Developmental delay stories

[game blouses]

So at DS's 12 month appointment, the pedi wasn't super happy about the fact that he's still army crawling (which he only started a month ago, he was rolling everywhere before that). She recommended that we get a developmental assessment, and if he scores 33% below his age level, then we can look into some therapy. He also only gained 10 oz in the last 3 months, putting him at the 25th percentile.

Now I'm examining everything he does with a fine-toothed comb. He says dada, but does he always direct it at DH? He waves, but is he waving at the right time? He eats all his lunch, but is it enough food? Basically I'm driving myself crazy.

Did anyone's kids have delays, and eventually catch up? I'd love to hear some "My kid did that and it was no big deal" stories. Or "my kid had therapy and now he's fine."

[Deleted]

I know lots of kids who didn't walk until 18+ months. I can name 4 off the top of my head. They're all totally caught up now, with no delays, as 5-6 year olds. I would imagine it's the same with speech delays. I know it's worrisome and gets you dissecting every little thing they do - hugs to you. But it wouldn't hurt to get him assessed as his doctor suggested, if only to give you some peace of mind.

[snickers]

I know lots of kids from my class that didn't walk until they were 1.5 and that was with a lot of persistence from their parents are practicing.
We had one kid that didn't crawl-ever. She bum scooted everywhere until she was 16 months old, and then walked and hasn't looked back. Just wanted to share these stories with you
Hope everything is alright!

[Deleted]

My niece didn't really at all until she was 3. Now she won't shut up.

Kids develop differently.

But getting a second opinion never hurts in these situations. Better to arch something early.

[game blouses]

Thanks ladies. We're definitely getting the assessment, scheduled for later this week. I'm not messing around with this kind of stuff. I really don't think he's at a 9 month level, but I'm not a child development professional, so I could be wrong.

[tricia23]

My second son was very colicky, and had horrible reflux, which resulted in me carrying him around for the majority of his first 5 months. Well, fast forward to 1 year old, and he still couldn't even roll over. We started PT right away. 

Now, 6 months later, he is almost walking. It is amazing to me how far he has come in only 6 months! Therapy is an amazing tool for developmental delays. 

Try not to stress, even though I know that it's hard. He will catch up! I know in the beginning, DH, and I were still concerned that he wasn't making progress quickly enough, but all of a sudden, he was all over the place, and doing things that were impossible for him only weeks before. Hugs!

[Kristinmo]

Get the assessment, it can't hurt. But here are a couple of stories to make you feel better:

- I never crawled at all. Didn't walk until 18 months.
- Neither of my kids walked until 14 months.  Both are right on track.
- DS had a minor speech delay.  He was totally caught up by 3 and never shuts up!

I will say my late walking/ not crawling and DS' speech delay were primarily due to fluid build up in our ears which threw off my balance and his hearing.  It may be something they suggest you have looked at.  We both needed tubes.

[nomad100]

According to my mom, I never really crawled. I did what she called my "seal crawl."

And I was a late talker. Not sure how old I was but it was delayed enough that my parents still talk about it 40 years later when the topic of kids and talking comes up.

[cbwm1]

Will was severely delayed at 22 months when we had him evaluated - he had the expressive language of a 9 month old (in that all he could say was da or dada).

We got him into EI immediately, with speech and developmental therapy. He was diagnosed with childhood apraxia, and we geared his therapy toward that.

After a few months, he was still having major meltdowns at random stuff. Had him evaluated by an OT, he was diagnosed with sensory processing disorder.

He was in EI therapy until he was three, and then transitioned into the school district's pre-school program.

He completely flourished in those two years and now anyone who talks to him or hears him speak CANNOT believe that he was ever as delayed as he was. He's starting kindergarten in the fall and academically, is doing phenomenally well.

It took a lot of hard work, sweat and tears on our behalf too. We worked with him every chance we got, every single day. And it paid off big time.

GL to you!

[karmasabiotch]

My kid was dx with Apraxia and an Expressive Speech delay. He now talks non stop even in his sleep. The dude literally does not ever stop, even when I beg him to just stay quiet for 30 seconds.

[game blouses]

Jul 8, 2013 13:50:54 GMT -5 @licia said:

I don't have much to add in terms of stories, but went through that similar over-analyzing panic last month. DD was diagnosed with torticollis at 3 months, and I spent a lot of time in tears, mad at myself for not mentioning what I was seeing to her doctor sooner, etc. Then, it turned into over-analyzing EVERYTHING, the way she was sitting, the way she was laying, the way she was looking, the way people held her, the way we played with her, the way we bathed her, how she sat in her car seat and on and on and on.

I couldn't stop. And I couldn't enjoy her, because I was too busy freaking out over every.little.thing.

