Help, 18 month old not speaking! Afraid he has autism.?

Question

My son only says about 4 or 5 words and not very clearly or consistantly. He doesn't seem to have any other signs of autism though, and he understands and non-verbally communicates very well. However, verbally he usually just grunts, screams or babbles. His doctor thinks he should get tested. I'm really worried. Also, I'd like suggestions on how to help him learn to talk, I don't know if I'm doing things right.

Answer 1

I have a severely autistic son so I know a great deal on autism.

My nephew was not talking at 2 years old but he had no other signs of autism. It was different from most kids that he was not talking but he understood everything you said to him and would get his point across to you by pointing and grunting. He is 3 now and has perfect speech. He can say anything a normal 3 year old can say, if not more. He just started on his own. Nobody did anything. His brother was walking and talking at 9 months old. Some kids do just develop at different times. I knew something was wrong with my son because he had lots of autistic characteristics but my nephew did not have any. You could get him tested if you are worried and they may could help you to find ways to get him to talk.

Answer 2

I have a three year old and he still doesn't speak as clearly as other kids his age. He spoke only one or two words till he was two and finally in phrases right before he turned three. Until now he still doesn't speak in short sentences. But my Doctor isn't worried cause he still responds in other ways and do show a normal level comprehension. Although after talking to the doctor, there may have been several things that contributed to his delay; first are from a bilingual home so he was never quite sure which one to use; next his teeth rot too quickly so he was unable to articulate sounds properly; and lastly he is the only child at home and many psychologists believe that being around other children helps a child's speech development so that became a detriment. So if any of these conditions exist in your home now, perhaps your son is just going through the same things. Just give your son plenty of motivation to speak . Good luck!

Answer 3

mmmm, no as for now it's just normal. At 2 years old, a toddler should be able to say 3 words. True that some babies at that age are able to have a fluent conversation but every baby is different. He would be 3 years old, I would tell you to have him tested but 18...no, just a couple of words are normal.
As you said he doesn't have any other sign of autism, my opinion would be to take an appointement to see another doctor or pediatrist, just in case and because it's always good to have a second opinion. Because it's not very kind from your actual doc to make you worry now about something wich is ...normal (I mean your 18 mo baby not speaking) unless he saw something else...
About learning him to talk...the best and easiest way is to talk with him, explain what you're doing when you're with him, just normal conversation, no need to get into how it works why who aso...

Answer 4

Definetly get him tested ASAP. Early intervention makes a difference. I had the same problem as you and got my daughter tested. The speech pathologist said that if she is not putting two words together by the age of two than I should take her in to get tested. So fal she is developing typically for her age. My daughter was only saying 3 or 4 words also. I wasn't worried about autism because she was making eye contact with me and she was and still is sweet with me. She is very social eventhough she can't speek yet. She laghs and plays and she also pretends to be a puppy. She just turned two and is now connecting two words. Although I wish her vocabulary was larger. I do know for a fact that she has more receptive language than expresive language. She is the third child of two older children 6 and 4. So I think I just give her things when she grunts or cries for somthing instead of saying the whole sentence out loud. I am just so tired and worn out from chores and keeping up with the children. I make it a point to sing with her as I do my chores and talk to her as I see her playing. I say what I see so she can connect the action with the word. I read to her everyday if I can. Even though we don't get through the book my way. We still point to pictures and say out loud what we see. I also turn off the tv so we can interact more. And I play with her 15 minutes a day. I hope I helped. Good luck

Answer 5

First of all relax, it will be ok. I have a four year old boy who did not talk very much at first and we had him tested by a speech pathologist who recommended he have some speech therapy. We did that right away at 2 years old and now he talks constantly, however he can be hard to understand at times. Boys tend to not talk as well as girls at a younger age. It is very common. Does he respond to you? Ask him to do things. Like go get the stuffed animal, or where are mommy's eyes, stuff like that. If he is actively involved with you and understanding things I would not think autism at first. This cold very well just be a speech delay. I would try these things and then talk with your doctor. I'm sure everything is OK. Good Luck!

