Hellobee Boards

Try not to stress. This is coming from the mama who couldn't sleep before Lo's well check ups because I would get so nervous something would be wrong. Can you write down your questions/concerns for the doc ahead of time so you don't forget to mention them? Sometimes if I don't have a list of questions I get overwhelmed with my squirmy child and forget them.

I did demonstrate waving to my LO, but not pointing.

I would write down a list of your concerns to go over with his pediatrician. Are you worried that he is delayed? Or something else? If he is it will be ok!

My son is 16 months, so we're at a very similar stage. If you want an honest response, yes, all of those things together would have me concerned about some global delays. We did demonstrate waving to him, but pointing he learned to do all on his own as a way to communicate with us. He has a number of different nicknames, but responds to them. His speech is a bit delayed (he has about 10 words) and it does worry me, but I think his issue is a combo of ongoing ear infections and a big sister who talks for him all the time, and for the time being his pediatrician is not concerned (we discussed it at the 15 month appointment). Both of my kids we also walking at or before their first birthdays so that would be another thing I would want to discuss as part of the bigger picture.

The good news is, early intervention can be an amazing resource, and the sooner you start the better. I would discuss your concerns with your pediatrician, but I would also investigate if your state allows for self referral to EI and if so, start that process as well. There is zero harm that can come from at least getting him an evaluation, so why not?

@Truth Bombs: Did a doctor tell you your LO was delayed with 10 words at 16 months? Just curious because DS is 16 months this week and no way does he have 10.

@Jackiedavis87: I know it's easier said than done but I would try not to worry about autism right now. He's still so young and that isn't diagnosed until an older age.

I do have concerns about my 17 month olds speech. She has said about 10 words but only uses 3 regularly. Her 18 month appointment is soon so I'm going to ask her pediatrician about it and if she thinks she's behind at all I'm going to call EI. I agree with @Truth Bombs: that it can only help. My line of thinking is that if she is delayed it will only help and if not it will bring me peace of mind.

@Truth Bombs: Got it! FWIW I think its common for kids to stop using words they know and then go back to them. I hear that all the time from my daycare parent friends! DS has mama and maybe 5 animal sounds but that is really it. Otherwise it is just pointing and whining lol.

I haven't read all the responses yet, so forgive me if I'm repeating what other have said. Do you call him by one particular nickname at home? If you ask him to get a book or a toy, does he? How is is eye contact? Is he interested in his toys and playing?

I look at it this way: better to raise the concern with your pediatrician than not, because you know your son best. If you don't mention it, I think the odds are slim that doctor will notice anything during that short visit.

Basically, there are 4 possible scenarios. Since (in my opinion) only 1 has a downside, I think it is DEFINITELY worth talking to your doctor.
* If you ask, and everything is fine = yay!
* If you don't ask, and everything is fine = yay, but you don't know, and may keep worrying...
* If you ask, and something is concerning = you can get testing and early intervention right away - also yay because you are proactively addressing your son's needs!
* If you don't ask, and there really is something concerning that goes un-diagnosed, than you have delayed valuable treatment, which you may regret = not good

@Jackiedavis87: Yep and making eye contact is huge!

@Jackiedavis87: you've got this Momma! your son is in great hands

@Jackiedavis87:

For what it's worth, after my doctor asked about responding to his name at my LO's nine month appointment, I also googled it and found the results really scary--but the more I looked into it, the more it seemed like the link to autism was all based on a single study of a few dozen kids, and part of the group had been pre-selected as being high-risk for autism. I am not a medical professional and certainly am not up on all the research on this, but once I realized this I tried to take it with a grain of salt and remember that the internet is an echo chamber and can just as easily scare you for no reason as give you useful answers.

In any case, after that I really started trying to teach my LO his name and he started responding to it pretty quickly to it. Just doing stuff that I had never done before like saying "I'm Mommy! You are [LO]!" and pointing. And just trying to call out to him with his name more. I'm not sure if that helped or he was developing naturally, but he learned to respond pretty quickly.

I know responding to his name was just one of the issues you mentioned, but just wanted to share my experience with that one--agree with other posters that it's of course a good idea to explore your Qs with your doctor and consider EI, but I guess all I'm trying to say is that sometimes googling is the worst!

That is really quick to respond to his name, from not at all. It sounds like a good sign. This age can be confusing because they are doing a lot of transitions and they can suddenly make huge leaps. Lots of kids suddenly have a word explosion, which recently happened to my 17 month old who was slower to talk too. I would bring it up with the ped, note his progress, and s/he may just want to monitor, but have early intervention on your radar over the next month or so. Best wishes!

@Jackiedavis87 that is great! definitely take advantage of that EI keep us updated.