Recs for speech therapist to 9 month old infant with speech delay

[Anonymous]

Here are ASHA's guidelines for when to seek help. As you can see, the pediatrician's concerns align with the guidelines:

https://www.asha.org/public/developmental-milestones/communication-milestones-birth-to-1-year/

[Anonymous]

There are some really good speech therapy YouTube videos. My sister was really worried when her son was 11 months. She used some of the techniques speech therapists presented for imitating sounds. She first got him to repeat animal sounds like woof woof and moo-moo. It was easy to practice using animals toys.

Instead of going to speech therapy once or twice a week she would do the techniques three or four times a day. It really worked!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Here are ASHA's guidelines for when to seek help. As you can see, the pediatrician's concerns align with the guidelines:

https://www.asha.org/public/developmental-milestones/communication-milestones-birth-to-1-year/

This page is not about when to seek help, it's a guide to milestones which exist in a huge range. Red flags for speech delays don't even exist before 12 months. Any experienced pediatrician would understand this.

https://www.aafp.org/pubs/afp/issues/2011/0515/p1183.html#indications-for-referral

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here are ASHA's guidelines for when to seek help. As you can see, the pediatrician's concerns align with the guidelines:

https://www.asha.org/public/developmental-milestones/communication-milestones-birth-to-1-year/

This page is not about when to seek help, it's a guide to milestones which exist in a huge range. Red flags for speech delays don't even exist before 12 months. Any experienced pediatrician would understand this.

https://www.aafp.org/pubs/afp/issues/2011/0515/p1183.html#indications-for-referral

Are you an SLP?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here are ASHA's guidelines for when to seek help. As you can see, the pediatrician's concerns align with the guidelines:

https://www.asha.org/public/developmental-milestones/communication-milestones-birth-to-1-year/

This page is not about when to seek help, it's a guide to milestones which exist in a huge range. Red flags for speech delays don't even exist before 12 months. Any experienced pediatrician would understand this.

https://www.aafp.org/pubs/afp/issues/2011/0515/p1183.html#indications-for-referral

Are you an SLP?

No but I work in pediatric healthcare and understand that the ~trade association~ of speech therapists probably isn't the place to find unbiased information about when to use speech therapists.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here are ASHA's guidelines for when to seek help. As you can see, the pediatrician's concerns align with the guidelines:

https://www.asha.org/public/developmental-milestones/communication-milestones-birth-to-1-year/

This page is not about when to seek help, it's a guide to milestones which exist in a huge range. Red flags for speech delays don't even exist before 12 months. Any experienced pediatrician would understand this.

https://www.aafp.org/pubs/afp/issues/2011/0515/p1183.html#indications-for-referral

Are you an SLP?

No but I work in pediatric healthcare and understand that the ~trade association~ of speech therapists probably isn't the place to find unbiased information about when to use speech therapists.

So who ~IS~ the appropriate source for unbiased information about milestones? Please pediatric “healthcare” worker share a more reliable source that isn’t your anonymous self.

AAP references ASHA.
NIH references ASHA.

[Anonymous]

My DS started speech therapy at 6 months. It was for non verbal comm to start then verbal. It was a game changer. Early intervention works! Do not wait and I praise your pediatrician for recommending at 9 months. Most don't. You've got a good one. Call Stacy Fleishman. She comes to you and specializes in children under 4. She is outstanding. My child is now 14 and thriving but I believe she is still practicing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DS started speech therapy at 6 months. It was for non verbal comm to start then verbal. It was a game changer. Early intervention works! Do not wait and I praise your pediatrician for recommending at 9 months. Most don't. You've got a good one. Call Stacy Fleishman. She comes to you and specializes in children under 4. She is outstanding. My child is now 14 and thriving but I believe she is still practicing.

six months? how did you know he had a delay?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here are ASHA's guidelines for when to seek help. As you can see, the pediatrician's concerns align with the guidelines:

https://www.asha.org/public/developmental-milestones/communication-milestones-birth-to-1-year/

This page is not about when to seek help, it's a guide to milestones which exist in a huge range. Red flags for speech delays don't even exist before 12 months. Any experienced pediatrician would understand this.

https://www.aafp.org/pubs/afp/issues/2011/0515/p1183.html#indications-for-referral

Are you an SLP?

No but I work in pediatric healthcare and understand that the ~trade association~ of speech therapists probably isn't the place to find unbiased information about when to use speech therapists.

So who ~IS~ the appropriate source for unbiased information about milestones? Please pediatric “healthcare” worker share a more reliable source that isn’t your anonymous self.

