When Do I worry.....Not Talking Yet

She's fine-does she understand what you are saying? Keep reading and showing her letters, numbers, colors, animals, etc. Kiss her little head for me!

I don't think you need to get her evaluated right now...she's only 16 months! Sounds like she understands but she's just not verbalizing just yet - this is totally normal! Keep reading her books, talking to her, pointing out anything that's new and just relax! My son is 20 months old and has a few words but lately he's been putting sentences together with the words he knows!

I would wait til 18 mos appt, then see how she does. My daughter learned about 30 words b/n 15-18 mos. Is this a second or bilingual child... those can be variables. Does she seem to have receptive language such as going towards door when you say, we are going out, if so, that is a great sign.

Don't worry, she sounds fine. As long as she's trying to communicate with you guys (pointing to what she wants, maybe taking your hand to bring you somewhere that she needs help, etc.), she'll develop her vocabulary in her own time. There are tools to teach toddlers sign language (books and also a Baby Einstein DVD called First Signs). Otherwise just read her lots of books, and more importantly, talk to her a lot. Just explain to her even the mundane things you are doing throughout the day - now mommy is driving the car, oh there's a green light, now we go, etc. That helps more than anything else. Both of my kids were sort of late talkers, and the pediatrician was never concerned.

if you are worried contact early intervention and see what they say.

Read, read, read to her! Hearing language, the spoken word does wonders for young children.

I'd mention the speech concerns to your pediatrician, but don't hit the panic button just yet.

Some kids wait--then start talking in sentences! O. day you'll wonder if she EVER didn't talk!

It's really early to be concerned. Be aware and pay attention, but don't be too concerned. It can't hurt to mention something to your pediatrician. He/she can ask you the right questions to determine whether or not she needs to be evaluated. I told me ped I was concerned about my son. She had him get his hearing tested (just in case) and ask me lots of questions to rule out any physical or comprehension issues. We are seeing a speech therapist, but he's boarderline. We're just going back for evaluations every few months, and she gives me ideas of things to do to help him.

She's probably just fine. Just keep reading to her and talking to her and mention it to your ped. You will feel so much better!

I would get her evaluated. Evaluation is always a win win. You either walk out the door knowing that she is fine, or you walk out knowing what you need to do.

Start by having her ears checked, make sure that her issue with milk has not caused fluid that has gone unnoticed. Do what ever you have to do to make sure that she hears clearly.

You can have a free evaluation through the Early Intervention in your state, but also get a private evalution. I would be most concerned about her not imitating and repeating.

While it is true that all children develop at their own pace, there are milestones for a reason, and you would not be asking if there were no cause. Go find out if she needs help, based on a professional who has evaluated her with standard instruments, not based on what happened to any other child. You will not be sorry you did, and you need to know either way.

M.

Don't wait...never, never wait on development. What if she turns 2 and you find out you could have helped her sooner? What ever happend to another child has nothing to do with what may happen to yours. Kids who have issues later look just like kids who will suddenly beat the odds. Start with the ears, go for the speech eval, make sure based on her, not other kids.

At my son's 18 month check-up he said those same words. My ped said he should be speaking more and recommended to test his hearing. I did not think there was a hearing problem because he would respond when I called his name and when the doorbell rang, etc. She said there is a disconnect between receptive vocabulary (what they hear) and expressive vocabulary (what they say). Anyways, he had 100% blockage in one ear and 50% in other. It was just fluid, so they put tubes in and the rest is history. He is now 5 and TOTALLY caught up. He was caught up by 3.5.

I agree with Denise P. Below, reading helps a lot. My son was that way, he babbled all the time and I realized he was trying to say things and I would strain to understand him. Our Pediatrition said he was still in the "normal range" but that starting some sign language might be good. So we started some very basic sign language with him and that kept him from getting frustrated. Very basic signs like no more, milk, I can't even remember what all now but it helped. At age 3 I spoke to our Ped again and she mentioned that our local school system offers (free of charge) speech therapy at age 3 so we signed him up and they said it appeared to be articulation only, he got everything we said just wasn't using his mouth muscles the right way to get the correct sounds out. He was in their program for 2 years and they really did a wonderful job, they had him exagerate his mouth and tongue when he said certain sounds and once he could hear the difference it just clicked. He graduated from their program at age 4 so he had 2 years and now he is very clear and talks CONSTANTLY!!! So much for women talking more than men, he is the biggest chatterbox on the block!!!

