Kid needs speech mother denies???

↑ Raisin

Wed, Oct 24 2007, 6:56 am

Quote:

At 4 he talks like any other kid. He has some trouble with "L," "Th," and "R," but we practice

I think that is very normal. Each of my kids had issues with a different sound - the oldest y. (les instead of yes) The next it was L. She had a nice teacher we knew as Borrainne. And so on...

lubcoralsprings ↓

Wed, Oct 24 2007, 7:03 am

amother wrote:

There is a big difference between "speech" and "language". Of more concern than the number of words at a given age, are some of the other issues brought up here: eye contact, turn taking, following simple directions, responding to name etc.
Though I'm all for Early Intervention, I think we give it out very quickly these days, to any child who is achieving milestones at a below average rate. It doesn't mean there's anything wrong with them, just not every child can statistically be in the top 50%.
So, not knowing this child, I have no advice for OP or the mother. But some kids left to their own devices will do just fine. And those that don't will eventually come into "the system" when the time is right.

I think that is only true in the state of New York. A lot of these organizations are out to make big money! In Florida they are very tight about giving it out. I know many kids that could use it and were denied because they didn't have a significant delay. When I say significant delay I mean where it is noticeable by everyone!

Chaya123

Wed, Oct 24 2007, 9:47 am

amother wrote:

chocolate moose wrote:

Amother, does your friend have TV ? Plenty of kids don't really talk until after 3 years old.

TV has nothing to do with it. A kids should have at least 50 words by age 2 or there is some kind of problem.

Actually, my pediatrician says that a normal 2 yr old should be saying 25 words and they don't have to be spoken clearly.

↑ lubcoralsprings ↓

Wed, Oct 24 2007, 9:51 am

Do you think the standards are higher in NY? My kid had 12 words at 18 mos and he qualified for speech. I took it because I didn't think it could hurt him. Now he's seven and speaks and articulates perfectly. I think the speech therapy helped his self-esteem more then his speech. I had a young baby when he was 18mos and it was great for him to have two half hours a week one on one with someone in my house.

↑ lubcoralsprings ↓

Wed, Oct 24 2007, 9:52 am

For the first five years of DS#1's life we lived in NY. When we lived there he received speech therapy. Do you think the standards are higher in NY? My kid had 12 words at 18 mos and he qualified for speech. I took it because I didn't think it could hurt him. Now he's 6.5 and speaks and articulates perfectly. I think the speech therapy helped his self-esteem more then his speech. I had a young baby when he was 18mos and it was great for him to have two half hours a week one on one with someone in my home.

↑ chocolate moose ↓

Wed, Oct 24 2007, 10:56 am

amother wrote:

TV has nothing to do with it. A kids should have at least 50 words by age 2 or there is some kind of problem.

Children who grow up with TV have a higher vocabulary. Are you a speech professional, or just a contrary anonymous poster.....

↑ Clarissa ↓

Wed, Oct 24 2007, 12:26 pm

My first kid had no tv at all until 3, and he spoke early and had a large vocabulary. My little one has no tv and doesn't speak at all. We're now having him evaluated and he appears to have a significant speech delay. Same home, same tv-less conditions. We have tv's, we just don't let the kids watch when really young. Now everyone says we should have the little one watch tv, it will help with speech. On the other hand, some people also say kids do better without tv under the age of 2, that we're doing the right thing.

(Picture me slapping one of my cheeks and then slapping the other, back and forth. Meaning I don't know which way is right and am finding all of this confusing)

Love My Babes ↓

Tue, Nov 06 2007, 4:16 pm

Quote:

*I just ran into Miriam today. Remember her little Rafi? You wouldn't believe! He was chatting away so much that we could barely get any words in edgewise. It's hard to believe that he didn't talk until he was 2. Miriam just loves his speech therapist.*

it is not anyone else's business to force a parent to give kids therapy. if my child C"V had an issue and my friend would try to give me 'subtle' hints I would be really annoyed. I know quite a few ppl whose kids had speach delays. actually one of them I know started talking at three and is today on an honor list as one of the top 1000 students. talking late may or may not have anything to do with development. as a parent, she would know wether its just the late talking or maybe more than that. if the kid does other things like respond when u talk, listen to instructions, plays nice with other kids... then the delay in the kids speech may only be speech and not in his brain development.

