Dr Recommended ECI for Speech - I Have Concerns

H.-

My son worked with ECI and they are great! in a matter of months he went from 2 dozen words to too many for me to count. Call them.

M.

My son is autistic and I too started to worry at about 17 months when he had no words. The CDC just came out with a study that 1 in 110 kids is autistic, this up 57% in 2 years. Another study right before this showed 1 in 91 kids autistic. I told my pediatrician that my son is autistic and I stopped all vaccinations for my son and typical daugter at that time. I know hundreds of children with autism. Not all regressed after vaccinations but most did which is reason enough to stop vaccinating until you get more information. We had ECI do an evaluation but never used the services as I found the provider we were to have, not very helpful. But others have had a good experience and since you pay on a sliding scale you should look into it. You should get an ENT to look at her ears, like we did. We had tubes put in even though we'd only had one ear infection. But that never helped the speech. So here we are, years later with a severely autistic child. So yes, be concerned, and get every evaluation and service you can. When she is 3 the local school district will evaluate her and put her into speech or preschool for children with disabilities. Stop vaccinating and don't wait for services.

I used to work as a speech aide for ECI and I'm now an audiologist.
Get a hearing evaluation first and then ECI consult based on the audiologist's recommendations.
ECI works in the home, as it's the best environment for children to learn.
I really wouldn't be too concerned if her hearing is normal. She just might be a late bloomer.
However, ECI IS free so there is no loss in an evaluation of milestones and ECI is only available while the child is less than 3 years old.
Hope this helps!

Hi H.,
I work for ECI so maybe I can clear some concerns up for you. ECI's philosophy is a team approach, so whatever we do is very family and parent centered (for instance, we want to teach you how to do the speech techniques at your home because we believe you are the expert on your daughter). We have no power to take away children from their homes and would only call CPS if you were abusing your daughter. If she qualifies and you do not want services then we close your case and you can reopen it at any time. We were created by parents for parents and we are in no way like CPS. You will never meet a group of more caring people because we all work with children because we love the work. We are funded by the state government but we are not "the government." I think you will find that we can be a great support to your family if you choose to try ECI. My role at ECI is a developmental service provider (I do a little bit of all therapies) as well as service coordinator (all of the fun paperwork). My background is that I have a master's in counseling. Most people that work for ECI have similar backgrounds (physical therapy, speech therapy, occupational therapy, child development, social work, etc.). I would be happy to answer any questions you have. I love working for ECI and am proud to represent them.
Take Care,
T.

H.,
I was very concerned about them recommending that treatment continue in the school system as I did NOT want him "labeled" in the school system at 4 years old, but they were actually wonderful. They made a huge difference in my son's developement, mostly by showing me some tips and tricks that as a first-time-mom, I just didn't know. They were never pushy or judgmental, so I would highly recommend getting them involved now. (And I am also a big non-govt telling me what to do in my own home, so I understand your concern totally!)

the first question was about vaccinations? really? not, did you get the hearing tested? gee, i'd tell that person to do some research. vaccinations are safe!

that off my chest, ECI is a fabulous program that you should trust. if you don't like what they want to do, then don't do it. but to not do it due to suspicions is silly. though i do agree that 18 months is a young age to worry too much, some help wouldn't hurt i guess.

My situation was a bit different because my involvement with ECI was due to my daughter's delayed developement from being institutionalized her first year (we adopted from China). They were wonderful with her and us, and I can't say enough good things about them! It's not like letting "the government" into your home - these are well trained, professionals whose only concern is getting your child the help necessary to bring them to their age appropriate levels. Believe me, it can't hurt and if she is OK at this stage, they will let you know. If not, they are awesome to work with, great with the kiddos and extremely compassionate to parents in my experience.
Good luck!

Hi H.,

I would not put too much emphasis on what YOUR doctor said unless he is keeping up with the latest research in child development (a field growing exponentially) and sees children on a regular basis so he can see the research in action.

My son did sign language and did not use words even at 2.5 years. I spoke to my mother (mom of 4 and professional school psychometrist [I.Q test evaluator]) and to my pediatrician. They were not concerned. But at age 3 I was still worried because his words were pretty jarbled. He was evaluated and I was told that his comprehension was beyond that of a typical 4 year old. So, he was just busy inputting. He didn't qualify for ECI services, but I was told of some things to work on with him and contact their office again if I was worried.

At 3 years, 9 months, he is doing well. We struggle sometimes to understand him, but his big sister translates everything (which is another reason for the delay).

If YOU think your daughter needs help, then pursue it, but don't be led by fear of what your physician said.

