his two older sisters who could speak in complete sentences with advanced vocabularies by 16 months. He still sounded like a cave man at the age of 2, but he's definitely caught up over the past three years and speaks well now.

 

My cousin who is a doctor said that kids with the most delayed speech (within the realm of normal) are boys with an older sister. It proved true here!

[JustEm]

I could describe all 3 of my talking children like your son at that age. And each one exploded in language a month or so after they turned 2. My 2.5 year old went from what you describe to speaking full sentences within a week or 2. The key for me to not worrying was that they could communicate their needs to me. They used vroom for cat and choose choo for train butstarted saying train and car when that explosion happened. I would wait a little bit longer and pay close attention for any small progress.

[carriede]

You should certainly trust your mama instincts, but nothing you've described sounds behind to me.

 

When my first turned 2, I made a list of 25+ words he was saying at the time to tell the ped. When I got there, she asked "Is he saying mama, dada, and one other word?" Uhhh yeah.

 

It's hard not to compare our kids, but I can see how you might be considered if his older siblings were early talkers. He seems on target to me. But I'm not a professional.

[Pegasus]

My eldest DD didn't really start talking at all, beyond just a handful of words, until she turned 3.  However, she remained mostly unintelligible for the next year so we sought private speech therapy.  She tested over the 90th percentile for receptive speech and 4th percentile in expressive speech.  So, yeah, just about as bad as you can get in being able to speak even though she understood speech perfectly.

 

In less than a year of weekly therapy sessions, she was caught up to age level and they "graduated" her from the program. She's 18 now and the only holdover from the whole speech issue is that folks think she sounds British when they meet her.  :laugh:

 

 

[MommaOfalotta]

My ds3 was the same way. He was probably 2 1/2 before he started talking a lot and even then I was the only one that was able to understand him. Everyone always told him to stop speaking Chinese :cursing:  They thought it was funny. He got better though, it was just later than "usual."

Anyway, he's 3 now and he talks ALL. THE. TIME. :lol:  I was just thinking the other day about how much his vocabulary has doubled in the last few weeks. I'd give it some more time!

[SarahW]

Big thanks to everyone who posted. Lots of perspectives for me to think about! This forum is great.

 

I honestly don't remember when my oldest started really talking. He must have just met the milestones and that was that, because I never really gave much thought to it.

 

It has just become more obvious to me the last few weeks how much most other kids his age are talking. So I went and looked up the 2yo milestones. I know there's a range, and kids can slow down and then sprint past. But mom's worry, yeah?

 

If there's no real improvement in the next few months I'll definitely look into therapy options. Right now I'm just trying to be more intentional about putting into words his syllables and grunts ("oh, do you want another cracker? Here is one more"). But I'm not sure that's particularly necessary or helpful. I tried repeating the word "car" to him earlier today, and all I got in response was a long series of "beep! beep!" lol.

 

Maybe he's just not ready to talk yet. But parenting is easier you don't have to play 20 Questions all day long....sigh. 

 

[December]

It is something like seventy five percent of speech delayed kids catch up on their own just fine, but the other twenty five percent will need therapy and the earlier the better.  So they would rather err on the side of over treating with speech therapy than to let twenty five percent of kids fall behind and then need years of therapy to get caught up.

[zoobie]

Are you moving long distance? EI would evaluate for speech/development delays before age 3. We did an eval with my 3rd just after she turned 2. We didn't have any motor skills or developmental concerns other than speech. They were more concerned with her receptive speech and whether there was any developmental or physical obstruction to her being able to speak. They (in my area anyway!) do not work on the clarity of speech if there aren't other issues (palate, oral motor weakness, etc.). It was an easy process and the people were very nice. If your "mommy gut" is telling you to get things checked, then get things checked. One of my good friends did, despite everyone (and her DH) thinking she was nuts. Even her ped was hesitant. Her DS turned out to have apraxia, and her insistence got him in therapies early so that he was "caught up" by school age. He is gifted and such a bright boy. So anyway, listen to the little voice in your heart. :)

[rwilk]

We did speech therapy with my DD when she was 18 months old to 2.5 years. She was a little different.  She didn't babble. She didn't make any attempt to communicate with us. We talked to the peds about it and she had no concerns. But it just felt....wrong.  

 

We took her for an assessment with the county, and learned a lot about her.  Expressive speech was way behind (bottom 3%), but receptive was off the chart---equivalent to a 4 yr old at 18 months.  We were also surprised to find her gross motor was also bottom 3%. So we started speech therapy and PT.  By a little over 2 she was talking in paragraphs, and has pretty much still not stopped talking.  She never did go through the babbling phase, and I'm guessing even without intervention she would have spoken to us eventually.  

 

We are still dealing with the gross motor stuff---she'll catch up, fall behind, catch up, fall behind.  It's frustrating. Ultimately, kids develop differently, but if it interferes with a kid's ability to do what they want to be able to do (and developmentally should be able to do), that's when I seek help.  