AAP references ASHA.
NIH references ASHA.

DP. the point is that “milestones” on a professional society website are not any sort of diagnostic or even screening mechanism. The ASHA link says as much.

In this day and age pediatricians are all over the board in terms of how they assess anything developmental. Starting speech therapy at 9 months would be very, very unusual absent some known factor like the child having oral-motor issues (which you’d know from feeding) from something like having been on a feeding tube as a preemie. In this case the rational response would be for the pediatrician to start with a hearing test. For a pediatrician to suggest a 9 month old has receptive and expressive delays based on an in-office exam is surprising.

Alternatively maybe the pediatrician suspects autism but OP said the child was social. I’d be curious to know if he shows joint attention and is starting to use gestures to communicate.

Another thing I notice when I watch other people’s older babies and toddlers is that they communicate ALL the time even without words. I see this too when I look at old videos of my kid. But at the time if you asked I would say, “no, he’s not talking yet,” as I was slightly worried he wasn’t meeting the exact baby book “milestones.” (Yet he developed speech totally normally, just starting with his first word a bit later that what “they” say and talking up a storm by 18 months.)

That said, the pediatrician recommended it and I can understand why OP feels she needs to follow up. I’d book with Early Intervention (or whatever your state/county calls it) because they can do the hearing testing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here are ASHA's guidelines for when to seek help. As you can see, the pediatrician's concerns align with the guidelines:

https://www.asha.org/public/developmental-milestones/communication-milestones-birth-to-1-year/

This page is not about when to seek help, it's a guide to milestones which exist in a huge range. Red flags for speech delays don't even exist before 12 months. Any experienced pediatrician would understand this.

https://www.aafp.org/pubs/afp/issues/2011/0515/p1183.html#indications-for-referral

Are you an SLP?

No but I work in pediatric healthcare and understand that the ~trade association~ of speech therapists probably isn't the place to find unbiased information about when to use speech therapists.

So who ~IS~ the appropriate source for unbiased information about milestones? Please pediatric “healthcare” worker share a more reliable source that isn’t your anonymous self.

AAP references ASHA.
NIH references ASHA.

DP. the point is that “milestones” on a professional society website are not any sort of diagnostic or even screening mechanism. The ASHA link says as much.

In this day and age pediatricians are all over the board in terms of how they assess anything developmental. Starting speech therapy at 9 months would be very, very unusual absent some known factor like the child having oral-motor issues (which you’d know from feeding) from something like having been on a feeding tube as a preemie. In this case the rational response would be for the pediatrician to start with a hearing test. For a pediatrician to suggest a 9 month old has receptive and expressive delays based on an in-office exam is surprising.

Alternatively maybe the pediatrician suspects autism but OP said the child was social. I’d be curious to know if he shows joint attention and is starting to use gestures to communicate.

Another thing I notice when I watch other people’s older babies and toddlers is that they communicate ALL the time even without words. I see this too when I look at old videos of my kid. But at the time if you asked I would say, “no, he’s not talking yet,” as I was slightly worried he wasn’t meeting the exact baby book “milestones.” (Yet he developed speech totally normally, just starting with his first word a bit later that what “they” say and talking up a storm by 18 months.)

That said, the pediatrician recommended it and I can understand why OP feels she needs to follow up. I’d book with Early Intervention (or whatever your state/county calls it) because they can do the hearing testing.

Dp. I’m the parent who posted earlier about my child who also couldn’t form verbs. At 9 months, there were no feeding issues. It wasn’t until 2, that I realized there were some feeding issues, but even then, those were mild.

I know you think you have a lot of experience being a pediatric nurse. Is that what you are? You said pediatric healthcare worker… But do you have a lot of actual experience with infants who cannot form vowels at 9 months?

I’m guessing not by your discussion on nonverbal communication. My child was signing before nine months. Forming speech sounds and eventually words is more complicated than just looking for signs of communication.

I think we’re all on the same page that Early Intervention won’t hurt to call. But fyi, Early Intervention will likely put a slp in the room during the first evaluation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here are ASHA's guidelines for when to seek help. As you can see, the pediatrician's concerns align with the guidelines:

https://www.asha.org/public/developmental-milestones/communication-milestones-birth-to-1-year/

This page is not about when to seek help, it's a guide to milestones which exist in a huge range. Red flags for speech delays don't even exist before 12 months. Any experienced pediatrician would understand this.

https://www.aafp.org/pubs/afp/issues/2011/0515/p1183.html#indications-for-referral

Are you an SLP?

