22 Month Old Not Really Trying to Say Any Words....

Hi S., Einstien didn't start to speak until he was 5, I guess too much going on in his head at the time. LOL The good news is he can hear, so you know it isn't that. Time is the only thing that he needs, and love and support from you. Don't try to force it, when he starts you may just wish for the peace and quiet again. LOL Good luck.

Hello S.. I am a former early childhood educator and now a full time stay at home mom. My experience with toddler aged children is extensive and your situation is not uncommon. Most young toddlers are still experimenting with words and sounds and are still trying to make sense of their world. Some toddlers are more expressive than others. The ones less expressive are not "slow" or behind in their development. Most Child psychologist and pediatricians agree that children should have full vocabulary and word development by the age of five. As long as your child is able to understand you and follows instructions well chances are they are on point with their development and cognition. Only children who may experience delayed reactions or no reaction at all is cause for concern. But being a mom I know you probably will seek professional council and thats totally normal but all in all don't worry. Just give your precious one room to grow. Stay Blessed!..L.

My 24 month old (Last week) just started saying more than MA and UGH... Now he says NO, WHOA, UH OH... lol All on the same day... Must have been the "O" day...

He is our 3rd child and all of them were the same. Not really hitting the "milestones" of speaking... BUT what our dr with 30 yrs of experience behind him told us was that Girls are more verbal than boys.. And he made sure that the kid could gollow 2 part commands. (comprehention skills) Like go in the kitchen and get a bowl...

There was a recent study that said that kids who DID NOT speak until later but communicated thru grunts, pointing, etc had a LARGER vocabulary by age 5 than kids who talked earlier.

And our middle child is our example of a child who would speak, but was to shy to really speak unless at home... Now at 4 1/2 he recently stunded us all by telling us about what expanding and contracting is... He is popping out these large words almost daily. Words that we wonder WHERE he pulled them from... He talks to people outside our house now...

It is normal... I would only "test" your child if he is seriously lagging behind in multiple of the "milestone" markers... But then again, I am one of those moms who doesnot like the rush to "lable" our kids as a whole as a flawed group... Lets just give them time to grow up for a bit... The milestones are generalizations... Some children will do them before, some after... 24 months is a number... there is no magic switch that flips when they hit these numbers... It flips when the CHILD is ready, not the dr...

Relax, keep talking to him, and one day he will blow you away with the words that come out at the least expected time!!!

S. ~
My grandson just turned 2 in January and was the same way. He totally had his own language, and was very adamant sometimes...it was pretty funny! The past few weeks he has totally exploded with language! It's amazing how everytime I see him, he's saying more and more! He is parroting pretty much everything.

So just give him time, he's fine. Talk to him...if he points at things he wants, just say the words to him so that he will associate that.

D.

Hi S.,
My son didn't talk much either, but when he turned 2, it was like someone threw a switch and he started using all the words he had locked inside. I wouldn't worry too much yet, and you can always check with your pediatrician when he goes in for a checkup to make sure he's close to his milestones.

If you're not already, try getting him into a playgroup or other social situation where he can be around other children. Also, keep encouraging him to "use a word" instead of grunting. He'll be talking up a storm in no time and you'll wish he was more quiet again! : )

Good Luck!
S.

OMG S., I'm right with you...

Our 19m/o son doesn't talk at all. No words. Period. He grunts, hums, "sings", just started pointing, but no words. Everything you described about your kid is exactly our kid, too.

We teach our son Sign Language and thought that that may be a contributing factor to his delay. We've had him evaluated by Early On and they said that he comprehends at a 22m/o's level, but expresses at a 16m/o's level. Not enough to officially call it a "delay", but we're enrolled in a S. playgroup-type class to help stimulate him. Personally I think he's just not ready to talk, but I got so tired of his pediatrician having a coniption at every checkup since he was 6m/o because he wasn't talking. Besides, it's free to participate in Early On and it shut the pediatrician up. :)

One thing I didn't like about Early On - They suggested we stop teaching Sign Language, and they suggested we stop talking to our kid in complete sentences, but instead talk to him in two or three word sentences. But he understands and is very bright, and I think that's because we talk to him the way we do and we read to him so much.

