What Does Your 10 Month Old Say?

My son is 16 months old and he doesn't say any words consistently. At his 15 month appointment the doctor said that he should be saying more and I got all freaked out and started asking around. I can't tell you how many people told me that their kids didn't talk until they were 2 or older. My son walked at 10 months and does a lot of other things. I'm not saying not to have his hearing tested if it would make you feel better, but I think that doctors do things that are unneccessary sometimes just to cover their butts. It seems to me that their are more babies that develope language later than earlier. Don't worry too much!

I don't know where you live, but your county "early intervention" (or "birth to 3") program will take a look at your son's progress for free and offer services if need be. Follow your instinct because there's nothing wrong with having him looked at by professionals!

I'd agree with the others for the most part about not worrying and trust your pediatrician. I have three children that ended up fine following this advice and my last needed a little help, but we waited and I wish I hadn't.

My daughter is 9 1/2 mos. and she doesn't say anything you can understand. she does alot of babbling, da, da,da,...ma,ma,ma yells and screams in delight. None of it means anything yet. I surely wouldn't worry. I also have an 11 and a 10 year old and once the start talking you'll wish they didn't! LOL! :)

S.

Hi N.,

All children develop at different stages. It may not be anything to worry about but there are programs out there that can help determine it. I always like to go with a mom's instinct. If he was born early (more then 3 weeks) we would adjust the age.

I'm not sure where you live but check with your local Health Department. They will direct you to the Help Me Grow Early Intervention Program. They work with children from birth to 3 years old and their families. It's a free service no matter what your income is. Nurses or specialists will work with you and will do an evaluation if they feel it is necessary to determine if there is a delay. There are services that are offered to help. There may also be a place that offer free or discounted hearing tests. You wouldn't need a Dr's order for that.

When kids are younger they respond much faster if they receive help early. Many parents and Drs. wait and watch many times because they don't know about the program. When there really is a problem, precious time has been lost.

I work in the Help Me Grow Program, doing the newborn visits and early intervention. It doesn't hurt to call and talk to them.

If you have questions e-mail me.

Good luck to you & your son!

K. :)

My daughter is 10 months old and says ma-ma, da-da, ba-ba, no-no and uh-oh being her favorite. I know all 3 of my kids talked at different stages. My son was a pretty late talker. But a good thing is a free program called Help Me Grow. We use the program because my daughter actually lost 1/8 of her brain when she was a week old due to a large amount of bleeding in her brain due to a medical condition she has. They work with her to just stay on top of any developmental delays she may have from the loss of the brain that controls speech and language. But the program is free and reallyy good. A nurse comes to my house occasionally to work with her and you can call your pediatrician for the number in your area. Keep in mind though that all kids are different and develop at different paces. Your son may be advanced in another skill that you haven't noticed because you are worried with this. Good luck and I hope this helped.

10 months is definitely not late. Some kids will say their first word at 9/10 months while others won't say their first word until 14-16 months. If your doctor wants to have your sons hearing checked it can't hurt but I would not start to worry until your son is at least a year or even a year and a half.

Hi,
Don't worry yet. Kids who are late verbalizing are very common. And your son at 10 months is not officially LATE yet. Older brother and sisters can have a big influence, either to talk or not to talk. He has a lot of time to figure it out. Odds are, when he's ready, he will open his mouth and little sentances will fall out. If he is 18 months and having a hard time verbalizing, then getting his hearing tested might be a good idea.
Don't worry now though!

i would not worry- my youngest barely said anything until he turned 2! at some point after that, he started talking and hasn't stopped yet(he is 7). best of luck!

I would not worry. Ten months is young yet. He may be too busy working on other developmental skills. The brain can only handle one developmental task at a time. Maybe he'll be an early walker instead.

I had this trouble with my oldest. My doc told us that instead of letting him just point to what he wants work with him to get him to tell us. Little words at a time. However, 10 months really isn't that old. I would not be too concerned at the moment. I would just start working with him and repeating yourself all the time. Kids are brilliant they pick up anything and most will try to mock you if you say the say word over and over. Just sit down for some mommy and me time and paoint to yourself and say mama. Then start using his hand to point and say mama. He will pick it up in no time. GOOD LUCK

N.,

My nephew is 13 months and he doesn't say anything right now except a few grunts. My husband's cousin didn't start speaking until he was 3 years old and now he is a very smart little boy.

I wouldn't worry about the lack of speaking because each child develops at their own pace.

A.

Does your child have any siblings? I have a 2-year-old who barely talks, but she has a 3 year old sister that tries to talk for her. THis is common for youngest ones I'm told.
WHen I was worried the Doc asked me if my daughter understands me when I'm speaking to her. As long as your son understands he should be fine.
Also reading to him will help him discover new words and be able to associate them with their pictures. Hang in there, soon he will be talking all the time and will not be quiet.

My son is almost 11 months. Mostly, he says "bah." He can make "mmmm," but not really "ga." He'll also repeat some sound patterns, saying "ya ya ya ya ya," and likes to growl.
Our ped said he should be saying/waving bye-bye, but doesn't do that yet.
Having your child's hearing tested may, at the least, make you feel better, and, at most, catch a potential hearing issue.
But overall, I think kids do things in their own time.

My son is 13 months old and up until 1 week ago only said da, da and related sounds. He started saying ma, ma last week. But he sure says them a lot! LOL. He will babble for 10 -15 minutes at a time. Our ped has asked if he says any words and we said yes, but he really doesn't say da, da or ma, ma in reference to us, he just babbles. I'm not worried yet.

Hi N.,
I babysit a little boy who is 16 months old and he says nothing. He doesn't even say ma ma or da da. I wouldn't worry about it. One day he may look at you and just start talking. I have noticed, as well, that the youngest child seems to have the least amount to say. His/her older siblings end up talking for them and they end up talking later. Hope this helps. Good luck.