2 Year Old Son Still Won't Talk!!

Don't panic!! I do think it's worth calling the early intervention program for their opinion and services, but the chances are he's just a late talker.

My older son was a late talker -- by almost 3, he only had about 100 words and most of them were monosyllables that only my husband and I could understand. We did go through Child Find, and he got speech therapy for about a year. I still don't know whether it was the therapy that helped, or if he just hit his internal timetable, but his speech really took off. Today he's 7 and very verbal.

My daughter was in the same position. We are in Arlington and had her evaluated by the early intervention program (in Arlington it is called PIE). She started speech therapy and occupational therapy because they said her hearing was fine but needed help in developing motor planning skills. After a year of OT and about 6 months now of speech therapy, she is talking in sentences and has just blossomed. I am a strong believer in early intervention services. And the kids just think that someone extra is there to play with them and they love it.

Hi D.,
In Loudoun County you would contact the Child Find program through the school system. They'll do a free screnning, refer him for evaluations if need be, and then provide speech services should he qualify.
Good luck!

Hi D.,
I have seen this several times while working in day care. The speech therapist told me that it is common with Reflux babies.

Another idea is this: does his big sister talk for him? The reason I ask is that my son was almost 3 before he started really talking, and it was because his sister (who is 18 months older) did his talking for him. "Dylan Needs a cookie", and "Dylan is wet/stinky" were things we heard every moment of every day from her. His doctor said that he felt that he did not need to learn to speak because she did it for him. Once we started asking him to repeat what she had said, he started talking more but it was at a slower pace than others he was round at the time.

If I were you, I would call his pediatrician and schedule an appointment, just to make sure that there is not a medical cause for his lack of vocabulary and that there is not a developmental delay that could be causing it. From there, if they find nothing, start asking him questions. Ask him to name things before you give them to him.

Another idea is to research some simple sign language words. When I was working with toddlers in day care, I had several that would get frustrated because they could not tell me what they wanted. Teaching them please, thank you, more, cup, and eat, helped them to relax a little and take the time to learn to say the words. It would help keep them from getting frustrated because they had a way to express themselves without screaming and throwing a temper tantrum.

Good luck with your little man! Let us know what happens!

My daughter did the same thing. We went through our state for early intervention. Now she is talking. It really is a great resource. This is the link to the early intervention in PA. http://www.pattan.k12.pa.us/regsforms/EarlyIntervention.aspx
Good luck.

He should be saying about 1 to 2 words per utterance (sentence). He should have the m,n,h,p,f,w sounds in his skill set. If his is understanding what you are saying, if he can match names to items when you say them, if he can follow simple directions and understand stop and no or don't you should find some comfort in that. If you want more info visit asha.org or my site at pacestherapy.com

Take care and good luck.
T.

You can refer him to the Infant/Toddler program in your area. They will come out to your house and let you know if they think he needs a little help to start talking. It's a great program and it's free so take advantage of it!

Here's the website to find the number for your area:
http://www.msde.maryland.gov/MSDE/divisions/earlyinterv/i...

Don't wait, get your child evaluated. If he is a late talker, the speech therapy he might qualify for won't hurt him in any way. If it is something more serious you will be catching it early and give him a chance to catch up. Do not accept "he is just a late talker." Even if he is again, therapy will not hurt anything, only help.

You can call your local school system and they can guide you where to go. If you do not see fairly quick results, don't let it slide, keep pushing! Trust your gut, it is a good guide.

Good luck!
N.

Hi D. I don't know if anyone else has said this but you may want to have your sons ears checked for fluid buildup. Oftentimes when there's fluid in the ears it prevents the child from hearing properly which also affects his speech. You could start with an ear,nose and throat specialist as opposed to your regular pediatrician, who will be better able to tell if there's a problem or not. Your son could also just be late in his speech development. But if you don't think that's the case then definitely have his ears checked.

My nephew did not start taking until he was about three and then he spoke like an adult. He has an older sister (4 years older) and she did most of the talking for him. He is now one of the smartest kids in his class. You still may want to check with your doctor. Good luck.
B.

If you live in Fairfax county you can call Child Find. You can refer yourself and it is free!!!! Sorry don't I have the phone number, 2 offices one in Lorton I know. They will do initial eval and decide where to go from there. It is the best place to start. Just not a quick process. It took us 2 months to get in then after several evals, he started speech about 6 months after my first phone call. Good Luck!

My daughter was a reflux baby and also a late talker. Part of it was that she had started to say words when we had to pull her out of daycare due to job loss. At that time she stopped talking, probably a combination of not being around other kids and not needing to talk since Mommy & Daddy knew everything she wanted anyway!

After a lot of worry, hearing tests, etc., she finally started up again. Now she's 9 and we can't get her to shut up!