No but I work in pediatric healthcare and understand that the ~trade association~ of speech therapists probably isn't the place to find unbiased information about when to use speech therapists.

So who ~IS~ the appropriate source for unbiased information about milestones? Please pediatric “healthcare” worker share a more reliable source that isn’t your anonymous self.

AAP references ASHA.
NIH references ASHA.

DP. the point is that “milestones” on a professional society website are not any sort of diagnostic or even screening mechanism. The ASHA link says as much.

In this day and age pediatricians are all over the board in terms of how they assess anything developmental. Starting speech therapy at 9 months would be very, very unusual absent some known factor like the child having oral-motor issues (which you’d know from feeding) from something like having been on a feeding tube as a preemie. In this case the rational response would be for the pediatrician to start with a hearing test. For a pediatrician to suggest a 9 month old has receptive and expressive delays based on an in-office exam is surprising.

Alternatively maybe the pediatrician suspects autism but OP said the child was social. I’d be curious to know if he shows joint attention and is starting to use gestures to communicate.

Another thing I notice when I watch other people’s older babies and toddlers is that they communicate ALL the time even without words. I see this too when I look at old videos of my kid. But at the time if you asked I would say, “no, he’s not talking yet,” as I was slightly worried he wasn’t meeting the exact baby book “milestones.” (Yet he developed speech totally normally, just starting with his first word a bit later that what “they” say and talking up a storm by 18 months.)

That said, the pediatrician recommended it and I can understand why OP feels she needs to follow up. I’d book with Early Intervention (or whatever your state/county calls it) because they can do the hearing testing.

Dp. I’m the parent who posted earlier about my child who also couldn’t form verbs. At 9 months, there were no feeding issues. It wasn’t until 2, that I realized there were some feeding issues, but even then, those were mild.

I know you think you have a lot of experience being a pediatric nurse. Is that what you are? You said pediatric healthcare worker… But do you have a lot of actual experience with infants who cannot form vowels at 9 months?

I’m guessing not by your discussion on nonverbal communication. My child was signing before nine months. Forming speech sounds and eventually words is more complicated than just looking for signs of communication.

I think we’re all on the same page that Early Intervention won’t hurt to call. But fyi, Early Intervention will likely put a slp in the room during the first evaluation.

*Couldn’t form vowels

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here are ASHA's guidelines for when to seek help. As you can see, the pediatrician's concerns align with the guidelines:

https://www.asha.org/public/developmental-milestones/communication-milestones-birth-to-1-year/

This page is not about when to seek help, it's a guide to milestones which exist in a huge range. Red flags for speech delays don't even exist before 12 months. Any experienced pediatrician would understand this.

https://www.aafp.org/pubs/afp/issues/2011/0515/p1183.html#indications-for-referral

Are you an SLP?

No but I work in pediatric healthcare and understand that the ~trade association~ of speech therapists probably isn't the place to find unbiased information about when to use speech therapists.

So who ~IS~ the appropriate source for unbiased information about milestones? Please pediatric “healthcare” worker share a more reliable source that isn’t your anonymous self.

AAP references ASHA.
NIH references ASHA.

DP. the point is that “milestones” on a professional society website are not any sort of diagnostic or even screening mechanism. The ASHA link says as much.

In this day and age pediatricians are all over the board in terms of how they assess anything developmental. Starting speech therapy at 9 months would be very, very unusual absent some known factor like the child having oral-motor issues (which you’d know from feeding) from something like having been on a feeding tube as a preemie. In this case the rational response would be for the pediatrician to start with a hearing test. For a pediatrician to suggest a 9 month old has receptive and expressive delays based on an in-office exam is surprising.

Alternatively maybe the pediatrician suspects autism but OP said the child was social. I’d be curious to know if he shows joint attention and is starting to use gestures to communicate.

Another thing I notice when I watch other people’s older babies and toddlers is that they communicate ALL the time even without words. I see this too when I look at old videos of my kid. But at the time if you asked I would say, “no, he’s not talking yet,” as I was slightly worried he wasn’t meeting the exact baby book “milestones.” (Yet he developed speech totally normally, just starting with his first word a bit later that what “they” say and talking up a storm by 18 months.)

That said, the pediatrician recommended it and I can understand why OP feels she needs to follow up. I’d book with Early Intervention (or whatever your state/county calls it) because they can do the hearing testing.

Dp. I’m the parent who posted earlier about my child who also couldn’t form verbs. At 9 months, there were no feeding issues. It wasn’t until 2, that I realized there were some feeding issues, but even then, those were mild.

