18 month old speech issues - very concerned

[Cakeandcookies]

Hi everyone. I am looking for some advice/success stories to ease my worried mind. I have been thinking about posting on here for the last few months..
Sorry for the lengthy post bear with me!
My little one was 3 months when we went into lockdown and due to me being in the very high risk category I was naturally cautious and very wary when out and about/bursting our bubble. Since things have opened up & I have been vaccinated I take my little one out as much as possible to the farm, zoo, park etc.
I do lots of activities with him, messy play, sensory, fine motor etc and free play ofc.
We read lots and my little one loves books and is always bringing them over. He likes nursery rhymes and wiggles to music and is a very smiley sociable character and brings things to show people. I name things and play at his level but also leave him to investigate.
The teacher in me is concerned about his speech and I have contacted our health visitor. My little one had an 18 month review 10 days ago and despite walking late he is doing really well in all areas but speech and language.
He understands far more than he can say and can point to things in books and sometimes name them but it will only be a few things. Digger, cat, dog.
He used to say mama but doesn't anymore will say dada but if dad asks him to give something to mummy (even if I'm in another room) he will give it to me. I can just see the gap widening amongst our ante-natal group and its worrying me. A few people have commented recently and someone mentioned Asd. Its been in my mind but even the health visitor (although she has referred us to speech and language to be on the safe side) said that is the only thing on the toddler asd criteria that he hits.
He is also funny with food and some textures (will chew apples but then spits it out) and it was suspected he had a posterior tongue tie at birth but due to covid it was never investigated further so I'm not sure if there is some oral motor thing going on. It sometimes looks like he is trying to say something or eat something but almost his tongue is in the way if that makes sense. We are starting nursery with him next week to help him socialise more as he missed out on so much during the pandemic. Anyhow if you got to the end of this post I am eternally gratefully and any suggestions or advice would be warmly received xxx

I should also add my little one babbles and points constantly but seems to say dat a lot.

Anyone??

Giving you a hopeful bump - DD is 20 months old and even though she started saying words early her speech is probably average - she has recently picked up loads of words though. One of the things I've noticed is that a lot of her words don't sound like the proper word, so she says wowa instead of flower or drops the last letter if it's a consonant. I do spend a lot of time with her pronouncing the words and letting her feel the way my lips move etc when I talk - I have no idea if that's beneficial though.
I have absolutely no concerns about ASD though.
If your HV is not concerned then I would say you are ok - I was constantly ringing the HV to talk about DD delay in walking (she walked at 16 months but I was convinced she wouldn't ever walk) and they weren't concerned in the slightest.

Nursery helped loads for DD confidence and learning from other children.
Oh and she also chews her apple and spits it out, same with pepper. I think they don't like the skin (she has almost al her teeth so it's not an ability thing)
I hope someone comes along with more reassuring advice soon x

He doesn't seem behind for 18 months. This sounds completely normal. Not sure why the teacher in you would be concerned, you shoiuld know children do things at their own pace. He may just not have the inclination to bother at the mo.

My 17 month old says milk consistently. Quackquack, yeah and duck. Having a 3.5 year old who had boo, mama and dadda at 18 months means I have no concerns. That was without lockdown. I can't really see how LD would affect lang development anyhow.

My little girl was 'behind' in terms of speech at 18 months old. I was really concerned. She's 2.5 now and she's doing brilliantly. She's talking in sentences and very clever. I think as long as his understanding is good, the rest will come.
My little girl had slow progress and then just before she turned two, she seemed to learn so many words really suddenly. She started putting two or three words together around this time too.

He's still a baby.

I don't seem to see the speech delay from your description. At 18M they are expected to have eight words and that can include animal noises or other consistently used sounds. How many words does he have? In addition it is very odd that your health visitor would llink a speech delay to autism as autism is not a speech disorder - toddlers with autism can have poor or excellent speech just like any other toddler. From your description, and in relation to autism, aversion to certain textures would be far more concerning than a speech delay.

Thank you everyone for your replies. Great to know your little one settled at nursery and it helped Zaffa and that apple spotting is normal.
@Aladdinsmum I'm just going on what they told me. I was trying not to worry too much about the texture thing as we started weaning at 7 months due to late cmpa diagnosis. He eats lots of things but does have a tendency to spit out and won't eat much fruit or veg in their raw form. We've been giving him bits to touch and play with and he goes to try it then spits it out. I know quite a few who are fussy and hopefully it is just this.

My youngest started speaking in sentences around his 3rd birthday. Before that, he'd only say a handful of words
He just woke up one day and started putting small sentences together. I cried

We went to a few meetings since it was concerning for us but they did a few activities to find out how his understanding was. That was fine so they were happy for him to come along in his own time.

@Mooncake that is so lovely to hear! I don't think the pandemic has helped as there has been a serious lack of social interaction but when people keep making comments it does get to you! Xx

@Cakeandcookies but a lot of babies in the past and now only really get interaction with their immediate family and grandparents. In the past people didn't take babies to clubs and activities or playdates particularly. I just don't buy it. My older child was not brought up in a pandemic. He's 3.5 and his speech is absolutely fine, he had 3 words at 18 months. He's well ahead in some things and just right in others. His vocab and grammar is expanding every day. Not saying much at 18 months is not speech delayed, it's perfectly normal. Anecdotally, I hear this is also more comfortable common with boys.