altho it is possible for her to be in denial, she may also see no reason for therapy.

southernbubby ↓

Tue, Nov 06 2007, 5:20 pm

I have seen this happen numerous times when everyone else can see that a child needs intervention but the mother is in denial. Anyone who states the obvious is now the enemy and the mother is armed with all kinds of excuses as to why the child is slow. In time, the problem becomes more obvious because the school cannot handle the child and then all of the defenses are torn down.
The mother is hoping that nobody will notice her imperfect child and that anyone who notices it is in her mind, not her friend. She is anything but receptive to suggestions because she feels that the rest of the world has no right to be experts.
I have also seen people who associate these types of therapies with handicaps rather than see it as something any child might need at some point. They are in need of education but don't want their friends to tell them.

redhot ↓

Tue, Nov 06 2007, 5:55 pm

I find this thread SO incredibly aggravating. I dont want to start quoting all the comments that were inaccurate or that I disagree with, so I wont be using the quote feature, I will just respond to them:

1) To the mother who was upset that the therapist wrote'mother refuses therapy"= that therapist did the right thing. You actually WERE refusing therapy, and your child DID probably need it! It would be wrong for the therapist to write that your child didnt need therapy when she actually suspected that he did.

2) Many have been saying that their own child, or someone they know didnt speak till 3 and now is soo smart. That is great- but that can not be used to decide if a different child needs therapy. Some children do eventually catch up and do not need the extra help, but many who begin delayed benefit greatly from speech and language services. Dont use exceptions to make rules.

3) Someone said her pediatrician said that a 2 year old should be saying 25 words and they dont have to be clear. It is a particular pet peeve of mine when pediatricians overstep their areas of expertise and comment on speech and language development. What your dr said is COMPLETELY INACCURATE! A child between the ages of 19-24 months should have an expressive (speaking) vocabulary of 50 - 100 words.

↑ Clarissa ↓

Tue, Nov 06 2007, 6:42 pm

sthillmom wrote:

3) Someone said her pediatrician said that a 2 year old should be saying 25 words and they dont have to be clear. It is a particular pet peeve of mine when pediatricians overstep their areas of expertise and comment on speech and language development. What your dr said is COMPLETELY INACCURATE! A child between the ages of 19-24 months should have an expressive (speaking) vocabulary of 50 - 100 words.

I just saw a developmental pediatrician who specializes in diagnosing problems and recommending early intervention, and he said that a child of that age does not need to have as many words as you say. I asked my husband if he recalled how many words a child in that range should have and he doesn't remember either, but it wasn't 50-100 words.

↑ redhot ↓

Tue, Nov 06 2007, 7:50 pm

That is the standard used when assessing speech and language development by the experts in speech and language- that would be a SPEECH AND LANGUAGE PATHOLOGIST (and not any doctor-they are not trained in this area). One source for that is the Shipley and McAfee.

I havent read every single speech and language development source- but I am pretty sure that they would all have the same basic standard.

***Please remember- that is just the developmental norm. That does NOT mean that if a child does not have that many spoken words that something is for sure wrong with him. For example- my own child spoke few words before the age of 2 but soon afterwards spoke a mile a minute. However- he was the exception- NOT THE NORM. If someone else's child was not speaking as is typically expected, I would definitely recommend getting the child evaluated just to be on the safe side. I would never go so far as to say the child was delayed based on ONE factor, but it is enough to suggest getting an evaluation.

↑ gryp ↓

Tue, Nov 06 2007, 8:25 pm

Quote:

) To the mother who was upset that the therapist wrote'mother refuses therapy"= that therapist did the right thing. You actually WERE refusing therapy, and your child DID probably need it! It would be wrong for the therapist to write that your child didnt need therapy when she actually suspected that he did.

That was me.
Before you comment on my parenting decisions, for G-d's sake, read my post.
It wasn't the therapist I was dealing with, it was the school. I did not have my child evaluated, he DIDN'T NEED it. I did not deal with a therapist at all, I never even got to that point. Therapy was NOT and never became necessary.