I am not one to encourage "government" at anytime, however found this agency to be good for two of my grandchildren. Both of these children were in different households and ECI was requested for two different issues. We found them to be courteous, professional and eager to assist. One child did qualify for their program regarding muscle development. ECI came for several months and worked with him and showed the family what they could do on their own. He is no longer being seen by them, but I feel confident he would have had to have surgery if not for them. I would encourage you to let them evaluate her. After that, you can make your own decision about letting then assist.

My one concern here is that your pyschiatrist/allergist/what else?? is the one concerned about your daughter? Is he/she a child development expert? I could be wrong, but for someone who hasn't really met or evaluated your child to push this is really suspect imo. VERY SUSPECT. Also, the whole vaccination thing.... don't even get me started. I think what your pediatrition should be more important here.

18 months is incredibly early to start worrying about this -- especially if all else is normal. My son was almost 2 1/2 when we started speech therapy and that was considered very early for an otherwise normally developing toddler -- even by ECI standards since I spoke to them as well. He too jargoned a lot, said words one time (which is normal and counts by the way!!), had vaccinations (which is really a moot point), etc and he's now a motor mouth at 5. My question to you would be, are there any speech delays in your family? This is very often hereditary. Does she have any other significant delays? If not, I'd say just sit on this a while.

ECI can be a great resource for many parents since they do come to the house. They can evaluate your child and hopefully put your mind at ease here. If you're not comfortable with them coming in your home, you can always persue a private option but if your insurance doesn't cover it you will be paying out of pocket.

There is also the possibility that your child would not qualify for services. Mine wouldn't have given his receptive language skills were off the chart. We went through OCH at Baylor instead. LUckily, our insurance did cover this otherwise it would have cost a heck of a lot.

Seriously, I think 18 months is entirely too young to start worrying. Please don't have this person rob you of enjoying your baby, because that's still what she is.

ECI is a good program and can help. Be aware that if you really want to get her help she will need a LOT of speech therapy and ECI will provide a lot of it if you ask and really push them otherwise you will get like one visit a month which really isn't enough to do anything. As for the vaccinations I share your concerns. Testing showing that my boys were high in aluminum and mercury really showed me that so many of them can be more damaging than helpful. Talk to your pediatrician, but remember that many in the medical field have to be very careful what they say to avoid being sued so most will just recommend what the AAP says to. I have found some wonderful resources along my journey so feel free to send me a private message if you want more information.

My daughter was evaluated by ECI at 18 months and had a 3 month speech delay. She did speech therapy for a year and at that time was about 6 months to a year ahead of her age. It was a good experience. The evaluation is free so it doesn't hurt to at least get your kiddo evaluated.

Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) is a great organization. They helped by daughter with physical theopy for Torticallis (sp?). It is a non-profit organization, if believe. It was free for use back in 2002. They did ask if they could file with insurance to help out with their costs. They also told me that they were going to have to start charging a small fee but I don't know if they ever did since we no longer needed them after my daughter turned 1. I highly recommend them. They are a great help and are in the business to help children.

Good luck

Don't have a comment about ECI, but I do have a comment about the vaccinations. I will start by giving a disclaimer here...Don't know how true this is and I'm not a medical person...but it never hurts to ask your dr.

One day, when I was in an airport while waiting on a flight home, I was talking to a pharmaceutical representative about the vaccines and the flu shots and how some people are concerned about the side effects of vaccines. He said that he ALWAYS asks his dr to provide "single dose vaccines with no additives." He said it's the additives that cause the lasting side effects. I thought it was an interesting twist since he was the one making his living on selling pharmaceutical products to drs. You might consider this the next time you go to get your child vaccinated.

Hope it helps.

I had the same concerns at 18 months for my son (who at the time was saying Mama & DaDa only). My dr said give it till 2 which we did. At 2 all of a sudden he started all the normal words like ball, dog, etc. But at 2 their susposed to be putting 2 words together so he was still behind. At the 2 yr appt, his dr gave me ECI's info & I called them. He was evaluated at 4 months behind on his speech so he qualified. I also had my son looked at by an ENT to check to make sure he didn't have any built up fluid behind his ears (he had a lot of ear infections between 22-24 months), I also had him checked for the development of his ears as he wore a "helmet/band" from 6-10 months. All was fine & I enrolled him in ECI. The ENT told me to give him until 2 1/2 for putting 2 words together. We started ECI in July & at 2 1/2 he was not only putting 2 words together but making 3 word sentences & now (at 2 3/4 he's doing 4 word sentences). ECI still comes out twice a month & will until he's 3. At 3 if he still qualifies for services, he'll start in the Frisco ISD school system with free services. I would have considered private therapy if I thought he wasn't making any strides but he was. ECI was great. I love his speech therapist and so does my son. It's an awesome program & I highly recommend it. I also say be patient (I was like you and worried) but many people told me that some kids take longer to develop on their speech & by 2 1/2 a light comes on & it did with my son as well. Good Luck!