Tell the ped at your 18 month visit, but most won't get stressed about it until they turn 2. She is still young and has plenty of time to talk! :)

My pedi always told me not to worry until my girl was 3. She never wanted to say a thing! She was 2 and still not saying words, let alone sentences. I knew she could say some words but she just wasn't interested in talking.

At about her third birthday, she just took off! She started saying new words daily, forming sentences, etc. Now she's 4 and perfectly normal.

I would give it until 3. Some kids just don't feel the need to talk!

My older daughter was the opposite so it was so hard for me to be patient and not worry too, but I'm glad I didn't intervene. I'm glad I let her develop at her own pace.

I don't think what you have described is alarming at all. My son did a lot of unintelligible babbling up to 22 months and then bam! It was like overnight his vocabulary and clarity just took off. He is now almost 3 1/2 and people are astounded at his large vocabulary.
My dad said he was nearly 3 before he was speaking clearly and the doctor said it was because everyone anticipated what he wanted so he never had to ask for anything. Once everyone stopped doing that he began talking.
My doctor said kids' language development will usually take off somewhere between 18 months and 3 years. We also took a baby sign language class which was fun and may encourage your daughter to speak more. Just keep talking to her constantly. Describe what you are doing, ask her questions, play music,read. I know people really poo-poo letting kids watch tv, but I am convinced my kids have learned a ton from Dora, Diego, Team Umizoomi and other language rich shows like that. Hope this helps ease your concerns!
A.

I wouldn't worry at this point. My DS is also 16 months and doesn't say much. He does get his point across and he understands what we're saying, so I am not getting concerned yet. Every once in a while, he'll say a word...once...then not say it again for a long time. I know he's exposed to A LOT of language (my DD who is almost 4 years old NEVER stops talking). At his age, she was so much more verbal. My pediatrician just smiled when I mentioned it and said not to stress out.
Just keep talking to her and telling her what everything is and what you're doing. She'll talk when she's ready.

My first was like that, then at 18 months it was like a faucet that turned on and now he never shuts up!!!! I wouldn't worry yet at all. I know my son was so mobile and active, he was a little later on the words then some but was a much more proficient talker by 2 than many kids his age. When he was two we counted a sentence he said once and it was 10 words! He was talking up a storm, connecting thoughts, singing, rapping you name it. So I would give her some more time :D

she is saying at 16 months what mine was saying at about 30 months. I would call eci and get her started and check her for ear infections and fluid. She can hear you or she wouldn't respond. but that doesn't mean she can hear you plainly. A checkup at the doc wouldn't hurt. I would go for it.

Sounds exactly like my almost 16 month old son, he has very few words but is right on target for everything else. I had him evaluated a few weeks ago, I was told not to worry but if by 18 months I don't see much improvement to look into speech therapy. He has been making progress and I think that is key. I was told that the developmental charts you read about what your child should be saying/doing are simply guidelines, every child is different and that being off by a few months is usually not cause for concern. But, when in doubt check it out! It's a free service and you can get a referral from your pediatrician. They'll also offer advice on what you can do at home to help her along. best of luck!

This is probably normal, but never hurts to have it looked at by Dr. My son was speech delayed and if I remember correctly, they probably will not evaluate speech until 18mos. but you can have hearing, etc checked.

Mine was the same way at that age. As soon as she turned 2 it increased dramatically. She just turned 2 in Fed and since then she's trippled her words, and doubled her two word sentences. It amazed me.
Today I dug out an old book I haven't read to her in forever and as I am reading she points to a sand castle and says "Caple!" How the heck did she know what it was? Where else has she seen one? She just kept on repeating it, knowing exactly what it was.
I would wait a little longer to she if she improves...and in the mean time read to her like crazy, try to find some educational DVD's (I found alphabet ones at big lots for like 2 bucks and she loved them, they are short so not terribly long or anything).
Hope this helps.
Oh and mine had a bad reaction to full fat cows milk, so she was on soy for 5 months then 2%. She only had the full fat stuff for less then a month before she just finially couldn't keep it down anymore (she had diarrhea before that). Can she have other dairy? Just not milk? Mine was fine with yogurts and cheeses so thats where she got more fat from.
Hope this helps. =)