We started PT, and she has made so much progress in 4 weeks that we're on the brink of being discharged after one last check up that will happen in September. You're doing the right thing by doing the evaluation, but don't let your head get in the way. It will be what it will be, and you will do what you have to do, and kiddo will catch up. So let the over-analyzing go, because you can't solve anything by wondering who he was saying, "Dada!" to. Just enjoy him.

This is such good advice, thank you so much. Beating myself up and overanalyzing him just deprives him of a present mom, which is the last thing I want to do.

[joshlyman]

My BFFs daughter has some motor delays - the dr was concerned she was not pulling up to stand - or even attempting - at a year. They set up therapy appts ect for her, and yesterday she decided to pull up to a stand AND take a couple steps. Before any physical therapy. Friend says she was just holding out long enough to stress her parents out

[lolly]

I don't know if this helps but my 11 month old twins are so totally different developmentally that it really highlights how much kids go at their own pace. One of mine is standing and cruising, the other just started crawling. One loves to wave and says hi, the other not so much. And on and on.

Stay on top of things of course but don't let it make you nuts.

[MixedBerryJam]

Just another anecdote: My now 15yo was in intensive therapy for speech delay when he was 2/2.5 because he didn't speak and he didn't even make sound effects, you know, like car motor sounds when he was playing with cars, animal sounds when he was pretending to be an animal of some sort -- he was nearly completely silent. I can tell you with some authority that the therapy worked: his first word was f**khead and omfg he Never. Shuts. Up. OMG, I laugh now when I think about how worried I was that he wasn't talking because, did I mention? He. Never. Shuts. Up.

In any event, I hope you get some answers and your mind is put at ease soon. Good luck!

[iamgrace]

Henry didn't crawl until he was a year. Walking happened soon after, but took some time to master. He is totally normal now in his fine and gross motor skills.

It's good to be assessed, though, even if you think your kid is totally on target. It can't hurt anything.

[balletofangels]

My brother was barely talking because allegedly I never let him. He got EI services and is a very vocal 31 year old who exited services very quickly.

I've had many students who did not start talking until 3 or were born super premature and by the time they get to me in Kindergarten you'd never know.

[game blouses]

Jul 8, 2013 14:02:52 GMT -5 joshlyman said:

My BFFs daughter has some motor delays - the dr was concerned she was not pulling up to stand - or even attempting - at a year. They set up therapy appts ect for her, and yesterday she decided to pull up to a stand AND take a couple steps. Before any physical therapy. Friend says she was just holding out long enough to stress her parents out

I'm hoping this will be DS! He has pulled to stand a handful of times, but is mostly content to army crawl and climb up on things with his arms. This is also the kid who, when I was having my betas checked, didn't double for several days and caused me to believe I'd lost him. I guess it's a trend with him?

[midnightrae]

I didn't start walking until after I was one. There is a picture of me crawling with a cookie in my mouth when I was one because I wasn't walking yet. Yes, I am quite clumsy, but I am fine. I did start talking pretty early though.

[bittybomb]

I have 3 kids.  My first two started walking on their own days after their 1st birthdays.  My oldest never crawled - he only ever did the army crawl.  My youngest started walking at about 14 months.  My youngest, who is almost 17 months, still doesn't say very much - he does say dada, baba, hi, bye, sissy, gigi (my mom), but still no mama.  I am not at all concerned.  I freaked with my oldest, but now I just go with the flow.  If you're eligible to have him checked out, go for it if for no other reason than to put your mind at ease.  Also, if something is up, EI is the best way to help him. 

As far as weight, my kids all started out at like 80-90% but dropped to 30-35% by 1.  My pedi suggests putting scoops of Haagen Daaz (no idea why Haagen Daaz as opposed to say Ben & JErry's) vanilla ice cream in their bottles/sippy cups to help them gain weight.  Apparently fat is great for the brain up until 2 years

[pillowpants]

DD didn't start walking until she was 17 months. She was working on other skills at the time so I didn't push it even when the pediatrician said she was a little worried. She runs, skips, hops, dances and climbs like crazy now.

[jr009j]

Our pedi said crawling isn't a true developmental milestone and many kids never crawl. He was concerned about DD's lack of standing at 15 months and referred her for evaluation at that time but prior to that he said she was in the normal zone.

[julez]

My DD never crawled. She would sit up on her own, but couldn't pull herself to a stand and didn't crawl. Her ped wasn't worried about her not crawling, because, oddly enough, crawling isn't considered a crucial developmental milestone. At 13 months, we had an assessment done and they showed us an exercise to teach her to pull herself up on her own. Two days and BAM! she pulled herself up. She still never crawled, which was no biggie, and started walking at 16 months. I was so, so worried, because most babies/kids we knew had been walking forever by that point. She is now a perfectly happy, perfectly busy, agile, healthy 3.5 year old. It was a scary but small bump in the road.

