People are telling me that my 17 month old son should be talking a lot more than he currently is. Help!?

Question

My son is just over 17 months old. The only word he says is 'Hi!' in a sing-song way.... He says it all the time and I think it's absolutely adorable. He knows what it means and waves at everyone when he says it with a HUGE smile. I was perfectly happy with this until this past week when several people told me that he might have autism because he isn't talking or saying other words. I've read tons of information on autism and I don't think he has it, personally. But now they've got me a little worried about it. When did everyone's kids start talking?

Answer 1

people are so rude! how dare they throw out something like autism at your child. are they doctors? i sure HOPE not!
my son did the exact same thing, people would ask him questions, he'd just say, "HI!" and be SO proud of himself. then almost OVERNIGHT he had a bigger vocabulary than me! hehe.
don't sweat it sweets, and definately don't listen to those rude rude people!

Answer 2

First of all..... 17 months is way too young to be diagnosed with autism! So put that out of your head!

Whilst most children around that age do have a few more words in their vocabulary by then.... there is no need to panic yet.

As a teacher I became very worried when my nephew was lucky to say 25 different words when he was almost 3. Now he is almost 4 and there is no stopping him, he is extremely articulate.

Every child learns at a different rate.... all you can do is role model the word of an object as he plays with it, or gestures for it, and talk to him constantly, which I am sure you do anyway.

I do suggest you keep an eye on it though, and if by 3 years of age he hasnt progressed with his talking, you may want to get him assessed by a speech pathologist - Just In Case!

But basically you are his mother, and you would know if there was something wrong (mothers intuition!)

Answer 3

I wish people would mind their own business. Nobody does anything at the same rate as another person. They are growing so much that they can only do so much. He may be excelling in other places rather than speech. You'll see- soon enough you can't wait for him to stop talking. My daughter was the opposite. She would talk alot in long sentences, but she couldn't jump or even almost ride a bike until she was three. All of the other kids in her mommy and me class were jumping away. Now, that she is 4 I have to beg her to stop jumping. Autism is more than speech. How does he socialize? Autistic kids don't like to say hi because then they need to communicate and that is not something that they like to do. Children with autism tend to sit in the back and hide. They don't know how to show any kind of emotion. This is all stuff that needs to be taught to them through therapy. Autism isn't a bad thing, it is just different and everybody needs to learn how their world works.

I really don't think that is a sign of autism. Just another kid growing at there own rate. Just like the kid who is still not walking.

The best thing you can do right now is to keep talking to him. Talk to him about everything- what you are doing, what he is doing, what you are going to do, about things that you see. Keep talking and he'll get it.

Answer 4

Just because a child doesn't talk much doesn't automatically qualify him/her for autism. Autism has many different qualifications, one of which is limited language skills. If there are other "red flags", such as limited eye contact, lining up objects, not playing with toys in the manner they are intended for (such as spinning the wheels of a car, instead of pretend driving the car), having sensory issues (doesn't like certain textures), and screaming tantrums- then you may want to have your child checked out. If none of these seem to describe your child, then don't worry about autism. Children talk at all different times, but he should be saying more than one word at 17 months. Does he also gesture and point to communicate? Does he seem to understand what is said to him and follow a command? Perhaps talk to your child's doctor and voice your concerns. He can give you some ideas of things you can do to help your child increase his vocabulary. In the meantime, you can help by talking all the time... talk about everything you see and do with your child. The more you talk, the more you expose your child to language and vocabulary.

Answer 5

It all depends on your child. Every child is different at the age they can speak well or even talk. I have a 2 year old. Just turned two on June 1st. He doesn't speak in sentences yet. He can say his sister's name, momma, daddy, No, Uh ho,bye bye, baloo (our cat), hi and HEY! My daughter and my second son Now 8 and 5 didn't talk in sentences nor have a large vocabulary until they were 3. My 2 year old is right where he needs to be. Plus, it doesn't help my situation that my older children always answers for the baby.

