I don't believe anything is wrong, but when do I start to worry that my daughter is missing milestones?

[SpeckyB]

My 13month old DD was progressing normally up until 6-7 months when everything slowed down. She wouldn't eat food until she was 11 months and has only just started crawling at 13 months. In my heart of hearts I do not think there is anything to worry about but the sensible side of me is starting to worry.

Positives - She was the first of her group to roll and could roll across a room with ease. She sat at 5 months and loves to clap (although only learnt how at 10 months). She repeats sounds back to me. Like baba and rara. She stares intently at people's faces and laughs at things we do. She likes books and can turn the pages.

Worries - she cannot point, wave or cruise. She has pulled herself up 3 times but seems uninterested in trying again. She will stand holding onto the sofa, but does not walk holding hands. She does not say any words.

When do I need to worry? Thank you for reading my long post!

Thank you so much for all the replies. It's lovely to know that others have experienced something similar but their children ultimately caught up.

Hopefully the health visitor will put my mind at ease too.

My dd wasn't walking or talking (or repeating sounds) till around 15/16 months (she sat at 4 months) but at nearly 3yrs speaks in 15+ word sentences and is racing around on her scooter and giving me heart attacks with her climbing.

If she's not using a few single words or walking at 18 months that usually when you will get referred to see if there is anything she needs help with.

You can look up the Hanen programme on google for some tips on how to encourage early communication.

Nothing you've said is ringing alarm bells for me. The age range for walking is actually 9-18 months so she has got loads of time. My dcs were all late walkers (18, 19 and 21 months) and are all fine - the latest walker is esp quite sporty and they are all good cross country runners! I do remember that dc1 couldn't pull himself up until after he could walk (although would stand holding onto furniture if I put him there and cruise - but I think that came later than 13 months)

If you have concerns there is never any harm in a quick chat with your HV though.

The only thing that would concern me in your op is the lack of pointing. The benchmark for pointing is 12 months, so that is definitely something to raise with the HV, although from bitter experience they are often not qualified to pick up any problems and precious time can be wasted as they insist that everything is fine. I raised concerns re my ds1 when he had no words at the age of 15months and everyone and his dog told me that everything was fine, boys talk later, Mozart didn't talk till he was 4 etc etc. Drove me mad!

Tbh comprehension is more important than speech production, so if it seems that dd understands most of what you say to her then that's an excellent sign.

Don't ignore your gut feeling is my advice. It may be that absolutely nothing is wrong but then you've been able to put your mind at rest.

She sounds quite normal to me to be honest, but I second the advice to ask your h/v or GPS for a referral. My daughter didn't sit until 10 months, crawl until 13 months or walk until 18 months, and wasn't especially quick to point or clap either. We were able to get a referral to an orthopaedic surgeon which ruled out any physical problems and helped us relax a bit. And, at almost 2, you wouldn't be able to tell that she had earlier delays - although slower to get started, she has developed fast in a very short time.