My advice would be to first eliminate any physical causes -- hearing loss, for example. Then start seeing if he shows language cognition -- does he appear to understand what you're saying? Does he use non-verbal ways to communicate? You can try some rudimentary sign language. That helped us to see that our daughter was understanding, but just wasn't ready to verbalize yet.

Good luck!

if you are concerned find your early intervention group to have him evaluated. this should be free. we did this with my daughter when she was your sons age and although she was not behind enough to qualify for services her teachers were concerned about her hearing. so the early intervention people set up to have her hearing tested, also free. turns out she had fluid behind her ear drum and her hearing was affected. she had a second set of tubes put in and now she speaks very well. doesn't hurt to have him evaluated.

I second the advice to call your pediatrician asap. the sooner these problems/delays are addressed the better.

I'm not sure about public services in your area but in Fairfax County, VA, where I live, we received free speech and occupational therapy through the Infant Toddler Connection for my 2.5 year old who has global developmental delays (walking, talking, fine motor skills). That, combined with private speech, physical and occupational therapy (paid for by our medical insurance), has helped her tremendously. She's doing very well and I think part of the reason is that we were so proactive and we caught it relatively early (18 months).

Good luck. FYI she also had reflux (as well as food allergies -- mainly milk).

L.

I would most definitely get your son's hearing checked.

D.:

Hello! This would concern me terribly! I would make an appointment with an ENT to have his hearing checked - since you said he had reflux and screamed for a while, I would alos have the ENT check his throat to see if he damaged his vocal chords.

Also follow up with your pediatrician - he/she should have been concerned about this at check ups, especially the two year well child check up. If he/she tells you not to worry, I would drop that pediatrician and find another one. He should be saying "I want" or "me want", etc.

If you live in Fairfax County, VA - you can call Child Find at ###-###-#### or go to the fairfax county public schools website (http://www.fcps.edu) and go from there.

Do not hesitate on this matter. I hope you don't take this wrong, I hope he's not lazy - my second son didn't "have" to talk - either I or my older son would talk for him - all he had to do was point. When I stopped talking for him as well as his brother - he became a jabber jaw!

keep us informed! I hope all is well!

Cheryl

I would have his hearing checked ASAP! He definitely should be talking now. This is a very important time for his brain to be processing speech.
Good luck.
J.

I would seriously call your pediatrician today and make an appointment to pinpoint what may be holding your son back from speaking.I Will be praying for you.
GOD BLess,
ANnie

Hi there,
I have a stepson who was a "late talker." This IS something to be alarmed about, and you SHOULD take it seriously.

I hate when people say it's not a big deal, it is. It's hard on kids to not be able to talk, and pretty soon he's going to realize he SHOULD be talking, which will make it even harder on him.

My stepson has a speech delay called Childhood Apraxia of Speech. Their website is www.apraxia-kids.org.

I have a son who turned 2 in October, and he talks in full sentences. Not that everything is understandable, obviously, but he does it. He talks nonstop and sings al the time, and he's just a typical kid.

Please have your son evaluated asap. The longer it takes, the further behind he can get. My stepson is developmentally delayed, because he had not just no speech, he had no language.

Good luck to you, you'll be in my thoughts/prayers.

I know of a few kids who didn't begin to speak in earnest until they were 2. What did your pediatrician say at the 18 month check-up? They expect to have several words by then. Is your son interactive, responsive, making eye contact with you and able to communicate about what he wants (without just screaming)i.e. hand gestures, pointing, sounds, nodding head? Does he understand what you are saying to him even though he doesn't talk back? I find my 18 month old can understand nearly everything we tell her, even multiple step instructions, even though she has few words of her own. She is also being raised bilingual and that can slow things too. Does he use a pacifier all the time? That may delay things because his mouth is always occupied. Does he stay at home or go to daycare? Daycare kids tend to speak earlier. Hopefully he is OK, but you may want to consult your pediatrician and practice some basic exercises to encourage speech (we use, "who's that?" and point to a person. Answer we want "mama, dada, tio, etc.) and do it often.

Have your local Early Intervention evaluate him as soon as possible, along with your pediatrician. Some kids just speak really late, but he may also benefit from some speech therapy.

My son did not talk much before he turned 2, then he just took off. He is 4 now and speaks fine. However he could have a problem... If I were you I would wait until he turns 2 and take him to be evaluated. Or ask your pediatrician maybe. He is probably fine but its better to be safe.

He's probably just going to be a late talker. But to be on the safe side, I would take him to your pediatrician and get a hearing test done... some kids can technically hear, but can't hear some pitches of sounds which can inhibit their ability to learn language. You can also go contact your state's early intervention program (which is free!!) and offers professional screening, and treatment if needed for your little one. My friend just went through the process in Maryland, and her son was in a group speech therapy twice a month, and then a therapist came to her home to work with him as well... in a matter of a few months he was speaking so much more, and even doing two word sentences. And did I mention that it's free and they come to your home... gotta love that!