If he can follow directions that you give him, then he is probably fine. Like let's pick up the toys. And he does. Or where is your nose? And he points to it. But if you are still unsure, make an appointment with your family doctor.

Answer 6

Ask his doctor. My older son said just a few words between his first and second birthday. Once he turned two we can't keep him quiet :) Boys tend to develop language slower than girls. Don't worry about it. And if you are really worried call his doctor. I swear people can be SO rude about kids and how you are as a parent. Other people's opinions can make you crazy. Just in reading your question I don't think your son has autism. I have worked with kids who have had it. He is probably just taking his time is talking. Let me ask you this. When you talk to him does he understand what you are saying to him? Toddlers understand hundreds more words than they can say. If it seems like he understands you and he communicates with you in other ways (pointing at something, taking you by the hand to look at something etc) I am sure he is just fine. Good luck

Answer 7

Don't worry, all kids do things at their own speeds. Our son didn't really start talking (other then single words like "Baw" for Ball) until he was around the same age as your son. He is now about ready to turn four and is so verbal it will drive you crazy sometimes!

His friends started really talking anywhere from 12 months to 24 months and now they are all talking up a storm.

Usually when people tell you he isn't talking enough, they are only comparing it to the few children they have been around. Even those that work in Child Care/Day Care really don't see enough kids to make a diagnosis like autism.

Relax and enjoy your son....everything is new to him so it is just that much more exciting to witness!

Answer 8

Don't worry kids develope at all different stages and time. My daughter is almost three and is finally putting words together to form sentences, the twin boys i nanny for are 1 1/2 years of age and can't say a word, but they can wave bye bye. I mean yes the docs have a predicament on how many words a child should say buy age but every kids develope in their own way. Try reading books by pointing at words and say them slowly, or get just talk to him slowly so that he can hear what words you are saying and try to understand how. And when he babbles if you can try and find a babble that sounds like a word then just keep saying that word and eventually he'll catch one. We did that one with my daughter even though it wants a real word we corrected her so that is was and she learned from that.

Answer 9

Boys are late talkers...compared to girls. Talk to your pedi at his 18 month check up. I didn't worry about my son til after his 18 month check up. I believe the pedi asked how many words he says---and I said not sure--maybe 6 or 7. My son is a quiet kid. I believe she said that he should know about 10--MAYBE 15 words. What she told me was he might be on the verge of exploding new words and if he wasn't talking MORE in 3 months, to come back to discuss it. About a week later my son started exploding with new words. I was still concerned though as we got closer to 2---cause he was still a quiet kid. At 2, he should know AT LEAST 50 words--so I started writing down every word...also this may make a difference for your son---but our pedi says even the unitelligible words count. So, they don't have to be clear to everyone. Anyway, my son is almost 2.5 now and he's fine. He speaks in sentences and communicates pretty well with all of us. I may not always know what he's saying, but now the pedi says he should get clearer by 3---and if not, we can discuss a speech therapist...which is not unusual for boys. Don't worry, just stay on top of it. READ TO HIM....and TALK a lot to him!! Ask him questions...encourage him to talk, repeat...etc. Also, SING to him a lot. My daughter knew words, but didn't really talk til she was 2...it seemed the more we pushed....the longer it took for her to talk. Also, she was a better singer than talker! I wouldn't worry. My now 10 month old son just says...BA....and barks. They learn at their own pace.

Answer 10

My son didn't talk hardly at all until he was almost 2 1/2. I am a stay at home mom so I taught him all of the time. If he can understand everything you say then don't worry about it. He is probably just too busy playing to really care. All of a sudden my son just started talking. People say he sounds like a college professor. Your son is perfectly normal!

Answer 11

Check with your pediatrician. I don't think you have anything to worry about though. My daughter was putting sentences together at 18 months and holding conversations at 2 yr old. But my neice at 2 years of age was how you described yours. Since then, my neice has caught up to the same level in matter of 6-8 months. Now my neice is ahead of the timeline's that magazines put out. Remember these are all averages. Some are ahead, some are behind, and some are in the middle. They all usually catch up with each other by preshool though.