We have our weekly ECI visit coming up tomorrow morning. It has been wonderful.

Our pediatrician gave me the option of calling at 18 months or 21 months. I went ahead and called at 18 and I am glad that I did. My daughter was at the same point - not saying anything except mama and dada. When they do the evaluation, your child does have to be 3 months behind to qualify which is why they weren't too concerned at 15 months.

Call!

Ahhhh boy do I have experience here. Its all good though and we worked with Tarrant County ECI for over 3 years. I could give you some great help (I think). I am sending this to you privately and bc I have so much to say and I hear the little one stirring I am going to ask that you call when you get a chance. ###-###-####

M.

I really wouldn't worry too much about her not speaking much right now. I work at a day care and we have some kids there about that age and they aren't speaking yet either. But as far as ECI goes, they are really good. When my 15 year old son was a baby, he was a premie and I was told to go to them to get help. Back then, we made some trips to their office for them to work with him, sometimes they came to the house, and when he finally went to day care, they went to him there. I've also got a boy in my class that went through them and they came to him once a week. I highly recommend ECI if your really concerned about her speech. Another thing about them is when she turns 3 years old, they will refer her to a special class in public school if they think she still needs some help. If you have any other questions or concerns you can email me at ____@____.com Wishes and Merry Christmas!
S.

My son worked with an ECI speech therapist, and she was one of the sweetest people I have ever met (she was a mom herself with a daughter that was about my son's age). We actually thought it was very convenient that they come into your home; it also made sense to us since kids are usually the most comfortable in their own home and may respond better in that environment. They will try to file with your health insurance company, but if it doesn't qualify, the payment is based on your household income.

ECI is has a lot of therapist and I am sure it just varies between them. I used them for nutrition and Occupational Therapy, but we did Speech Therapy and Physical Therapy at Our Children's House at Baylor in Grapvine.

I LOVE Our Children's House and I really reccommend them if your insurance will pay (most do). We had Sarah, but the other therapists are great too.

There are also locations other than Grapevine.

My son was 2 before he talked. A few of the very high iq kids don't speak a word until around 2 to 4 years of age. I've known a lot of kids who don't speak until late. Then one day they talk. My son's first word was helicopter. We never did speech and he still learned to talk just fine.

Just FYI, I had the same concerns about my son and when he was evaluated, he did not qualify for speech therapy. however, I pursued it on my own and he did qualify for speech therapy through a private resource. However, my son was about 26 months when he started speech therapy (so a little older than your daughter).

I'm writing now just to encourage you in case your child does not qualify through ECI. If you are still concerned, you can get her help through private resources. However, as someone else said, 18 months is a little young. But, I would really start to be concerned by 2 years. Hopefully, when ECI comes, they can give you some guidelines. My daughter wasn't really talking by 18 months, but I waited a little longer with her and she just turned 2 this month and is seriously talking up a storm. Each child is definitely different.

Oh, and definitely get the hearing evaluated. It turns out that my son could not hear due to numerous ear infections and he got tubes - which helped tremendously.

Good luck!
L.

I have no personal experience withe ECI myself but have had one family member and one close friend who have both has their sons in the program. Both boys have made ENORMOUS improvement, it has been amazing! I would personally do it, I don't think that they would be coming to judge you or your parenting it is more to help the child. Obviously you want what is best for your daughter or you would not have called them in the first place, that in itself would show that you are care so if you opted not to do a certain treatment I think you would be well within your rights.

Good luck and I would definitely give it a try for your daughters sake, it has to be very frustrating not to be able to communicate =) Merry Christmas.

H., ECI is wonderful. They have professionals (degreed speech therapists, occupational therapists, etc.) who evaluate any possible abnormalities in a child's development. WHen our boys were born prematurely, we were immediately referred and assigned to ECI. When the boys were about 6 mo they were thoroughly evaluated and place in the follow along program. (they, fortunately, did not qualify for the ready-start program, meaning they had no indication of serious delay). This is a great program because it's all self-evaluation. They will mail you surveys and activities to complete with your child and you send the surveys back. They are scored, and someone will contact you if the scores are dificient in any area. You will receive newsletters and ideas in the mail to help foster development in the area needed. (for you, speech). I had them come back at about 16mo because I was concerned that my little guy wasn't walking yet, but, as anticipated, he started finally at 19mo. The services are no cost to you, so I would take advantage of them, for sure! Good luck! You are welcome to call me if you'd like to ask questions: ###-###-####

I'm so glad! We've been with ECI since my son was 1. He was walking on his toes & I found out it wasn't normal and requested he be checked out. ECI was such a Blessing then and it remained so when he needed speech therapy. He'll be starting in the fall at the ECI school in Frisco and I'm so excited! God Bless you! =)

Hello! ECI came and evaluated my dd for another reason and there wasn't a need for services. Our experience was awesome and we have no complaints.