Can I say that when you mentioned the speech problem and then added in the reflux, my first thought was a possible food allergy or even Celiac Disease. My son screamed the first year of his life too! He was diagnosed with reflux the first DAY of his life because he was so miserable. Come to find out, he is allergic to milk and has Celiac Disease. We did not find this out until he was four. In the meantime, his speech was slower than everyone elses. Now he is all caught up but he would be delayed today if we had not found out about his allergies and the Celiac. Celiac causes major mental delays if not mananaged with diet. A.

D. - Your son may be fine but it is unusual that he isn't speaking especially since he has an older sibling to imitate. Consider having him evaluated. If your pediatrician hasn't already recommended that, consider getting another pediatrician.

It may help to talk to a speech therapist. They specialize in things like this and can have him talking in no time :)

If your son had reflux and screamed for almost a year then I feel thats what you ought to have checked. Is he allergic to something he is eating that is causing this problem. As for talking, if he is responding to you well enough I wouldn't be so concerned. My son didn't say much till he was well into his 3rd year, his sister,(5yrs older),did it all for him. As you have two other toddlers, and he is the middle child, it just could be that he feels overwhelmed and is unable to get a word in anywhere, so he needs a bit more time to develop.

boys tend to be late talkers but I would make an appt. with your doctor. Good luck

You can always call the local Infant & Toddler program to look into Early Intervention. You do not need a referral from your pediatrician to do this, either. They will come out & evaluate your child & determine whether it was needed.

I was getting concerned about my daughter because the closer she got to the age of 2, she also wasn't speaking as I know a 2 yr old should speak, she was just babbling. All she said was mama & dada. At her 18 month well baby check, the doctor even noted she was a little bit behind but even he didn't know how far behind she was. She turned 2 in October & it turns out she was 11 months behind in her speech development & she is now receiving speech therapy.

I have a 4 year old and an almost 2 year old... he'll be 2 in February. He's just starting to get the idea that he can talk! He's been saying ma and da for a few months, but really nothing else. I've been working with him more on animal sounds (they're fun and easy to say). His favorite right now is the sheep. Loud and angry sheep... BAAAAAAA! But he laughs so hard when he says it, so we have fun with it.

I wouldn't worry about it if he's communicating in other ways. Does he pull you over to the cupboard when he wants a cracker or cookie or something? Does he point to things when he's excited about it? ...Like he wants you to see it, too?

Have you tried sign language? I started my boys on sign language early... like when they first started to eat rice cereal at 4 or 5 months. Simple things like more and all done, milk, that kind of thing. Now my 21 month old can tell me, no, I want grapes, not crackers... all in sign. That cuts down on frustration sometimes, too.

I will say, however, that it's nice to know that mine isn't the only screamer. Despite the sign language efforts, he still screams if he doesn't get his way or big brother takes a toy, or Thomas the Tank Engine crashes on the video or the wooden railway in his room! So, if you have a cure for the screams, I'll be happy to hear it. ;) I think once he starts talking more, he'll grow out of it, and have other things to say... I hope! ;)

Another thing is to ask your pediatrician at his 2 year check. She/He will be able to tell if there's anything to be concerned about. My ped says some kids just start speaking later. If they're communicating in other ways, not to worry. My brother's two kids didn't start speaking until 3 years old and they're both just fine and doing great in school.

Good luck on the screaming thing... and if he's anything like my older boy, once he starts talking, you'll wish he'd stop at least for a little while each day.! ;)

You know, WOW! I posted my response before I read the others... PLEASE don't get uptight about it. Your son will sense your frustration and that might make things worse. Early Intervention and Child Find are great programs, and certainly check it out if you feel it's necessary, but JEEZ, there's so much gloom and doom in the other posts, don't panic. Evaluate the situation: if he communicates in other ways, if he can follow simple commands, (my little guy just loves to pick up toys. I say time to clean up... can you go get that blue truck and put it in the toy bin? Thanks, buddy! and he makes a game out of it.) If he can do these sorts of things, or even just responds to your voice inflections... happy, upset, etc... does he stop when you say no or stop or whatever you use for that? If so, just keep giving him words to use... "OH, that's the red block, that's a yellow truck, see the blue train?" He'll get it. Don't panic.

In addition to asking your pediatrician, I agree that it is a good idea for you to request an Early Intervention Evaluation. You do NOT need an M.D. referral for this. The evaluation will help identify areas where he might benefit from therapy services, such as speech. This is part of a federally mandated program that addresses developmental issues from birth to three years of age. R.

If your in Montgomery County MD there is a great program called Child Find. They will evaluate your child in every area.

Our oldest did not talk till he was over 2 and now at almost 4 he is advanced in his speech for his age. Our youngest will be 2 in Jan and does not talk much either.Checking with the dr will not hurt, but some kids are just late talkers.