https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Mon, 06 Apr 2026 14:09:28 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1203102 Thu, 07 Nov 2013 18:57:47 +0000 brownie 1203102@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Well, the pediatrician doesn't think we should be concerned. She said they won't do anything for him until he is 3 or 4 anyway. I found a private speech therapist but her voicemail is full so I can't get a hold of her. I think I am going to try for a hearing test because we have worried about that since he was an infant. We can go directly to an ENT.</p> <p>He isn't bilingual, we did do baby sign language but only a few words. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1194266 Mon, 04 Nov 2013 07:18:21 +0000 looch 1194266@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My son is almost 3 and we're in the process of deciding what to do...birth to 3 is a joke where I live, the most they can do at this point is refer him to a preK program in the public school system, so we're going the private route.</p> <p>The best speech therapists are all independent (meaning they do not accept insurance) and navigating that has not been fun. </p> <p>Just two other points, bilingualism in itself does not cause speech delays (if you think about it, kids in that situation have more options for words, so they actually can choose from a larger pool) and the issue isn't just the words...it is often oral motor. This was eye opening for us, because it stems from the teeth and jaw strength. There are a ton of exercises that kids can be taught to strengthen the oral area, which will help them form more sounds/letters/words. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1194098 Sun, 03 Nov 2013 22:13:56 +0000 irene 1194098@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I am offering no help but I want to say speech delay worries me. LO is 21 months now, and I have never seen a word explosion. He understood us in both languages (Cantonese &amp; English) and have a handful of words but that's about it. I am trying not to consciously worry about it until 2. </p> <p>Good luck to you! I remember you are bilingual too, right? I wonder if that has any effect on your LO's speech at all. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1192677 Sat, 02 Nov 2013 15:25:58 +0000 brownie 1192677@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@BlueWolverine: This happened to my friends kid as well. She was 2 1/2 when she go the tubes. She was even more understandable then my son before then. But an ENT is on my list. First the teachers (they said testing wouldn't be bad), then his ped, then an ENT and a speech pathologist. </p> <p>The more I google I feel like he is 6 months behind in about 50% of the milestones. He is just now hitting 2 year old milestones such as sentences and mimicking. He isn't using adult grammar (such as running). He has a huge vocabulary as far as sight words go. He can identify a number of different things but he doesn't use any of them in sentences. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1192589 Sat, 02 Nov 2013 14:34:10 +0000 BlueWolverine 1192589@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My only experience with this is my best friend's daughter. Her speech was very delayed. She had tubes put in her ears at just short of 2 years old and it's been like night and day. It seems that she previously just couldn't hear much. She's saying so so much now. Watching the difference in the weeks after her surgery was amazing. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1192571 Sat, 02 Nov 2013 14:16:56 +0000 brownie 1192571@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@SAHM0811: Looks like we are covered for up 75 visits on my husbands insurance. I have no idea what my insurance covers but since we are co-insured it doesn't matter. But thanks for suggesting I look it up. We should know more by the end of next week. We meet the pediatrician Wednesday. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1192194 Sat, 02 Nov 2013 09:28:47 +0000 SAHM0811 1192194@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@brownie: I just googled speech therapists in my area, and focused on the ones who accepted insurance (most do!). However, after the eval, we learned that our insurance doesn't cover speech therapy unless the problem stems from a medical reason (stroke, traumatic injury, congenital defect, etc...). So at the times we didn't qualify for state services, we've paid for it using our healthcare spending acct, which does see speech therapy as an eligible expense.</p> <p>ETA: also, I was told by the evaluator in NY that if LO didn't qualify for state services the first time, not to worry and just give it time. She said usually if you see the delay continue, to get a 2nd eval after some time. She said usually, by the second time, kids will qualify. This is what happened with us. She didn't qualify at 2 yo, but did at 3.</p> <p>I also have to say that between having services in NY and CA, it's been my experience that the process in both states was fairly easy to go through. But in CA, the ball moved pretty fast and seamlessly. It was nice! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1192061 Sat, 02 Nov 2013 07:14:54 +0000 lizzywiz 1192061@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@brownie: I've worked in the private and public sector and even when the public sector won't qualify you for services, the private can usually get at least some sessions paid by insurance. If that is what happens (you only get approved for minimal services) don't be discouraged; there is a ton of stuff parents can do once they get the basic info from an expert. Ask for detailed explanations (handout, ideally) of what sounds/phonological processes they are targeting, where the articulators need to be to produce that sound, and what kind of cues can you give you child to support them in using their best speech.<br /> Good luck! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1191774 Fri, 01 Nov 2013 20:03:15 +0000 brownie 1191774@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@deerylou: We do have one. I haven't heard good things about it (really hard to qualify for anything). So I am not expecting to qualify. I think there is a problem but it is very borderline so I'm not sure they will think it is a problem. I expect to have to go the private route if we have that available to us. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1191697 Fri, 01 Nov 2013 19:16:52 +0000 deerylou 1191697@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@brownie: I see you're in California; as am I. In my area, we have SARC-San Andreas Regional Center. They handle services like behavior, speech, and occupational therapy, and have clinicians on staff for diagnostics, assessments, etc. I would think that you have a very similar umbrella system in Southern California, but I'll look into it when I'm back home and see if I can come up with better info. </p> <p>I work in behaviorism/special education and am well versed in speech delays. I'd definitely start with your ped, and see if you could get a referral to a respected SLP in the area. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1191571 Fri, 01 Nov 2013 17:33:23 +0000 brownie 1191571@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@SAHM0811: How did you find a private speech therapist? I'm not sure how to go about doing that? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1191493 Fri, 01 Nov 2013 16:57:02 +0000 SAHM0811 1191493@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My daughter was evaluated by EI at 2 yo and while they said she had a speech delay, they said it wasn't bad enough for state services. So I took her to a private speech therapist instead. She sounded a lot like your LO at that point. Receptive was strong yes, but not so much her expressive. I knew that even if her case wasn't very grave, that therapy would still benefit her, so why not? </p> <p>When she was 3, I could still see she was behind a little. She would improve, but at a very slow rate. Never saw "word explosions" during that year, which many parents speak of.</p> <p>So at 3, had her evaluated for state preschool services, and she qualified. A speech therapist went to her school twice a week. She made major improvements that year, but still was always a bit delayed. </p> <p>At 4, we moved cross-country and state services continued after a few months of a break for our family to get settled in a new neighborhood. After about a year in Pre-K, her language caught up to her peers, but we were still working on articulation.</p> <p>At 5.5 now, still working on articulation. Also, now that we are in Kindergarten, we are realizing how her speech delay affects literacy... It's an ongoing work in progress, but I keep seeing improvements and I know she'll catch up even more in the coming years. I expect to continue her therapy til at least 7 yo. </p> <p>The first step is an evaluations, whether state or private... I don't think it would hurt to establish a baseline to see where your LO is at. Good luck! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1191478 Fri, 01 Nov 2013 16:51:59 +0000 BoogieBea 1191478@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@brownie: My doctor wasn't concerned when I brought it up at his well checks starting from the 1 year mark. So we just kept taking the wait and see approach, but I just got more and more paranoid as he got older. So at the 2 year appointment, I had my doctor send in his info. They got back to us very quickly to schedule for evaluation. It only took a month or so before we started receiving services. My son barely qualified for services actually. He exhibited the same characteristics as your son. I think my son is just a lazy speaker. He's 4 now and I'm still correcting the way he pronounces words sometimes. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1191473 Fri, 01 Nov 2013 16:46:21 +0000 Mrs. Twine 1191473@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Ellie was delayed, but caught up remarkably well. She was never referred on to EI; I sort of wish she had been (for my own peace of mind, not because she has any lasting effect from not getting services). I think if you feel worried, it might be reassuring (at least) and helpful to have someone from EI evaluate him and give an opinion. She was speaking very little at age two; mostly still two word "sentences" and seemed to have regressions earlier-- so had the word "up" in her vocabulary at 14 months, only to have it vanish altogether at 18 months. I know it can be really concerning as a parent. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1191472 Fri, 01 Nov 2013 16:44:40 +0000 brownie 1191472@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@junebugmama: That sounds very familiar. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1191471 Fri, 01 Nov 2013 16:43:33 +0000 brownie 1191471@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@BoogieBea: At his 2 year old appointment she said to wait a few months and see. Since he was getting services, we didn't pursue it. Now he isn't getting the services, so now, I am concerned about it again. I have an appointment with his doctor on Wednesday. I wanted to talk to his other school teacher first and see if they saw anything. The answer from them was that it wasn't necessarily a bad thing to test him. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1191470 Fri, 01 Nov 2013 16:43:05 +0000 junebugmama 1191470@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@brownie: He sounds similar to your lo. At first he just wasn't saying much and wasn't really even mimicking. Then he gain a few words and I would feel better for awhile but then those words would never improve, for instance he's been saying the word "more" as "mo" for 6 months. He understands every single thing you say to him though and follows all directives. So I knew it wasn't a hearing problem. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1191464 Fri, 01 Nov 2013 16:38:30 +0000 brownie 1191464@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@junebugmama: Thank you. If you don't mind telling me what where your son's concerns? I'm not always sure if I am crazy or not. I just feel like it isn't where it should be but it definitely isn't an extreme delay. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1191461 Fri, 01 Nov 2013 16:37:41 +0000 BoogieBea 1191461@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I think you can contact EI directly but I had his primary doctor send over his info requesting for evaluation. We started receiving their services when my son was 2. The therapist came to our house once a week for a year. What does your doctor say about his speech? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1191454 Fri, 01 Nov 2013 16:34:40 +0000 junebugmama 1191454@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@brownie: I had concerns about my sons speech. I called ou birth to 3 hotline number and they asked me a series of questions. I could tell the woman on the other the other line thought I was nuts for calling, however they did have a therapist call me. She asked me a series of questions and said that she felt like he was on target, but they would come out anyway.</p> <p>It was a very easy process and gave me peace of mind. When they come out for the evaluation they tell you at that point if they qualify for care. It can't hurt, and you can probably get the answers you're looking for. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1191447 Fri, 01 Nov 2013 16:29:28 +0000 brownie 1191447@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@junebugmama: Probably, I'm just not sure how to network into that. He is also very borderline, so I am not sure that he will meet the standard for care. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1191443 Fri, 01 Nov 2013 16:26:50 +0000 junebugmama 1191443@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Could you have him evaluated by birth to 3 in your state? It's usually an easy process and they come to your home. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-speech-delay-experience#post-1191418 Fri, 01 Nov 2013 16:15:26 +0000 brownie 1191418@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My son is 2 1/2 years old now. I have been wondering about his speech for a while now. Before he was 2 he wasn't pronouncing the last sound of any words (so dog would be "dah" and good would be "goo"). He could pronounce the sounds in other places just not at the end of a word. We had an unofficial evaluation and they said he was borderline. He could identify all of the pictures they showed him and didn't show any hearing issues.</p> <p>We decided to hold off on any testing because he was getting speech therapy through his school. He is no longer going to that school but his new school has more students who are talking so I was hoping peers would help his speech. </p> <p>He has a large number of words that he knows now. He can identify many things, "reads" his books and sings songs. But mostly this is mimicry and he often still is only saying a word or two as the identifier. He couldn't even say "trick or treat" last night is sounded like "tr or eat". Yet he could say "puk patch" with the complete "atch" sound. </p> <p>I asked his new school what they thought and they didn't say I was crazy. So I guess I don't know where to go with this or even what to google or think. His receptive language is very high he understand everything we say. </p>