That's why I can't stand therapists pushing therapy on everyone else. Because they always think they know what they're talking about and they hardly do. Rolling Eyes

↑ redhot ↓

Tue, Nov 06 2007, 9:56 pm

GR wrote:

Quote:

I just went back and reread your comment. You never specified the 'lady's" job who recommened that u should have your child evaluated. I interpreted it to be a therapist who worked in the school. I guess you meant a teacher, but u did not specify.

and I NEVER said ANYTHING about your parenting decisions! I didnt say you were neglectful or anything, I just said that if the person thought ure child needed to be evaluated they HAD to write that , and couldnt just write what u wanted them to write.

Dont yell that I didnt read ure post, when u certainly didnt fully read mine.

and whats with the obnoxious personal comment? dont start attacking. its just not nice.

Last edited by redhot on Tue, Nov 06 2007, 10:12 pm; edited 1 time in total

↑ Clarissa ↓

Tue, Nov 06 2007, 10:10 pm

You really think a top developmental pediatrician is less qualified than a speech therapist to diagnose speech delays? I don't! Therapists will often say a child has a severe delay where there is merely some late talking. Why shouldn't they? The foundation of their business is based on diagnosing severe delays. Developmental pediatricians are trained at the highest possible level to recognize expressive or receptive delays, and can pinpoint possible causes.

I was directed to see a developmental pediatrician by a speech therapist, to examine a possible delay and identify possible causes to investigate.

↑ gryp ↓

Tue, Nov 06 2007, 10:15 pm

You don't need to lecture me about attacking posts. Yours certainly was attacking enough.

Quote:

You're right. I forgot when responding that it hadnt been a therapist who told you that your child should get evaluated. But my point is the same

You think a school coordinator's opinion is the same as a therapist's? The school coordinators these days pushes therapy on just about every single child. You know why? So that when a few years pass, just in case a child hadn't gotten therapy and needed it, her tracks are covered and no one will come back to haunt her.
A therapist usually pushes therapy for 2 reasons: A) because she thinks the child really needs it B) because it's the source of her income.

Both the school coordinator's and a therapist's opinions should not usually override the good common sense of a mother. I trust the good common sense of a mother of a family over an "expert's" opinion any day.

I absolutely was not refusing therapy. Therapy wasn't necessary, and with 20/20 hindsight I was right.

↑ redhot ↓

Tue, Nov 06 2007, 10:17 pm

Clarissa wrote:

Honestly, I dont know what a developmental pediatrician knows or doesnt know because I havent been trained or educated as one. What I do know is that speech and language delays should be determined by standardized tests and also experienced informal assessments. I dont think that I would be so quick to say that a therapist is less qualified. A speech therapist is trained and educated specifically for assessing and treating speech and language delays. I am personally more comfortable with the diagnosis of someone specifically trained in a certain area. Doctors who specialize in speech and language delays do not exist. That is what speech therapists do. This developmental specialist is definitely more edcuated and trained than a therapist, but he may not be the be all and end all about speech and language norms and delays.

Last edited by redhot on Tue, Nov 06 2007, 10:19 pm; edited 1 time in total

↑ gryp ↓

Tue, Nov 06 2007, 10:18 pm

Quote:

Therapists will often say a child has a severe delay where there is merely some late talking. Why shouldn't they? The foundation of their business is based on diagnosing severe delays

Exactly. And if I've seen it once, I've seen it a thousand times.

↑ redhot ↓

Tue, Nov 06 2007, 10:22 pm

GR wrote:

You don't need to lecture me about attacking posts. Yours certainly was attacking enough.

Quote:

You're right. I forgot when responding that it hadnt been a therapist who told you that your child should get evaluated. But my point is the same

first off- I did not attack anyone in particular at all. Second- I edited my response to you after rereading your initial comment.
Third- you have strong negative opinions about therapists and I am sure you are not looking to change them. Best of luck. Im glad that your child was able to acquire age appropriate speech and language skills without therapy.