I don't know why someone said ECI is not completely free. It should be. I worked in ECI for several years. It is wonderful and some of the best pediatric therapists are in those programs. It is definitely not too early for a eval. It will set your mind at ease. Some programs don't do just home visits either. If your daughter would benefit from group activities they may suggest that.
These agencies are not like other government run programs, they just receive government funding.
Good luck.

H.,
ECI is not the governement.
They are wonderful. I have used them for all of my
foster children and have seen great results from the different therapies they offer.
Please contact them and have your child evaluated!
H.

Hi H.,
My son was exactly like your daughter at that age. I pushed doing some therapy. My pediatrician suggested an ECI evaluation. I had the BEST experience. Everyone they sent was very competent and great with my son. He did qualify for services. The first 6 months was free and then a charge after that, based on your income and insurance. My son went from no words to talking, although not super clearly. I was thrilled & cancelled the therapy after the 6 months. They suggested continuing it, and gave me no problem when I said I thought he was doing great. He is 4 now. He still has trouble with some letter sounds, but is talking up a storm. I'll never know if he would have progressed just fine on his own, but I am one who would rather waste my time in therapy early, than wish I had done something if things do not solve themselves.
Best of luck to you.

They main reason, I've been told, why they come to your home is because your child works best in their own home environment... more comfortable there. So more success happens there on a therapy visits.

We did ECI with my son for about 6 months. Then, I choose not to do it anymore because I thought he was improving enough and I knew that soon he would be old enough to go on to the school district's speech therapy program (in Plano that starts at 3 yrs).
So when I was ready to stop ECI, although they would have kept coming ... I told them no thank you... and that was fine with them... not a problem at all with my decision to do that.
And it's not completely FREE. They charge you on a sliding scale based on your family income -- total home income vs. # of people in your household. But it is VERY affordable compared to the private therapy that is out there! And it's only available to children until they turn 3. So you have limited time to take advantage of it before your child is too old for it.

It is therapy -- it can't hurt the child. It can only help. The assessment is free and can give you soo much information from a trained, licensed, educated professional who sees tons of children your child's age every day.... they know what to look for, what are red flags, they know what's typical. And they don't gain anything from it. Part of their program is govt funded... not all. They wouldn't waste time on a patient that really didn't need their services when they know there are many children out there that NEED them and their time. They're main goal is to help the kids and catch their delays early so that they can catch up.
You can get the assessment, listen to their recommendations and then make a decision from there.

Hi H.,

I will tell you my oldest was saying few words at 2 years old and I wish I had intervened sooner. He is now 7 and thriving, but after many years of therapy. He was diagnosed on the austism spectrum at 4. We did ECI, it was good start in the process. It is through the state and it is on a sliding scale based on your income on what you pay. Some pay nothing, we paid about $100 a month for visits 2 a week from a speech and occupational therapist.

I do not want to alarm you, but early intrevention is key with any autism disorders, if indeed this is what is affecting your child. She could just be speech delayed.

The way I look at it is it cannot hurt. It takes legwork on your part to start the process but I do think you need to find out what is going on, if anything. Best of luck!
G.

Make sure you see an ENT physician and have a hearing test before starting any kind of speech therapy. One of the most common reasons for speech delay is hearing problems - either because of chronic ear fluid or possible nerve dysfunction.

Be well,
D.J. Verret, MD
InnovationsFPS.com

It is completely optional. It is required that they make it available, but they can not force it on you. My 3 yr old has been attending ECP (same thing) for about a month now, and I can't believe the improvements! Most of all with her confidence and social skills. She loves school. So I say give it a try. Yeah they come check out your home, but mostly to work with your child in the child's home environment. Sometimes they get some good info because the child is more comfortable. I admit I get nervous about them coming to my home, and fret way to much on keeping it clean and organized, but it is so worth it. At least give it a try, and you don't have to continue with it if you don't like it. There is no recourse. They are not going to take your kid away (unless there is something really disturbing in the house when they visit)

I don't know about ECI, but I would have her hearing evaluated by a pediatric audiologist. In older kids that do more than check for hearing. They check auditory processing (understanding and verbal memory). Not sure how they would do an 18 month old, but I'm sure they have some techniques. For example, They used a computer to measure brain activity in response to sound when my son was in the NICU.

That would be step 1. Then if hearing is fine, read with your daughter. Name things she points to. Limit TV to 30 minutes. Play music-classical and upbeat. You could do Kindermusik.
If hearing is fine, I would also do the ECI eval with the speech pathologist or go private if you are concerned about government.

Also, I've used baby signs with my two kids. The verbal comes later, but it's nice to be able to communicate early. Less frustration for both of you.