[Tammi K]

I have 6 kids. Two of them didn't talk until they were almost/or just past 3.  Once they started they never stopped.  If he seems happy ( not frustrated by a lack of ability to communicate), understands what you say to him, seems to meeting other milestones, and makes his wants know I would relax for a bit longer. Some children just have different priorities with communication not being the strongest one.

[SeaConquest]

My youngest DS turned two earlier this month, and his speech is very similar. It's been really hard for me not to get worked up because older DS was talking in full sentences in two languages by 18 months. It completely skewed my perspective. Anyway, I would give it more time. It was helpful for me to actually look up the sounds that were developmentally appropriate for this age, and to see that it's really not much. It helped to put my mind at ease.

[abba12]

My eldest did not talk. I was creeped out by tiny babies (in my eyes. More like 18mo) who could speak in sentences. I think eldests vocabulary consisted of 'drink', 'shoes' and 'car' until she was 2 and a half (she never bothered with mama and dada, she could say the sounds, but she never used them as words until she was at least 3). She now talks well, has issue with a few sounds but her vocabulary is astounding. 

 

My second child was speaking in complete sentences by, like, 14 months. It was such an immense turnaround, So strange, at one point DD1 and DD2 were progressing side-by-side in their speech, and while DD2 still has more of a baby sound to her voice they speak about as well as each other despite 21 months between them. 

 

My third is 16 months and I think she will fall right between her sisters, she is showing some of the pre-talking signs the others did, using sounds to indicate words, and trying to copy words occasionally, I think we will get some real words in the next month or two, right on track. 

 

My point is, they all figure themselves out on their own timeline. The fact your child is comprehending words, including colours and multi step instructions, would make me think they just can't be bothered talking lol. Certainly, in a few months time go in for a checkup and get a professional opinion, it can't hurt. But I wouldn't panic. 

[KungFuPanda]

Call your local Early Intervention program and get a free evaluation. Around here, it's easier to get things done if you start the process before the child is three. After three the paperwork is all handled by the school system instead of Early Intervention and it's more complicated. Also, if services are needed, the EI people can really smooth over the transfer to the school system when the child is older. I'd call tomorrow. It can take a while to get an evaluation. They'll check him out. If he's on track, your mind can be put to rest. If he has true delays, early help can make a big difference. There are no real drawback to getting evaluated.

[monstermama]

We started speech therapy for my son shortly after he turned 2.  He had a lot of frustration with communicating with us and had a lot less words (at 2, I think sounds like beep beep and animal sounds are still counted as "words").  He's had a lot of improvement with therapy, though he's not caught up yet.  If you are truly worried, there's no harm in calling for an evaluation with early intervention (pretty sure that's free everywhere) or a private speech therapist (not free, may be covered by insurance).  I would not go by what a pediatrician says, especially one that is just meeting him, as many of them don't have the training for identifying speech delays nor do they have the time during an annual checkup to conduct the kind of interview that would help them identify the extent of any delays.

[Sarah CB]

I would take him in.  One of my boys had less than 10 "words" at two and I waited until he was four before I actually did anything.  At that point, they said he had an 18 month speech delay.  We started speech therapy and it was wonderful for him.  It was more like play-time for us together and I really enjoyed the time we spent at the speech clinic.  Plus, he learned so much.  You would never guess now that he ever had any speech issues.

 

Another one of my boys didn't have as many issues as a little guy but he did have some issues.  I guess, because it wasn't as bad as the other ds I didn't worry about it.  He still has trouble saying some words - my favourite is to try and get him to say "purple turtle".  I should have got the poor kid into speech therapy.  It's not a big issue, he just pronounces things a little differently and does get asked about his "accent".  

[Pamela H in Texas]

Get the eval for peace of mind.

 

However, I just had this talk with the speech therapist yesterday because of a friend of mine.  At 24 months, they are looking for 15-20 words or word representations like car sounds for car.  Your kiddo has that.  Add pointing, grunting, signs, etc and you're golden.  

 

From 2-3, the explosion of speech is amazing.  You'll be thinking how silly you worried soon as you're telling him to hush a minute :)

 

But get the eval for peace of mind.  They will also be able to catch if there is anything else going on that you should address.  And it certainly isn't going to hurt to address it if he did qualified even if he was going to catch up in three months anyway.  

[Okra]

I think you are in a grey zone.  This is something that I would watch, but doesn't seem to be something that sends up huge red flags.  

 

My oldest daughter was exactly where your son is.  She spoke 5 words on the day she turned two.  But a few months after two, she did start talking.  She had some minor articulation problems that she took speech for about nine months for.  There were no major problems.

 

My youngest said about 5 words when he was two.  He did not just burst into speech in a few months.  This child was in speech therapy for about 7 years.  Turned out perfectly fine in the end though!

 

I would wait it out.  I do not think there is a huge rush right now.  I know some kids that never needed speech therapy that were late talkers.  

