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Original poster

When did your DC respond to their name

27 replies

Moriarosesbebe · 01/04/2021 20:48

DS is almost 10months old and doesn't respond to his name. At about 8months he did appear to but I've noticed lately, especially when I'm behind him he doesn't make any response when I start calling his name, even when I say it over and over, or start saying it in a silly tone of voice. I do tend to chat to him alot so I wonder if he thinks "she is off rambling again and my toy is more interesting so no need to turn around". Sometimes he surprises me and responds but not sure if its coincidence
Wondering if other people have found the same? I've considered glue ear and I'm thinking about getting the GP to check him out.
He seems to have naturally waxy ears, I don't know if that's a sign of glue ear. With covid I don't particularly want to be going to the gp surgery unnecessarily

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Original poster
Moriarosesbebe · 02/04/2021 07:01

Bump

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atvh · 02/04/2021 07:59

I think DS has done from about eight months, although having said that, I have no idea if he’s responding to his name specifically or just looks up because he hears my voice!

Original poster
Moriarosesbebe · 02/04/2021 08:43

@atvh thanks for reply. Sometimes thats what I think. Its so hard to know. I'm a natural worrier so I hate those milestone checklists as I'm constantly thinking about if he is achieving them.
He does tend to look if he is about to touch something he shouldn't and we say "ah ah baba". He probably thinks that's his name!

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Figrus2 · 02/04/2021 08:47

Never. My son is 16 now and still doesn't hear me when I call him for dinner or to clean his room.

Bbq1 · 02/04/2021 08:52

@Figrus2

Never. My son is 16 now and still doesn't hear me when I call him for dinner or to clean his room.
😂
Original poster
Moriarosesbebe · 02/04/2021 10:11

@Figrus2

Never. My son is 16 now and still doesn't hear me when I call him for dinner or to clean his room.
😂 I think I might have to get used to being ignored if your 16year DS is anything to go by so!
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Letsallscreamatthesistene · 02/04/2021 10:34

Maybe 7 or 8 months, but now hes 1 he fully ignores me unless im holding food or a dummy

GrumpyHoonMain · 02/04/2021 10:42

From 6 mths.

UntilYourNextHairBrainedScheme · 02/04/2021 10:52

What happens if you make unexpected sudden noises behind him out of his sight? Clap, ring a bell if you have one, tap an empty glass or metal pan with a metal spoon? If he doesn't startle it is definitely worth checking his hearing.

I remember dc1 responded to her name at 7 months because I was being assessed by Ofsted to be a childminder at the time, and the Ofsted lady remarked on it - for some reason that stuck in my head, as well as exactly how old she eas due to events going on at the time... I don't remember how old my other kids were, but as soon as I was approved to childmind I started minding a little girl a week after her first birthday and a 13 month old (people used to stop me to ask whether they plus my dc1 were triplets when I went out with my tripple buggy Grin ) and both mindees very clearly and obviously knew and responded to their own names and not to one another's name.

Original poster
Moriarosesbebe · 02/04/2021 11:04

@UntilYourNextHairBrainedScheme thanks for replying.
If I make a sudden high pitched sound he will turn around straight away to see where it came from. Its a handy trick when he is messing around at bed time as it breaks his concentration from trying to break out of the cot! I will try the other sounds this evening.
If I come into the room I usually call his name and he turns to smile at me but I think its because I've just come in rather than recognising his name.
I was fairly confident when he was 8months old that he knew his name but its so hit and miss now I'm not sure if he would be turning his head to look at me anyway.
Maybe I need to give him a little bit more time. I do worry and just wonder if there is anything I can do to help him gain the skill

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BertieBotts · 02/04/2021 11:05

About 18 months? Certainly not as early as some of these are suggesting. I might be remembering wrong, though.

AliasGrape · 02/04/2021 11:08

Somewhere between 6 and 7 months. She did it really consistently at the time I kept filming her because I was all PFB about it and thought it was amazing. She's 8 months now though and it's not as consistent, if theres something more interesting going on or she's busy trying to do whatever unsafe thing she's decided on this time with a toy then she will often tune me out.

It's so hard not to worry about the milestones, I was obsessed with her babbling because I thought she was late to start,sane with rolling front to back- I still don't think she's ever done it she just finds other ways round it now.

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Moriarosesbebe · 02/04/2021 11:21

@AliasGrape I wish I didn't know about milestones. The health advisor asked does he wave goodbye, which he doesn't, I wasn't bothered about it until she mentioned it. He says "buh buh" whenever someone leaves and I thought he was a genius until someone put the idea of him waving in my head.

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UntilYourNextHairBrainedScheme · 02/04/2021 11:40

Moriarosesbebe do you wave? If nobody waves at him on a daily basis he won't learn to wave until he's in more contact with more people - its not an innate thing like learning to crawl or shuffle, sit up etc, its an aspect of language (just like if nobody ever calls you Mummy when speaking about you, and you don't refer to yourself as Mummy, then him not saying Mummy won't be a developmental delay, just a word he's never heard).

It is developmentally meaningful to use gestures as part of communication - pointing in some form - but waving goodbye not necessarily unless he's used to people waving to him.