Answer 6

First of all, let me clarify what autism is. So many people are ignorant as to what it is, and assume that speech delay equals autism. Don't feel bad; you're certainly not the first to think this. But autism is a very complex neurological disorder. Speech/language delays may be one of the symptoms, but that doesn't mean every child with speech delays has autism. Similarly, not every child with autism has speech delays.
That said, most 18 - month - olds can say at least a few words. Still, it's hard to tell how far behind it is. It does sound like he's only slightly delayed, though. Go ahead and get him evaluated, and educate yourself on what autism is - and what autism isn't. That way, you won't have to scare yourself half to death worrying. Your doctor should have explained to you the difference between autism and general speech delays. Anyway, I hope your son gets the help he needs and is able to catch up to his peers.

Answer 7

Get him tested and realize that it isn't the end of the world even if he does have autism. Early treatment makes a HUGE difference it the outcome with autism. I have an adult cousin who is autistic and he has to live in a group home and work in a sheltered environment. I also have a 4 year old autistic grandson. He's made enormous progress in the few short months of treatment he's had. I consider us to be very lucky that doctors and therapists have stopped blaming parenting and trying to say parents aren't loving enough, and have started treating these little ones. Aidan's eventual prognosis is good because he's getting help now.

Answer 8

I think you should definitely have him tested for Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). I'd recommend you call and Otolaryngologist (Ear, Nose, and Throat doctor) and get a sleep study done. Your pediatrician might also be able to write a prescription for a sleep study. Also, you might want to consider a tonsillectomy. More and more they are finding out that issues like this are sometimes caused because kids are having trouble breathing and it effects their learning.

You should also have him tested for autism too. But, it doesn't sound to me like he has "Classical Autism" or Asperger's Syndrome. He might have a mild case of PDD-NOS (Pervasive Developmental Disorder - Not Otherwise Specified) considering that he says 5 words at 18 months and seems to be able to non-verbally communicate with you. The fact that he has good non-verbal and communication skills tells me that it's very unlikely he has autism but is just possibly delayed and will eventually catch up. Don't forget, Albert Einstein didn't start speaking until he was 3 years old. But, even if he does get diagnosed with a mild case of autism such as PDD-NOS you will be eligible for a lot of services to help him improve so it's not necesarily a bad thing and since so many kids have PDD-NOS it's not too unusual anymore. But, you should seriously consider the tonsillectomy too if one or more of the following 3 things is true: (1) He snores (2) He has problems sleeping (3) His father snores (sleep disorders are genetic so if his father snores your son might have an undiagnosed sleep disorder). Good Luck. He's lucky to have such a caring mom.

http://www.med.umich.edu/opm/newspage/2006/sleep.htm

Answer 9

From what you describe, your son may not have autism. Get his hearing checked and take him in to get tested. Some children are just language delayed. He may just need some speech therapy to get him on track. Not every child who is not talking has autism. If your son has difficulty making eye contact, waves his arms or claps for no apparent reason or even lines up his toys, he could have autism. Chances are he just needs some speech therapy to catch up.

I am sure you are doing everything right. Talk to your son. Read books to him. Tell him what things are and describe them. When you feed him tell him what is on his plate. Also, require a response from him when you ask a question. For example, do you want carrots or corn for supper? If he grunts, tell him to show you what he wants and then say... oh, you want _____. Play with him.

Answer 10

Continue to talk to him like a person. Not baby talk. Get his hearing tested and talk to a speech therapist. Some kids are delayed inm speech. My son was. He had hearing problems. He is now in 2nd grade and ahead of his class with vocabulary. Take this very serious. When he does say a word right give him plenty of praise. As this will affect him farther down the road. When you see him get frustrated cause he can't communicate take him from the situation and help him find the words. The more you read and talk to him the better it will get.