Will he ever speak

[queenoflife]

Im probably being way paranoid as I do worry loads. My family all tell me I'm mad for thinking the title but I can't help it. He's 2.5 and has the odd random word and the rest is jibber jabber. His understanding is fab thankfully and he's clever like he will climb on the buggy board himself and he will try to attach it to the pram if it's not already attached and he tries to apply the toothpaste to his toothbrush and all of these things I don't ask or prompt him to do it, he just randomly will do it

He says na na for bye bye and he waves when he says it. When we say all gone after food he says ol ga so sounds similar. It's things like that he does

He tries to say flower it sound similar but not quite

He's under SALT and they told me exercises such as get him excited and say ready steady and let him say go. We have done that and sometimes he cooperates and says a clear go but not always.

He's my little angel and he's so cute and adorable oh and we've done the 2.5 year test which includes questions which then give a score and if high then u could be referred for autism type disorders etc but he scored very low only 35 which the HV said was a good indicator of no worries but yeah basically I just keep waking up every day hoping to hear his lovely voice but nope

My little one didn't have any words until 3, it was a long hard path to speech but he got there and his understanding was also delayed. Take a look at the teachmetotalk website for more ideas on what stage he is at and what you can do with him games wise to encourage speech.

Ok thanks and glad to hear your little one got there

@essexmum777 my Main fear is that he will never speak or is that totally irrational

Does he spend a lot of time on screens? they do delay speech, especially the hand held ones (phones, iPad, tablets, ....)

Its hard not to worry, i was actually told that my DS was classically autistic and might not talk - i remember being heartbroken that my ds couldn't communicate to me where it hurt when he was stung by a wasp. But most children learn to talk, although some of those with very severe disabilities/deafness/severe autism might not have speech and use alternative communication devices and i think if your child had one of those then surely there would be other signs that your doctor/hv would have picked up on.

And by your little one having good understanding and trying to say 'all gone' / 'flower' 'bye bye' he does have some words so i would def be hopeful that he will talk - it took my LO about 18 months to 2 years to talk and be understood, he's not autistic or developmentally disabled, he's actually very bright he was just a late talker.

18 months - 2 years from the very first words at 3 that is

@LeGrandBleu not much screen time no just a bit of tv in the eve that's it. I'm very cautious of that

This is my first time posting on mumsnet, I've really been feeling the need to reach out to some other parents who have been or are currently going through what I am with my son. I'm following this thread because the title hit me and is exactly my feelings right now so thought it would be the best post to start with as hopefully you will all be able to understand. I really feel for you queenoflife, I wish I could offer some advice but unfortunately I am in a similar situation.

I'm at a bit of a loss with my nearly 3 year old, who is currently non verbal, he says no words at all. I have heard 'mum' occasionally, and 'daddy', but it's very occasionally and that is literally the extent of his vocabulary. His understanding is good, he can follow instructions and directions (on his own terms!), and is a very loving sweet boy he eats and sleeps well.

However I am sure he is on the spectrum as he has some red flags such as no pointing or waving, often spins in circus for long periods and is non verbal. We are under SALT but to be honest I've found the whole process so far a complete waste of time, I don't feel like we are getting anywhere and despite my sons obvious delays not one health professional that we have seen has wanted to say autism. Perhaps it's too early to tell, and they want to give him more time, but to me this is torture. I just want to know what the problem is so I can finally come to terms with it and stop thinking and wondering every day what it could be.

My main struggle everyday is interaction. He has limited interests in toys, he spends most of the day running around his room, switching the lights on and off, if I try and sit and read a book with him he won't have any of it, just gets up and runs away, same goes for any other toys I try to play with him. This is the part that brings me to tears most days because I just want to be able to connect and play with him like a normal mother would. I am at the stage now where I feel like giving up on him, I am exhausted with worry and thinking all the time about where it all went wrong and blaming myself for the way he is. Just to also go back a bit, he was a normal, giggly, beautiful baby who smiled, gave eye contact, at no point when he was under 1 did we have any doubts about his development. It was after he turned one that things started to change with him.

I'm reaching out to any mums who perhaps have a child on the spectrum and also struggled to interact with them. I feel so alone right now

@LucyC111 I do sympathise with u however your situation is quite different to mine as my little boy WILL sit and read books and he interacts lots with me and he waves and claps lots lol.

Does your son do any babbling or jibberish talk?

And I can sit and play trains with my son etc. He does love exploring and being active but he will sit and play too

He is babbling and making sounds, nothing is of any meaning though! People keep saying he will talk eventually and I hope they're right, but I can't see it myself.
How old is your little one?

He's 2.5

@LucyC111 I'm the OP by the way it's just I name changed

Ps u sound like me, super worried and ppl telling u he will talk eventually etc. They must be right Cos all adults talk don't they

@LucyC111 is he at nursery yet and how's it going if so? My sis is a nursery school teacher and she had a child this year age 3 with only about 4 words and now he's around other children is gradually picking up more words

Omg I had a dream that he spoke in full sentences. Maybe just a dreM Cos it's on my mind so much, might not be a sign

My son was much like you describe at that age - great understanding, able to follow instructions, no obvious signs of additional needs etc, but only spoke a few words by the age of two.

Then one day at just over 2.5 he just started talking. It was the weirdest thing, but he went from barely saying anything to confidently using short sentences - in the space of about two weeks.

He's five now and does not shut up. Ever. There is just a relentless gush of words from the minute he wakes up to the minute he falls asleep. Sometimes I crave silence and wonder why I ever wanted him to talk anyway!