Does he recognise other words? With an older child I'd suggest chocolate... Grin What's his favourite food or activity? If he completely loves going for a walk does he respond to you saying that you'll go for awalk when you don't acompany it with visual clues like getting the pram set up or fetching his coat? If he loves bananas does he respond to the word banana with happy sounds/ expression/ reaching out his arms before he sees the banana? If you say "up you come" or anything similar regularly before reaching out to pick him up off the floor, does he raise his arms to be lifted? Does he look at familiar objects when you talk about them? (book or ball or spoon).

The fact he says something sounding like bye bye when people leave the room sounds as though his hearing of sounds in the normal vocal range is probably roughly ok, as if he couldn't hear your voice he couldn't repeat the sounds to approximate words.

Original poster
Moriarosesbebe · 02/04/2021 11:49

@UntilYourNextHairBrainedScheme I told the health advisor that we don't see enough people to say goodbye to them so he doesn't see much waving. He piped up and "buh buh" to her so he definitely associates the word goodbye with what he is saying. Since she said it I've made a point of waving goodbye when I leave for work but so far nothing.
To be honest I'm not sure about if he recognises words. I generally have the object in view when I mention it. If I say "whose home?" He will look towards the door for DH or his nan to come in. Or if I ask about the dog he will look at the window to look for her, most of the time anyway. If I ask him to be gentle he will stop slapping his poor nanas face and stroke it, although I sometimes I've to show him again before he does it.
He will play peek a boo with his blanket or whatever object he is playing with at the time and copies the sound we make when we are "hiding". So I think he on that level he progressing but I couldn't say for certainy that he knows the names of objects.

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SkedaddIe · 02/04/2021 12:02

Your ds might be ignoring you because you've created such a safe and comforting environment that he doesn't need to be 'aware' and he's happily focussing on his play. So it's not necessary a bad thing and please try not to worry too much about milestones.

And because you have the high pitch noise thing he might not feel the need for responding to other things.

You sound like you're doing a great job!

UntilYourNextHairBrainedScheme · 02/04/2021 12:08

Moriarosesbebe he sounds gine for ten months - he is associating words and word groups with meaning if he looks at the door when you ask who's home or the window when you use the word dog. Be gentle is quite an advanced concept with lots of parts to it. Its great you're introducing it but completely unrealistic to expect it fully understood and implemented by a ten month old - tbh it'd only be reliable by about 3, obviously a lot better by 2 than now... Gentleness is an abstract and subjective concept, and even when a child fully understands what the word means they need to enact it with their own arms - and of course like following any instructions they also have to want to or feel obligated to!

Original poster
Moriarosesbebe · 02/04/2021 12:13

@SkedaddIe thank you for that. That actually made me cry. The pressure after I returned to work is immense. I constantly feel like I'm failing him. In my head achieving milestones feel like a concrete way of showing he is doing ok and that he is developing neurotypically. I know in reality babies development is vastly different from baby to baby and whether they are neurotypical or neurodiverse is not influenced by parenting. However I feel like its the only measuring stick I have for myself as a parent.

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Original poster
Moriarosesbebe · 02/04/2021 12:18

@UntilYourNextHairBrainedScheme yes to be fair to him "be gentle" is probably a bit much. I think he thinks be gentle is action word that means to stroke his nanas face! He will happily stroke her face for a few seconds and then start pulling her hair again. My poor mam Grin

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Kokosrieksts · 02/04/2021 13:55

Sounds perfectly normal to me.

brokengate · 02/04/2021 14:08

Last night I flicked onto wonder weeks app. Baby is 15 weeks, 4 days from next leap.....woo hoo. (Not).

I read the skills part, grab things, babble, then it says you respond to your own name.....

So I google that, it says generally around 8 months.....

See this shite it just gives us something else to stress about.

They are all different. Dd1 didn't talk till maybe 24 months. Lockdown and I was just considering trying to track a hV down and suddenly all the words came. She still ignores me though.

I think like a pp said it's really hard to tell if it's you or name they are reacting to at this age. I wouldn't worry, he sounds lovely.

MySocalledLoaf · 02/04/2021 14:09

One at 6 months one around 14 months. The earlier one has a much more suspicion nature and is always very aware of what I’m doing. The later one is laid back. It doesn’t mean anything at your baby’s age.

brokengate · 02/04/2021 14:09

27 months, not 24.

MySocalledLoaf · 02/04/2021 14:11

Also the earlier responder had a shorter name and I tended to call the other Roly-poly, not his actual name. So there may be other factors too.

nineyearsapart · 02/04/2021 14:24

Mine is 11 months old and sounds very similar to yours. Knew his name at about 6/7 months, but only selectively responds to it now....probably twice in ten times...dont even know if that counts as responding🤣
I really wouldn't worry as it sounds like you know him inside and out and that's probably why he is comfortable enough to be an ignorant little sod🤣
Something I do to attempt to encourage him to look when I say his name, is link it to something fun. So I will say his name and then bounce him. Then I will say it again and if he looks at me I will bounce him again. Sometimes works...depends how distracted he is🙂