My daughter is 18 months and not talking much yet. I'm not worried. I've seen so many kids start talking sometime the year they are 2. She can say mama great. She will say woof when she sees dogs. She will imitate bird sounds. She says BAH! for pretty much everything else. Even though she's not talking she has just started imitating more sounds in "babbling" and I just know she'll start trying to say more words very soon! If your child is 2 and half and is not trying new sounds or words I guess that is when I would talk to a specialist about it and see what their advice would be. My older son had a friend who did not say much at age 3....expect for cave man noises!!! Now at age 7 they both talk the same and are both doing GREAT in school.

When you encourage her to say a particular word you can slowly over-enunciate the word. Say it several times and really exaggerate every syllable. She will likely watch your lips and tongue as you slowly say the word. Also talk to her A LOT. Tell her what you're doing, where you're going, what you see around the house and at the park, etc.

Read lots and lots of books. Find a good book that contains pictures of familiar objects with the name of the object below the picture. We had a great book like that for my daughter and after going through it with her nearly every day (she loved it) for a few weeks she started pointing to pictures and trying to say the words.

reading regular story books is important too. If you read a few of the same books over and over again the repetition will help her memorize the words of the book. After a while you can leave off the last word of every page, look at her to finish the sentence and wait for her to try. Eventually she will try to finish the sentences with encouragement!

Sing songs! If she loves a particular song and it is easy to memorize she might just try to sing along with you. You can do the same thing I suggested for the books; leave out one word of the song and wait for her to say the word. She won't do it at first but if you keep it up she will eventually try.

Those are some things that got our little one talking! I hope they work for you!

Ask your pediatrician what they think. My oldest was very delayed, did some speech therapy, and is right on track now.

I wouldn't worry just yet. She is saying somethings "mama, dada, baba" and she is still just little, 16 months. Some kids do take a long time to talk.

~I say talk to her even more than you normally do...just start getting in the habit of saying out loud everything you are doing and point out everything you guys see and give her the names of everything...'yellow flower', 'lets put your purple socks on' etc, etc...

I bet you anything the time will soon be upon you when you look back and think 'what was I worried about, I can't get her to be quiet' :)

Of course, talk to her ped about your concerns but my thought is she is still pretty young and within 'normal' range!

Your pediatrician will probably do a screening at 18 months. I wouldn't worry about it until then. Pay attention to if she points to things and when she points does she look at you to make sure you are looking too.
Have you talked to your pediatrician about moving to soy milk. It doesn't have the fat that whole milk has so you want to make sure to provide that in other forms. (Whole milk is recommended until age 2 because babies brains need the fat). We put our son on soy milk also but he was almost 2 so our ped said it wasn't a concern, but with your daughter being only 16 months it may be a concern.

I posted something similar a few days ago in regards to my 14 month old. He says about 6 words and just learned a new word the other day. I'm so excited. The moms on this site assured me that I'm worring to much. As long as your daughter is communicating with you in other ways, she will be fine. Try to enjoy her while she's little. Talk to her constantly. Point things out and pronounce them. Kids love to learn. She will be fine. :)

my 13 month old doesnt talk much either, mama, dada, baba, that stuff, and a bunch of gibberish which may be her trying to say words... but she understands, I tell her to clap her hands, wave bye bye, blow a kiss, she is happy to comply & very proud of herself. So I know h=she understands us, if not us understanding her... I would look for other clues like that that point to comprehension & remember they all learn at different paces, and all talk in kindergarten! (DD doesnt imitate sounds either)

My son's talking really took off right after his 2nd birthday.
And then it was non stop chatting.

My first son spoke his first sentence at 13 months and the second one said his first words at 2 years. One is just as intelligent as the other.
So you probably have nothing to worry about.
But you should go with your intuition and put your mind at ease. There should be an early intervention program in your area that will do a free eval. If it is determined that therapy is needed, it should also be free until she is 3 years old.