Do the hearing test first and get on the list with strong start. If there are not medical issues (hearing), then I'd start with strong start. The benefit of being in the system is that your kid may qualify for any special preschool programs offered for speech issues (I'm in MD, so don't know about DCPS offerings). Makes getting an IEP easier, etc. Even if you do private, you want to pursue strong start.

Not all pediatricians are the same.
This seems crazy for a 9mo. Keep reading to him, look at him when you’re talking to him, work on some basic baby sign language so he can communicate.

Go through strong start. The pediatrician recommended evaluation, that's what strong start does. They were wonderful for my kid, who is now a chatterbox 3rd grader.

As the mom of two kids who had language delays-one, due to asd, the other due to fluid in the ears (which was resolved with allergy meds and then speech therapy)- I say, Get a hearing test!

Not from the dr office-like at a children's hospital or an audiologist that specializes in children. Your dc could have hearing loss, or something like fluid in the ears. You need to rule out/address hearing loss before you know if dc has a delay or not.

I would also get on with Strong Starts (I'm not local but that is your local EI?). Sometimes those programs have a wait to start. In the meanwhile, get the hearing test.

Like other pp's have said, if you go to a speech therapist, they are going to ask if dc has had a hearing test (not the birth screening).

OP, if you are concerned, absolutely do the hearing test but consider a developmental ped who specializes more in special needs and delays.

Hi Op. I don’t have a recommendation. My son had a similar experience where my pediatrician recommended at 1 that we start working with early intervention. He wasn’t babbling much. We found out that he has fluid in his ears which was decreasing his hearing. We got tubes which made a huge difference. Speech also helped us as parents learn to talk to our son. We slowed down and focused on one word at a time. It won’t hurt to start speech early and in most cases it helps.

OP you seem unusually defensive of your pediatrician. 9 mos is too young for an evaluation or speech therapy. It is not too young for a hearing test, and any competent pediatrician should have recommended that as your first step. All the therapy in the works would be useless if there’s an I corrected hearing deficit. You don’t need a rec from a therapist. It’s generally the opposite in that when a pediatric ent and hearing therapist don’t find an issue, then they refer you to speech. The newborn hearing screen is irrelevant as allergies or any type of cold could have led to fluid build up in the ears which makes hearing muffled.

Reach out to Strong Start, the DC early intervention program. It will take several months to get an evaluation, have an eligibility determination and for therapy to start if your child qualifies. I would encourage you reach out to fundamentals and building blocks therapy as this company is a Strong Start provider.

9 months seems young to identify a speech delay but it can’t hurt to have an eval. DS was severely speech delayed and we weren’t even referred until 18 months. By the time we got an appointment with MoCo infants and toddlers DS was 20 months. Then even though he had only a few of the most basic sounds they tried to turn us away after the eval. I begged and they begrudgingly agreed to take him. Unfortunately, we wasted a lot of time as they didn’t want to acknowledge he had CAS. Generally they don’t diagnose CAS until age 3 but private therapists who are trained in it will at least treat it based on suspicion. Thankfully an SLP we knew called our attention to the possible diagnosis so we sought private therapy and didn’t wait until 3. I second the recommendation for the hearing test. Even if a child has normal hearing at birth, hearing loss can occur at any time.

If your county/city agency won’t take him, start calling private SLPs. Another route is to speak to a developmental pediatrician.

Is Strong Starts the DC early intervention group? We did ours in Maryland for other things, but they are mandated by law to do an evaluation if you request it and to provide services if your kid shoes delays.

That will help you get more info on where you kid stands in terms of delay and could get you some services. You don't have to take them, but you'll have the option. I would start with that because at least you'll be on a list and have something lined up, and meanwhile, call around to other places and ask around.

Anonymous wrote:I would get a hearing test first.

When my toddler needed speech therapy, no therapist would even consider seeing her until she got a hearing test. There's no way the pediatrician can accurately assess that in the office.

Try strong start—my child received OT and speech through that program

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here - DS passed the one they gave him at birth and pediatrician didn’t think he had hearing loss when she examined him. That being said if the therapist ordered it, we would happily do it.

OP it's backwards to start with therapy first and do testing to rule out causes second. You sound very committed to your pediatrician. Pediatrician screenings (for hearing or anything else) can miss issues that specialists won't miss. In the SN world, it helps to be a little skeptical and dispassionate.

NP it may be backwards but is it easier to start speech therapy or get testing done? OP can work on both simultaneously and worst case be out a few copays or out of pocket fees for speech. Or best case early intervention. It seems like a no brainer. It’s not like doing chemo before biopsy results are back.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t know of any (sorry!) but I’m curious how many posts - including this one- will be made questioning OP, questioning pediatrician, but not answering her actual question.

9 months is far to young to diagnosis. Infant and toddlers wouldn't even consider it. They can try or they'd have to pay privately.

Infants and toddlers sees newborns under certain circumstances. They absolutely will see a 9 month old. Whether they will see this depends on what the evaluation revela.s. I will say that my kid, who didn't babble at all at 9 months, and who was considered high risk due to also needing a feeding tube, said his first words by 13 months and by 18 months was testing above age level. So, it's possible for kids to make great gains.

For very young children, Anne Reynolds at ARCCornerstones use to be one of the very best providers in this area. She has retired, and I don't know who has taken on that role.

For a child that age I think the DC EI programs will be better as they will do a ton of evaluations and take a holistic approach. I would do that and see what is found before pursing private therapy. Second the recommendation for the book it takes two to talk if you are desperate to do something. It has great recommendations for language development whether your child turns out to have an issue or not.

Sending a hug OP. It is super hard to hear something isn't typical about your baby. You sound like a good parent. He is doing a lot of really positive things developmentally!