I know you think you have a lot of experience being a pediatric nurse. Is that what you are? You said pediatric healthcare worker… But do you have a lot of actual experience with infants who cannot form vowels at 9 months?

I’m guessing not by your discussion on nonverbal communication. My child was signing before nine months. Forming speech sounds and eventually words is more complicated than just looking for signs of communication.

I think we’re all on the same page that Early Intervention won’t hurt to call. But fyi, Early Intervention will likely put a slp in the room during the first evaluation.

I mean obviously in restrospect if you had a kid with speech delays you’ll believe there were signs at 9 months. It sounds like your kid just had articulation issues anyway which is different from the pediatrician suggesting she can detect expressive and receptive delays at 9 months! And an overly alarmist approach absolutely does have costs, both on an individual and societal level.

[Anonymous]

Walking at one
Talking at two

What 9 month old is talking.. send videos. They belong in Guiness.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here are ASHA's guidelines for when to seek help. As you can see, the pediatrician's concerns align with the guidelines:

https://www.asha.org/public/developmental-milestones/communication-milestones-birth-to-1-year/

This page is not about when to seek help, it's a guide to milestones which exist in a huge range. Red flags for speech delays don't even exist before 12 months. Any experienced pediatrician would understand this.

https://www.aafp.org/pubs/afp/issues/2011/0515/p1183.html#indications-for-referral

Are you an SLP?

No but I work in pediatric healthcare and understand that the ~trade association~ of speech therapists probably isn't the place to find unbiased information about when to use speech therapists.

So who ~IS~ the appropriate source for unbiased information about milestones? Please pediatric “healthcare” worker share a more reliable source that isn’t your anonymous self.

AAP references ASHA.
NIH references ASHA.

DP. the point is that “milestones” on a professional society website are not any sort of diagnostic or even screening mechanism. The ASHA link says as much.

In this day and age pediatricians are all over the board in terms of how they assess anything developmental. Starting speech therapy at 9 months would be very, very unusual absent some known factor like the child having oral-motor issues (which you’d know from feeding) from something like having been on a feeding tube as a preemie. In this case the rational response would be for the pediatrician to start with a hearing test. For a pediatrician to suggest a 9 month old has receptive and expressive delays based on an in-office exam is surprising.

Alternatively maybe the pediatrician suspects autism but OP said the child was social. I’d be curious to know if he shows joint attention and is starting to use gestures to communicate.

Another thing I notice when I watch other people’s older babies and toddlers is that they communicate ALL the time even without words. I see this too when I look at old videos of my kid. But at the time if you asked I would say, “no, he’s not talking yet,” as I was slightly worried he wasn’t meeting the exact baby book “milestones.” (Yet he developed speech totally normally, just starting with his first word a bit later that what “they” say and talking up a storm by 18 months.)

That said, the pediatrician recommended it and I can understand why OP feels she needs to follow up. I’d book with Early Intervention (or whatever your state/county calls it) because they can do the hearing testing.

Dp. I’m the parent who posted earlier about my child who also couldn’t form verbs. At 9 months, there were no feeding issues. It wasn’t until 2, that I realized there were some feeding issues, but even then, those were mild.

I know you think you have a lot of experience being a pediatric nurse. Is that what you are? You said pediatric healthcare worker… But do you have a lot of actual experience with infants who cannot form vowels at 9 months?

I’m guessing not by your discussion on nonverbal communication. My child was signing before nine months. Forming speech sounds and eventually words is more complicated than just looking for signs of communication.

I think we’re all on the same page that Early Intervention won’t hurt to call. But fyi, Early Intervention will likely put a slp in the room during the first evaluation.

I mean obviously in restrospect if you had a kid with speech delays you’ll believe there were signs at 9 months. It sounds like your kid just had articulation issues anyway which is different from the pediatrician suggesting she can detect expressive and receptive delays at 9 months! And an overly alarmist approach absolutely does have costs, both on an individual and societal level.

It wasn’t just articulation. I had an 18 month old who still couldn’t produce most vowels, and struggled for a long time thereafter in therapy. It wasn’t a suspicion at 9 months. It wasn’t happening then either.

The pediatrician isn’t detecting anything. She’s saying there could be a problem and so you should see someone who can better determine this. I don’t doubt she (and most of us posting here on an SN board) hope there’s no issue! But apparently she values the education and experience of SLPs enough to suggest their eyes physically evaluating the child could be helpful.

[Anonymous]

Check hearing. May have fluid behind eardrums may need ear tubes