My 19 month old daughter hasn't started talking yet should i be worried.?

Answer 1

Worried? no, not yet, but definitely concerned. Nineteen months is old enough to diagnose some developmental issues, and early intervention makes a huge difference in most children, no matter what the diagnosis.

Check hearing first. If hearing's not a problem, then make sure your daughter's hitting all developmental milestones (such as pointing and other gestures, looking at you, bringing you objects) - check out firstsigns.org for some simple screening tools and lots of non-scary parent oriented information to help you decide if you need to act or not.

The unknown is much scarier than reality - my son was diagnosed with autism at the age of two and he's doing very well thanks to early diagnosis and treatment (he's now three and a half). Don't let anyone talk you into waiting if you have the slightest concern - I'm not sure about how things work in the UK but here in Canada waiting lists for services are years long - I wish I'd pushed for a diagnosis when he was a year old (which was when my alarm bells started ringing.)

Feel free to email me if you want to ask any questions about my son or our experience.

Best of luck

Answer 2

I wouldn't be so much as worried yet but certainly something to look out for. My daughters spoke sentences before their first birthday and my doctor would say wow my son was 2 and the only words he knew were mom mom and duck duck and he has no language issue today. Every child is different but just look for other signs like responding to your communication, you want to have her checked for an inner ear problem, hearing ect..ask your doctor. If all is fine, you may just need to stimulate her a little more. try www.totclasses.com and join a playgroup or an interactive class for her to socialize. Good luck, I hope that I helped you.

Answer 3

Just to be on the safe side, you may want to take her to the doctor and have her tested to make sure that she doesn't have any hearing, recognition or learning problems. However, I don't think that you should have anything to worry about as all children develop at different rates.

The testing will just provide you with confirmation and a peace of mind that any parent deserves.

I recommend the testing not to panic you but because some children have been discovered to have either hearing problems or otherwise only after they are tested, so get her tested and you will be at peace.

Also, the Dr. may have some suggestions on ways you can improve her learning pace.

Answer 4

My daughter is 20 months and is only just starting to say words. We now have gone, hello, poo, bump and cat. These are all recent (past week) arrivals, before that we had dada and baba. Have she got an elder sibling? That's our problem - big sis who speaks for her, plus she normaly gets her point across by pointing and shouting.

I was told by my HV that as long as she is trying to express thigs and understands most things then don't worry. I know that's hard, but she will soon be talking all day (like my 3 year old) and you won't be able to shut her up!

Answer 5

I guess it depends on your definition of "talking". It's no big deal if she's not speaking in full sentences at that age, but she should be able to communicate with you verbally, even if it's only one or two words at a time.

If you read to her (or color with her), try to get her to answer questions about the pictures on the page. Ask her questions like "what's this?" or "what are they doing?" or "what sound does this animal make?" Every moment with your child is a teaching opportunity - it's all a matter of approach. You have to try to get her to interact with you.

The most important thing to remember is that every child is different, so don't compare your daughter's development rate to any other child.

Answer 6

Nope, the time you start getting worried is if she isnt talking by 3 thats what my hv told me, they said thats when they start investigating
my son is 2 years 8 months now and in the past 6 months hes only just started talking, when he turned 2 i noticed a massive change in him all of a sudden just like i did when he turned one
do you sit down with your daughter and read books to her? i do that with my son every night!! i got an ABC book , with things in it, and i buy him a magazine every week and things like that, thats helped him because he has heard me talking and reading the book to him
i couldnt wait for him to talk, now im like shut up lmao!! well my mates told me i would be! :)

Answer 7

hi, my son was late talking, although 19 mnths isnt late by a long way. he couldnt speak properly at 2 years old and the doctor checked his hearing and i found out that he was slightly deaf, they sent him for speech therapy and in the meantime put him on the list for grommets inserted. i continued taking him to speech therapy which worked a little but as soon as he had the grommets put in and could hear properly he came on leaps and bounds. soon after that he was discharged from speech therapy as he no longer needed to go.
if a child cant hear properly they will only say what they hear which isnt very much, they tend to pronounce words all wrong because that is how they hear it, my son is never quiet now.
good luck and dont worry she will learn but definitely get her hearing checked to rule it out. they can all do the same things at the age of 5 no matter how slow they r to learn. xx

Answer 8

I have to agree with Elizcoffmin on this one. There are many reasons for delayed speech/language; hearing loss, cognitive disorders, specific language disorders, apraxia of speech, etc. Unfortunately, most pediatricians don't seem to understand a lot about speech disorders and language delay, and pooh-pooh a parent's concerns by saying "The child will grow out of it". Almost every child's parent who came into my office was told just that by their pediatrician, and valuable time was lost. The earlier the intervention, the better the outcome. Get your kid evaluated!

Answer 9

Sorry about the insensitive answer above mine, some people find humour in others suffering..

Well, I work as an audiologist.. This is someone who tests hearing...Has your child had that done? Please dont panic by my saying this, its just that children are prone to middle ear infections which make them hard of hearing..If she cant hear then she cant speak, this is easily treated..

IS she completely silent or just not using formed words...If she is muttering, I'd say she was just a little slower to start than others, but she'll catch up...If shes not saying anything at all..It really is time to get a check up... But children all grow up at different rates...Whats happening in one childs life wont hapn in another..

Answer 10

no you shouldnt. all children do things at different paces. my eldest child was talking very well at 18 mths , but my youngest is 22 mths and only only says odd words here and there, although she understands everything you tell her. I really wouldnt worry as long as your happy that you have no concerns with her hearing, im sure it will only be a matter of time before you wont be able to shut her up!!! so keep chatting to her and enjoy the peace while you can!