2.5 year old speech please help

[boymummm]

Hello,

Desperate for any advice.

My 2.5 year old has only a handful of words and doesn't seem to be progressing. Took him to a speech & language drop in and he has been referred to paeds.

They have said the waiting list is a year long. In my opinion he is displaying some ASD traits too and I just feel completely helpless at the moment.

Do I go private? I feel like I'm failing him as the wait for any help is so long.

He can understand most instructions, will say mummy, daddy etc in context, but I'm watching other children overtake him and I just feel like it's all my fault. He loves playing with other children but my heart breaks for him as he can't communicate with them.

Everyone keeps asking is he talking yet and I feel so stressed.

Have they referred him for SLT and a hearing test too @boymummm?

Thank you so much for replying to me. From what I understand a referral for SLT was made too but the waiting list is just as long. They haven't mentioned a hearing test, do I need to sort this myself or should it be part of the process?

Thank you so much for replying to me. From what I understand a referral for SLT was made too but the waiting list is just as long. They haven't mentioned a hearing test, do I need to sort this myself or should it be part of the process?

Hi, I have a 2.5 year old son too. Both myself and my husband had been worried about his speech and social skills for quite a while, sounding very similar to yourself. He could only say a handful of words and the rest babble away. But all of a sudden he’s came in leaps and bounds. Don’t get me wrong he’s not perfect in his speech and still babbles full sentences like we should know what he’s talking about but he’s started making little sentences etc. He still shows signs of being autistic in our opinion as in he’s very sensitive and has to have things certain way etc but we are not so much concerned over his speech. But the main thing is that you stop blaming yourself. Regardless of anything your son is and will be ok whether he needs help etc, he has his parents who obviously love him very much and that goes a long way in a child xx

@boymummm in some stress you can self refer for a hearing test but in most you have to ask your HV to do it. If he's going to be seeing an SaLT they will want him to have had a hearing test first to rule out glue ear

Thank you so so much for your message, it’s so lovely to hear from someone who has felt similar. I feel like my friends with children can’t relate, it’s not their fault but it’s a bit lonely sometimes. That’s brilliant how much your little one’s speech has come on, I really hope I can report back the same one day. My husband is really relaxed and says he will get there but I just can’t imagine him talking. I think sometimes people assume we must not be talking to him or trying hard enough, I know that’s daft but I do doubt myself sometimes as he is my first xx

Thank you for this, my HV is lovely but she just says that he is making progress (albeit extremely slow) and said the next step is just to wait for the paed appointment. I will look into the hearing test to make sure he gets one xx

Totally understand why you would question yourself but please don’t. My husband was and still is relaxed like your husband. I mean this in the nicest of ways so please don’t take offence but your son might be just a little slow. We have thought this about our son but he’s really trying each day to say new words. Don’t get me wrong he’s still way off from talking properly but it’s progress in the right direction. Fingers crossed your son does the same and like you same you can report the same xx

My son was like this. We finally got to the NHS speech therapist after a ridiculously long wait. The lady was lovely, but it was a joke... too short a course to have any real impact. She was the one who suggested we go private if possible, since DS won't be offered more sessions for at least another 9 months.

We took him private for weekly sessions which were SO much better than the NHS ones, and son is making a great amount of progress. No, let me rephrase that, my son needed that intervention to find his mouth! He is now a few months off 4, we started this around march this year and he was barely saying more than 6 words. But now he is talking! Still some issues around pronouncing certain sounds, but he is talking... a lot! The therapist has said he is at age related expectations with his understanding of language, so we are focusing on the sounds of his speech. Just having someone I can talk to weekly about his speech has been amazing. I pay between 200-300 a month though. It is absolutely worth it. He is now communicating and has been toilet trained almost overnight since he can communicate well.

We did a hearing test, waited over a year for it. They said he might have glue ear but turns out the test wasn't done properly.... so still waiting. My son can hear fine imo, even if I whisper, but I guess we will see once the more in-depth testing has been done. I just want to know so I can help him as best I can. My therapist has hooked me up with some private contacts if I want to get the test done that way instead.

Many children display different signs of ASD at some point, focus on trying to get some support for what you can observe now and what your concerns are. Engage with your GP, so that you log all your concerns, and they can investigate into it before school begins. Although, tbh it was my health visitor that helped out with my speech therapy referrals during the 2021/2022. When we initially saw the NHS therapist, she was talking about him maybe needing a specialist school but they assumed he was older than he looked (he's a tall 3). I was against this because imo he didn't display any issues that weren't directly related to his speech. That's when they realised he had another full year of nursery, and then they reassured me and said most kids will usually catch up between that age and school. Having the private therapist has meant I don't feel so 'in the dark' about my son's progress. If you have the means, please try going private. If it is too expensive (although you can opt for less sessions per month) then engage with any childcare provider your child might have (DS is attending a nursery attached to a school, and the staff were giving DS SEN interventions- the private therapist has given me many materials/games to share with the school, and the school received them well), The school staff have been amazing, and have been a vital part of the progress made by my son.

Good luck!