Should I be worried about my 13 month old’s communication?

[CathyandHeathcliff]

He’s advanced in every other way, he’s been walking since about 10 months, he brings us books to read to him all the time, he claps when we say clap and he can copy us when we do things, he’s also very inquisitive and always exploring.
However he never calls me ‘mama’ and he used to say ‘dada’ now he’s stopped. He doesn’t really wave, although he can, as I’ve seen him do it a few times. He doesn’t really point much...he says something like “what’s this?” or a variation of it often. But nothing else sounds like words, just sounds. He often sounds like he’s talking but I can’t understand any words.
He’s my first baby and I have anxiety, so please be kind

signs of autism in a young toddler do include the not waving, not pointing at stuff, not asking to be picked up, one of mine was obsessed with wheels. all signs of autism before they are one. These are asked about in the assessment.

Eldest DD didn't say any words, bar Mama, until she was two. She's now four and Never. Shuts. Up. She's also coming on fantastically with her phonics and reading, can count to 100, and write basic words and the names of her family members.

Fear not. He'll speak when he's good and ready

He sounds lovely, OP. I know it’s really hard as a FTM, but honestly, if he is responding to you, and understands what you’re saying, I would try not to worry. It’s still really early.

My DD was a really early talker, and had a good few words by 13 months. My friend’s DS had no words, and even by 2, he was barely saying anything. But he understood what they said, and he could follow commands and interact with them, and sure enough, now they’re 3, you wouldn’t have a clue which one spoke first!!

Perhaps you could speak to your GP, not so much about your baby as about your anxiety? That might help you to feel better and he/she will be able to tell you what to look for so that you aren’t worrying unnecessarily? They’re so tiny for such a short space of time, it’s a shame to waste any of it worrying

I've never known a 13 month old to talk

it's rare for a 13 months old to talk (one of mine did but people where commenting a all the time aboy the talking baby - she is a bog standard child now) but definitely not the norm.

I would not worry about it as such.

As long as he gets his needs across, points and understands language, I would not worry at all (I have also a DC with autism and severe communication delays and she was very different at 13 months to your DS).

Not RTFT, but my DS is my second and he didnt even start babbling until 17 months, by the time he was 20 months he had several words and now he is 2 his communication is pretty good, he can let you know exactly what he wants. He was always more focused on doing the more physical things, sitting, crawling, walking, running, climbing they all interested him more than talking.

My DD was the complete opposite.

My 18 month old, who I believe is absolutely NT didn’t point until at least 14 months. Honestly OP, don’t worry, he sounds like he’s doing grand.

Hey OP, my daughter is 15 months an is the same. She says tata (daddy) and about five times she said mama, then stopped. She understands what you say to her but doesn't say anything. Everyone tells me it is normal, it's just her way of doing things.

I'm just trying to remember how old DS1 was when he started saying "ta" (his actual first proper word, how cute is that) - I think it was just after Christmas so he'd have been nearly 13 months.

When he was 4 in nursery the mother of the hearing-impaired child told me that he was one of only two children her son talked about, almost certainly because he spoke so beautifully clearly. He got a 3 for his Y2 SATS speaking and listening. Now on a choral scholarship at a top university.

All this not-so-stealth boasting is to demonstrate that a couple of words at 13 months is really nothing to worry about.

Hes only 13 months..relax lol

My middle one met her milestones at the right time but didn't speak until she was 3. Finally got referred to speech therapy and she started talking about a week before the appointment. She caught up really quickly. Once she started talking, she never shut up, her speech has always been clear apart from a very small lisp. She's in the top half of her class for scoring in English, spelling, maths etc so you'd never know her speech was delayed at all.

Normal range is very spread at that age. I had neither a walker nor a talker... too busy crawling like a rocket. He had a handful of "words" or sounds with meaning around 1. I flagged up concerns around 2.5 as progress in developing a vocabulary and combining words was slow. He was deemed low end of average at that point. He hit the threshold for intervention at 3.5 after slipping further behind. By school he'd caught up, and is one of his class' most articulate, clear presenters.

Don't worry. Child development is a long game. If you do have notable concerns down the line, let the HV's know. For most children, things will resolve with patience and decent parenting. If concerns persist, then there is a paper trail already in existance. But from what OP describes, there is likely to be little cause for concern

My DS had hardly any words until about 19 months and then suddenly just started coming out with them. He is nearly 2.5 now and I can't believe how many sentences he can say! Try to relax, talk to him lots and it will come.

No - he is still very young.
DS wasn’t using much speech at that age and now is ahead of his mates at nursery with his speech (according to the nursery staff) he is 2.

You really don't need to worry.

My 16 month old says 'dee' for most things and I'm totally chilled about this. My friend didn't walk until she was 2 and she is a successful 25 year old who is perfectly physically co-ordinated, happy, in a good career.

All children are different and develop differently. Relax and enjoy.

One of mine said a fair amount at 1 year and 1 month, and one of them didn't say much until 2 years and 1 month. It can vary a lot