So good luck with your little one. :) I know it can be frustrating, but hang in there. Get him evaluated by Early On, it's better to be safe than sorry, and it's free.

I am not an expert here, but...my daughter is 16 months old and only will say "mama". At her 15 month check-up, our pediatrician said that if she is not talking around 10 words (IE - dada, up, dog, hi, etc.) by her 18 month check-up then she was going to send my daughter for a speech evaluation. Maybe it's worth taking you son to the pediatrician for an evaluation? Good luck!

If your real worried I would ask your pediatrician. But I wouldn't worry about it I had a son who really didn't say too much he scoped everyone and everything out. The pediatrician made me put him through speach therapy he was 3 1/2 and all of a sudden one day he just started talking he answered me when i ask him questions and he just started zumming his cars and gabbing. It was like a light switch. I don't know why. But he is like my grandfather and if we are with people he doesn't know he scopes the place and everyone before talking. But talk to your Pediatrician and see what he says and than follow your gut. Good Luck!

Hey S.,

Go have your little one evaluated. Make sure that there are no physical problems. Once my son got his tubes put in, he was a talking machine (but wasn't saying as much before age 2), although I knew that he understood as well. Boys often are slower with communication. My daughter who just turned 2 yrs old talks in six word sentences (girls are just different). Also, have him checked out for any speech/mental health issue. He probably is just a little behind, but within the realm of normal, but better to know what you are dealing with, right? Hope that's helpful. Take care. Enjoy the beautiful weather! *C. (WAHM Erik 3 1/2 yrs old and Betsy 2 yrs old).

p.s. love your name. Almost named our daughter S. (:

I found that with all three of my boys I was anticipating their every need and therefore they didn't need to talk to get what they wanted or needed. It wasn't until I stopped catering to their every whim that they started to talk more. However, I did (and still do) go through the period of time when they would get whatever they needed or wanted on their own without asking. they'd climb for things high in a cupboard or undo the locks in the lower cabinets. I've even had one climb on top of the refridgerator to get a toy I had put up because they were fighting over it. If you find your son still isn't talking much there's nothing wrong with contacting your local school district to ask them to do an evaluation on him. I did to ease my mind and found that not only was I catering to their every need they all have special needs as well. There were other issues I didn't necessarily "see" until the evaluations came back.

Good luck - S.

I agree with those that said to get your son checked out by the experts. There may be nothing wrong, but would you not want to have that reassurance. Early on is great and then your son may attend public school for speech delay if necessary. I taught preschool, including toddlers, for 15 years and have my own four grown children on which to base this response. I always told parents to check with the experts.

Hi,
Have his hearing checked, and call Early On through your school distrcit to have him evaluated. I did both for my daughter, she needed tubes, plus she had a evaluation by the school district. She needed tubes,she did not qualify for speech therapy. He may not be able to hear, lots of articles that boys talk later but I would still have it checked out.
My daughter is coming along, but I know she is a bit behind in her speech.
Hope that helps.
L.

My son was that way and he ended up with a speech delay. Call your local intermediate school district and have him evaluated. It is free and it couldn't hurt. They can tell you if he is truly behind or not. If he qualifies for speech therapy, again it is free. Good luck and God Bless!

I'm not sure your son is hitting the milestones he should, and maybe it is time to get a medical opinion to see if he needs a speech evaluation. The first step is to check his ears/hearing, and if that is okay, to do a speech evaluation. Sometimes a quick intervention with a little speech therapyis all that is needed to get them on the right track. We missed those 'symptoms' in one of my children, and didnt' catch uit until 5, which meant holding back a grade. Proactive is best! Good luck!

S.,

I have 5 boys and the youngest is 26 months old. He doesn't say much either. A few clear words off, hot, up, mama, dada, but none of my boys became chatterboxes until about age 3.

