8m old is delayed - should I get evaluation?

[Anonymous]

We are in NW DC. I took the questionaire on the strong start website and the results came back that my 8 month old is delayed in gross motor skills, communication, problem solving, and personal-social. I plan to have strong start conduct a complete developmental evaluation but my question is should I wait a couple of months when the delays are more significant so that I will qualify for services?
A bit more info on my DC - DC doesn't not roll over in either direction, does not army crawl, does not crawl, stands with my support on tippy toes, cannot pull to standing position, does not babble at all, does not respond to his name.
What is the maximum time between evaluations? If I get him evaluated now, how long do I have to wait to get him evaluated again?

Thanks so much for any input. I am so worried about my baby and cannot afford private therapy. Off course my insurance covers nothing.

[Anonymous]

Take him to your pediatrician to discuss your concerns. Wi would require a referral from him/her anyway.

[Anonymous]

You obviously know your baby best and you should definitely follow your instincts but I just wanted to let you know that I wouldn't be too worried right now. There obviously could be a developmental delay but he also might just be a little slower to master milestones. Again, I'm not saying there isn't something "wrong" but just wanted to point out that it is a possibility. I've known 8 month olds that sound similar to your son, they're normal preschoolers now.

You mentioned that he doesn't respond to his name, does he seem to notice sound at all?

If I were you I'd have him checked ASAP so that you don't have to sit and wonder.

[Anonymous]

My baby didn't do any of those things at 8 months. And my ped wasn't worried about it. He crawled at 9 months. And that's when he really started rolling too. Could stand at 11 months. Walked at 13. He's a little behind his peers in some regards but well within the range of normal. Deep breath. Your child will be fine. Kudos to you for being proactive; just don't let the comparison steal the joy of parenting.

[Anonymous]

If I was concerned, I would take him to the pediatrician. If I wasn't fully satisfied with that response, then I'd ask please please please for a referral to some sort of pediatric developmental psychologist/neuropsych for a more thorough evaluation.

You are your child's best advocate. If you think there's something to know, then don't let anyone dissuade you from knowing it. And early, even 8months old, intervention is the way to go, definitely.

[Anonymous]

It's very hard to get a read based on a questionnaire on line.

I would take the baby to the pediatrician.

[Anonymous]

OP here. DC does sit very well ands coos. His fine motor skills are on track. Thanks everyone for the input so far. I will take him to the pediatrician

[Anonymous]

Relax. Just relax.

[Anonymous]

My DS was similar to yours. We got an EI eval at 12 months and they found 50% delay in gross motor skills. We did PT for 6 months which helped a lot. He crawled when he was 16 months and walked 17.5 months, which is late but I was thrilled. At 21 months he is not as strong and agile as his peers but catching up. They never really diagnosed him with anything btw. The sooner you start PT the better.

[Anonymous]

With the exception of rolling over, my DD (who is 2 and now right on track), didn't do any of those things at 8 months.

[Anonymous]

The rolling is the only thing I'd be concerned about. My kids didn't crawl until 10 and 11 months. Do you have a 9m well baby visit coming up? Talk to your per about your concerns, but your LO isn't far off, especially if he's sitting up well.

[Anonymous]

Your list isn't raising a lot of red flags for me. He's a little late to roll over, but otherwise seems to be doing fine. Many 8 month olds aren't crawling or pulling to stand.

Having said that, I think you should have him evaluated. There really aren't any negative outcomes from an early evaluation. Any of the following could happen:

1) He's got some mild delays that meet qualifications and he gets some therapy that helps him learn and grow.

2) He's got some mild delays that aren't enough to qualify, and you are asked to reevaluate in a few months at which point he's either caught up or #1 happens.

3) They put your mind at ease that he's doing great, and you're more able to enjoy him with less worries.

[Anonymous]

None of these things are anything to be worried about at this age except for possibly the rolling – and even that could be on the late side of normal. Really just relax.

[Anonymous]

My 8 month old doesn't really do any of these things except for rolling. She also doesn't sit up on her own well. I'm not too concerned, going to give it another month or two before I worry too much

[Anonymous]

I had all the same concerns as you, OP, and my DD is fine. I don't really regret getting it checked out, but I do regret stressing so much over it.

In hindsight, I think the rolling over milestone is a much broader range than they say. I've heard of babies rolling at just weeks old, and then there's mine, who honestly never really did it. She eventually started crawling (almost 10 months) and walking (just before 12 months) and then at some point I noticed that she could roll over too. She just never really cared to do that.

But all the frigging books and websites basically said if she wasn't rolling in either direction by 6 months, that this was a cause for concern. So I raised it, and did the ASQ like OP, and got all sorts of other things to freak out about that I wasn't freaked out about before. All of which in the end turned out to be ridiculous.

(WELL... not completely ridiculous I guess - she ended up having fluid in her ears that was impacting her babbling, hearing and responding to her name, etc. We got tubes and she was on track with that stuff within a month or two. But the early intervention folks had me convinced that she had some kind of severe disability.)