worried mummy x

[mumu80]

my 2 year old dear son only says a handfull of words i have been lucky enough to get an appointment with a speech therapist,around the same time he had an appointment with a consultant as he has turn toe, the consultant asked about his talking which i advised wasnt going great he orderd full blood tests to be taken and a possible brain scan,he thinks his motor neuron skills are not what they should be, no one will commit to telling me what they are checking for but he did need resuccitated at birth and i dont know if this is now leading to problems with his development also the speech therapist touched on autism.
sorry that this is long i havent posted here before and am worried sick if anyone can help it would be great
x

Being starved of oxygen at birth can certainly lead to developmental delays, and these can be very minor in some cases. If his only developmental delays are speech (the most variable of all the milestones) and a foot problem, but is walking, playing, interacting with you, try not to worry too much. The tests they are ordering is so that they dont miss anything that can be helped with the appropriate therapy. Your DS sounds as though he is getting prompt and timely help and I hope the outcome is good for both of you

Also, If children have motor skill delays they spend so much more time and energy just working at what comes so naturally to children without these problems, that they dont have the focus to develop their speech (according to our SALT)

She also said that my DGS shows good understanding which is the main thing.

I have read that only when physical movements become automatic can they focus on speech.

If your DS shows a good understanding of what you say, and can point to objects when named ASD is less likely. Perhaps your SALT mentioned this as it is one of the common reasons for S&L delay.

Getting the SALT and neurology appointments now is a great first step, they could be the route to any additional help if your DS needs it; Do try not to worry - easier said than done I know - it's better to find out if there is any obvious diagnosis as early as possible. The consultants won't speculate about causes in advance of any test results, so don't worry about them not telling you what they are checking for at this stage.

Beammeup has a good point about physical development; we've had similar advice from teachers and others.

You might be want to try to get a referral to your local 'portage service' if your area has one, these guys were brilliant for my DS and were great at helping the whole family learn how to help www.portage.org.uk/

I hope the test results come through soon for you.

Hi trouble By focusing on motor skills, I dont mean normal physical development which is built upon to become good at athletics etc. DGS has cerebral palsy and his arms and legs just won't do what he tells them! Even holding his head up doesn't come naturally, he really has to concentrate - and when he is playing with toys he needs to put a huge effort into moving his arm where it needs to go. He is quite floppy and most waking moments he will need to focus on what he does physically so you can see where the effort is going. He has excellent understanding and his vocabulary is increasing. He also needed to be rescusitated at birth but is obviously more affected by it than MUMUs DS. Any damage which might show up on the MRI following birth injury is clearly minor, there is no reason for it to get worse, the total opposite actually, so please try not to get too worried.