If he is understanding pretty much all you are saying, and he is babbling I wouldn't worry too much about it. Don't make it a battle, but you can encourage him. Even though he's not repeating it back to you yet doesn't mean he isn't taking it all in and processing it. We sometimes need to spell in front of our little one if we don't want him to know what we're talking about!

22 months is still pretty young to expecting a whole lot of speech yet, especially from a boy. Remember all children develop at their own pace, and most likely you will be suprised once he starts talking and won't stop.

Hi S.!

Have to talked about this to your child's doctor? They may have some good insight. Usually there is a well-child check-up at about 2 years old. (Yippee - more shots) My child's doctor told us about how his older brother always spoke for him and that he really didn't talk until he was three. He was slow. He just didn't have a need to speak. He is a really good doctor, too. He could just be stubborn, too. And, this is one thing he can control. Just a thought. Hope this helps! D.

Hi S.,

I had the same problem with my twins, they have a "twin language" and were not talking much besides that to each other. So I called EarlyOn, they came out and evaluated them and told us that they were behind and helped us find somethings to help them start talking more. They were very nice and friendly and my kids warmed up to the ladies right away. They only problem is that EarlyOn only helps out until they are 3. They did say however that they would tell us groups and such that we could go to, to still get them help after 3. Being that your son is almost 3 I would call them right away and have them evaluate him and then they should be able to tell you some groups that you can take him too for extra help. For them to come out talk to me, then come back and evaluate them, then come back and tell me their findings and recomendations, it took about 3-4 weeks. The number is 1-800-EarlyOn. They will send it to your local school district and they will call and set up an appt with you. Good Luck:o)

S.,

My little guy was almost 3 before he started speaking in adult words and not his baby babble. We really worked with him and taught him the words to everything, but your son needs to find something to motivate him to make that first step. We were really frustrated until the end of hunting season when my husband bagged three deer and hung them in the tree in our back yard to process. That was when our son started talking - his very first word was "buck" and then "deer tree". Although for the longest time he thought deer came from trees! LOL!. =)

If it is not too stressful for your little guy, and you know for certain that he can say the words you want him to, then start to insist that he cannot have what he wants unless he asks for it by name. Such as "juice", "snack", "truck", etc. In the beginning he will have temper tantrums while adapting to the new rules, but eventually he will get the hang of it. Pretty soon he will be talking so much that you will need to teach him how to take turns and about "quiet time". =)

However, your son may not be developmentally ready for talking yet, so if the game is too stressful you will need to stop and just be patient. Continue to teach new words and talk to him in adult words - no baby talk - and eventually his body and his mind will come together and he will start talking.

Good luck with your little boy.

-C..

Hi S., Obviously you should do as the others said and have him checked for physical issues first and foremost. I would assume he does not have hearing problems if he seems to understand you. However, won't know until you go to the dr. On a different note, try not giving him what he wants until he asks or makes a real effort. Don't make it easy. my niece was older and my sister would give her a cup of milk even if she pointed at it. She did not feel the need to talk. Once it was brought to her attention that she was doing that. It was a miracle she started to talk.Worth a try. Good Luck.

i wouldn't worry about it at all...just talk to the dr. on your 2yr. well check visit w/ your pediatrician...my daughter wasn't saying ANYTHING at 22 months - not even babbling...and now at age 30 months she is doing great! just like a switch was flipped and now she's speaking great and trying to say anything!

we had her evaluated w/ early on at 20 months and she didn't qualify for speech therapy...said she wasn't bad enough to warrant service...it helped ease my worries...

also got a referral to a speech therapist at the 2 yr check up...we did therapy for about a month and now she's doing great!!

I say don't worry about it!!! I mean keep reading and singing and talking to him, but every child is different. Does he understand you? That's the biggest thing. My daughter wa sborn in June 2007 too and she doesn't say a whole lot either. I was worried and asked the Dr. No worries he said. Abby walked at 9 mos. and doesn't want to talk yet. My neice walked at 13 mos and says some words. Everyone is different. Don't worry
S.