Sorry ignore the comfortable...no idea where that came from. 🤷‍♀️

How do you think he'd be on this 18 months progress checker? It should either give you the reassurance that you would like or if there is an issue, it will tell you what to do next.

It might be worth referring for a hearing test. You can self refer in most areas.

I ended up back in hospital on and off for 3 months due to a large internal bleed that wasn't diagnosed initially so Los dad was trying to work from home and look after him so I don't think that helped. On his progress review the health visitor said he was borderline for communication so has referred us for a speech and language consultation to be on the safe side. He is due to have a hearing test but we haven't heard yet. He hears planes and birds and is always pointing. I was just interested to see what everyone thought. I'm not saying the pandemic is the reason or not but as a first time mum I cannot help but feel the Mum guilt. Thanks everyone x

My little boy is 17 months old and we still haven’t had any words 😭 he babbles and grunts but that’s it. It’s really worrying and there’s a huge lack of support out there. He also won’t read books. He doesn’t point, wave or clap. He was a very early Walker and that’s all he’s interested in 😭.

@Bex268 thats great that your little one was an early walker though :) My little one was more like 17 months so was considered late apparently! Who knew! My LO does clap and point and used to wave but doesn't much atm. Has he done it before? My HV said when they are learning one skill they can stop doing another for a bit? Maybe its that? X

@Cakeandcookies thanks for writing back. He has clapped before but hasn’t done so again in months. He has never pointed or waved. I’m ready through all the posts about this kind of thing and having my week ing 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 worry! My HV referred him for a hearing test which was fine. She mentioned autism to me and I didn’t want to believe it and I’m becoming more concerned by the day. I’m a teacher and know how difficult it can be for autistic children.
If it helps, it sounds like your little one is doing brilliantly and I would be so happy with their progress. I know it’s not like some (my best friend’s son has hit every milestone and more) but I think it sounds like they’re heading in the right direction.

@Cakeandcookies I'm surprised your HV has referred you for not quite meeting communication. I made an appt with both HV and GP at 18 months when my 18 month old had less words than your boy. They basically told me to come back at 2 if there was still am issue, but said he was doing fine for 18 months and not to worry. At 2 he knew all his colours and never got any muddled. At 2 years and 2 months he recognised all his letters (not rote learnt) and most numbers (although got 6 and 9 muddled up). Now he is well on track with communication and Lang. He says 10 word sentences and is hitting all his milestones in that regard. I think your HV has unnecessarily worried you by referring you.

@Cakeandcookies also it seems you are looking for something to blame. Really when they are tiny they do just develop at their own pace. It won't be anything you or your partner has done. He will get there in his own time.

@Bex268 he may very well do it again. My LO suddenly pointed one day when looking at a book and it surprised me. Try not to worry about the A word it got mentioned to me too so I understand your concerns. My Lo is nearly 19 months so you have lots of time! Being a teacher is hard as you know so much about early development too!

@Opalfeet thanks for taking the time to reply. I think every area is different. I'm not looking for someone or something to blame. I'm just concerned about my child. I'm a first time Mum and an awful lot happened to our family during the pandemic as it did to many families coupled with me being extremely unwell and unable to see my little one I cannot help but feel guilty about that. I wrote this post to seek advice from other mums and dads to help put my mind at rest. Maybe you are right re HV but I have to say our area is very good at helping parents with referrals.

@Cakeandcookies. Just trying to help and help to put your mind at rest that it's nothing you have done and what you describe is completely normal for an 18 month old.

It's easy for me to say it because I've been through it. My little one was also 2 years and 2 months when we went into lockdown and he had just started speaking in three/four word sentences. Lockdown hasn't held him back. He's developed so quickly. It's amazing how they go from a few words to suddenly coming on in leaps and bounds. This is likely to happen to you too. What you describe is a very interactive little boy who has good understanding.

I'm certainly glad my child wasn't referred as he didn't need it. We have been referred for other things not linked to speech, so they don't hesitate to refer children in my area either. I've also heard two is the earliest most will refer regardless of area.

Does he ever play in front of a mirror? If you can encourage him to babble or speak while watching himself do this it is shown to improve communication and speech. He might just be super busy on a different skill set 😊

@Cakeandcookies sorry for posting so late in the day but just wondering how things are now as this sounds like my 18 month old and I’m anxious 😥 xx

@mwilliams33 he is now 3 and doesn't stop talking. He struggles with some sounds but they don't necessarily have everything perfect until they have learnt their sounds/phonics at school anyway! I was really worried as he was a lockdown baby but honestly speech wise and vocabulary wise he has come on leapsnand bounds. Does your LO have any 'words'?

He says mama, dada, baba, hiya (what he says most), the sound for lion and sometimes he says ‘Gigi’ for this giraffe we have in his bedroom and what sounds like ‘cheese’ or ‘trees’ I’m not sure lol also we’re sure he said dog last night but it’s the inconsistency that worries me. Also when we’re in front of the mirror and say brush our teeth he goes ‘ahhhh’ but I don’t know if that counts 🤣🤦🏼‍♀️ xx

@Cakeandcookies forgot to tag you in the above post xx