 

The one thing that I want to remind you of, that if important, is that pretty much, even if they have speech issues almost all kids "get it" sooner or later and it is a thing of their past. (Said from a mom who has been there done that.)

 

 

[kentuckymom]

It won't totally derail anything if you don't get an eval until you move, but, unless his speech explodes between now and then, get him evaluated! If your pediatrician isn't concerned but you still are, get an eval anyway. If you're in the U.S., go through your state's early intervention agency.  If that's not an option for you or the wait is super long, try to find a speech therapist on your own.

 

Both of my kids have/had articulation disorders. I unwisely took my pediatrician's advice with my son that "boys start talking later" and waited until he was 2 1/2 to get him evaluated. He was in therapy until he was 8. When my daughter was hard to understand at almost 2 I went ahead and had her evaluated by EI. However, her receptive language was way ahead and her only problem was articulation, which they don't deal with. I made the mistake of assuming it didn't need to be dealt with. When she was 2 1/2 and in preschool a therapist visited her class to help another student and told her teacher that she'd love to evaluate DD if we were willing. We agreed and she's been in therapy ever since (almost 2 years). She's improved a lot, but she still has work to do. It turns out she had a weak tongue and weak lips and she tried to make certain sounds anyway. Even now, two years into therapy with her lip and tongue problems tackled, she doesn't always remember the right way to make sounds. I wish I'd gone the private therapy route when the state didn't admit her. She might be done by now.

[Katy]

It sounds normal for boys especially.  Certainly have an evaluation done if you are worried, but IME it's more common for children (especially boys) with a stay at home parent to have a speech delay - they just don't need to speak because someone is anticipating their needs and understands their babbles and gestures.  This is doubly so if you taught baby sign language or developed your own signs, and if you value quiet and keep sounds low and media off a lot during the day.  He's been learning the culture of your home.

 

Once you get settled if you can find a part-time preschool it will probably help a lot.  Just a place for him to go for three hours two days a week and his language will grow until he'll be chatterboxing and make you wish he'd be quiet in no time. Just a few hours interacting with other kids, and where he must communicate with people who understand language but not mumbles or gestures will force him to learn it.

[ashfern]

My now 10 yo didn't talk much when she was younger. I was really worried about her but when she turned 3 she started talking in complete sentences using big words. Now I can't get her to stop talking.  :lol: My current little one is at the three word sentence phase. I agree with the others that if it's bothering you to get it checked out. A couple of months probably won't hurt. Do you talk to him a lot? I was reading something that said that boys don't talk as quickly as girls because people don't talk to them as often.  :confused1:  Anyway, I'd just start labeling things that he asks for with the proper words. I do that now with my 22 month old. He'll ask for something and once we figure out what it is I relabel it with the correct word. For example, he'll ask for a werk and I hand him a fork and say "here's your fork".

[Shellydon]

A cut off rule that speech pathologist use is 50 words by the 2nd birthday.  A toddler should have 50 understandable (not perfect) words by the time their 2nd birthday rolls around.

[Crimson Wife]

I would call Early Intervention and have them do an evaluation. I would also have a full audiology exam just to make sure there isn't a hearing issue (I learned the hard way that hearing loss may not always be obvious).

[Terabith]

If there's any doubt, evaluate.  There's no drawback to an evaluation. 

[MysteryJen]

I remember being in my doctor's office ( a few months late for the 2 yo well child check) and saying I was worried about dd2's speech. She didn't seem to have enough words, very few complete sentences etc. All of the sudden, she pointed out the window and said, "I see a purple car." I thought my doc was going to have a stroke he was laughing so hard.

 

But...seeing friends with real speech delays...get the evaluation. And pay close attention. Are they babbling? Making sounds to communicate? Trying out new words? My friends' kids didn't do any of that. They were quiet and it wasn't so noticeable with the 3rd or 4th as with the first.

 

My dad didn't speak until 3. My kids all were on the late side at 2.5 to 3.

[angelica]

I think you have received a lot of good advice. I was worried two years ago as well when my boy was approaching two. I suspected his speech was not normal and when I finally contacted early intervention I was told they would not be able to do much at this point. I was referred to the local public school system and after being evaluated for free it was determined that he should be put on an iep for speech. It's been nearly two years now that he has attended preschool and received speech therapy. It is night and day difference now. I am thankful for the services he gets at school, but I do believe that he would have eventually talked more clearly without preschool and therapy. He talks a lot now at 4 and though most people don't understand him, we do, his teachers do, and other kids his age do. 

 

As for the concerns you have regarding your early childhood and communication struggles, that could just be temperamental. Some people are more extroverted and able to communicate fluidly, others are introverted and have their own quirky preferences with communication. Perhaps you can look into evaluation options where you are right now, and research where you can have your child evaluated again when you move. From there I am sure you will have a good gauge of what concerns are valid ones, and go be able to move forward from there.