Don't be afraid of the assessment. Your DS might just need a little extra push, like DD did. Good luck!

[margotmacomber]

DD was a late walker.  She was overly cautious.  Now she does gymnastics, dance, and soccer just fine.

She was also a late talker.  She was in speech therapy for a few months, and I get compliments all of the time about how good of a talker she is now.  

[TrudyCampbell]

(I haven't read the other responses)

I have a 14 month old who is globally developmentally delayed. We first contacted Early Intervention when she was just 5 months old because I noticed she was a bit behind. We qualified for PT and got OT privately. She's doing pretty well now... she isn't walking but she is crawling and cruising, she has said a few words but very inconsistently (she will say them on command for days and days and then stop completely), she waves and claps sometimes. We've seen a neurologist and he isn't that concerned at this point although we have a follow up at 15 months. We have a hearing test soon to make sure that isn't contributing to her delays... she passed the hospital test but according to our neuro many kids fail later on.

IMO it can never hurt to contact EI. The worst that will happen is he won't qualify, which is actually a good thing because it means he can't be that far behind. If he does qualify then it's just free extra help. Feel free to PM me, I could talk about this stuff all day.

[fivechickens]

My daughters were 13 weeks early so delays were expected with them. 

My first didn't have any delays.   

My middle one was about 6 months behind because she had more medical issues that required a lot more intervention than her sisters.  She didn't start walking until well after 18 months and is not speaking as well as her sisters. Her issue now is oral and has a gtube that she gets 98% of her food from. 

My youngest has mild CP and can only walk with assistance. She army crawled for a long time before she actually crawled on all fours.

We have my middle and youngest in therapy twice a week and, during that school year, in Early On which has helped a lot.  I am hoping my youngest one is walking by herself by the time she is three. My middle one is doing great with her oral issues and I am hopefully she will not need her gtube by the time she is three. 

We have taken them to get a developmental assessment every six months since they left the NICU. In the beginning they were delays which was expected but at their last followup was a month ago and they all tested at their actual age (2).  This is huge. 

With our middle it was obvious she would have delays because she was sedated 60% of her first 5 months of life.  Our youngest was a little harder to see because she was 'fine' when she came home but we started seeing that she was slowly falling behind her sister when it came to milestones. 

Kids can have delays and catch up just fine sometimes they will need some therapy whether private or through early on (through county/school system). Sometimes they might just be slower than other kids. 

Also, my youngest, who talks the best of the three calls me daddy and my husband mommy sometimes especially if she has just talk to the other one.  When they are young they don't quite fully understand that their mom is 'mommy' and not everyone is mommy.  

Also, I know it is hard but don't exam everything.  Drs will tell you over and over again that all children are different and will do things at their own pace but then turn around and say 'Your child should fit into this growth chart mold and if he/she doesn't something must be wrong'.  Its frustrating. 

Get him assessed and if your son has delays then therapy is key.  Good luck. You can PM if you have questions. 

[angelaa73]

Sometimes it's nothing. Sometimes it's something. ( but most times it's nothing )

Take it from me, the baby who walked at 19 mos bc she didn't feel like doing it sooner!

[eav2c]

My kid did have delays thanks to epilepsy and his medications but I think your pedi is being extreme. For starters, my kid didn't start army crawling or attempt regular crawling till 12 months. He also didn't start walking till 15 months - which is completely normal and not late, BTW. Annnnd between 9 and 12 months he lost weight. Pedi was not concerned. At all. My DS was in early intervention and the only reason he qualified was because of his epilepsy diagnosis. With what you've described, I don't think your child has major delays. EI was quick to point out to me that my child was not delayed. He did score below the marker in one area, gross motor skills, but he still wouldn't have qualified on that alone. Most kids lack in one area while they are progressing quickly in another. Recently my DS has seemingly forgotten about language while he focuses on gross motor. I majored in early child development, so my personal experience and feelings aside, I can still tell you your kid is perfectly on track. I would never base your child as delayed, at all, on what you've posted here. Frankly, I'd even consider a new pedi but that's just me.

Fwiw, I'm not knocking your pedi. I just hate hearing how alarmist they can be. Our pedi did refer us to EI after she lightly mentioned it and I very much wanted it. Get him evaluated! It'll give you piece of mind and if he does need the extra push it'll be a great resource!

[Jermys]

Edith had like two...mayyybe three words at 18 months. She's been in speech therapy since then pretty much, except for a break between 2.5 and 4. It's been amazing. Her speech is on par with her peers and I get total side eye for still having her in speech, which I love! She's also in occupational therapy for very mild sensory issues, and that's also helped immensely.

Get started with Early Intervention as soon as possible. The earlier they get started on the right track, the better.