Wondering about my kiddo...

[dayiscoming2006]

I was recommended over here from the vaccine forums.

So, my 4 year old son is rather behind on speech. The doctor noticed it and a good friend said she suspects he might be as much as a year behind. He communicates fine but it is a bit cryptic at times and his 2 year old brother is catching up with him very fast. 

Also, my son has some moments of extreme defiance where any disciplinary action means almost nothing to him. He can also be quite aggressive at times. 

He is very particular about things. Maybe slightly OCD? It's not real bad, but noticeable. And it's definitely different from my younger son. He also can be easily afraid of things. We took him to a national park with some statues and he freaked out over the statues big time - for example.

I suspect if he were one of those kids that went to preschool or daycare, he'd have been recommended to see a doc or something about the issues. I don't think that any of it is very severe and I'm not going to give my kid drugs or anything. My family practitioner was fine with me saying that I believe he'll catch up eventually. He seemed to agree. 

I do honestly suspect the problems could be due to vaccine damage (he had all recommended vaccines for the first 12 months) because my other son only had 2 vaccines (against my will) when he was born. And my other son doesn't have any noticeable quirkinesses or delays compared to my oldest.

So, anyway, any thoughts? 

[melissa17s]

My ds was similar at that age.  He would speak very unclear, but understood us.  We had him assessed by a speech pathologist, and they said he was still with in normal.  We talked to kindergarten teacher, and she was not concerned.  Last summer ds (just turned 10 last week) was diagnosed with epilepsy.  His speech issues and some of his behaviors are direct result of partial and partial complex seizures.  We had no idea that his speech and behavior were related or that he likely has had epilepsy since he was 2 to 2.5. We rarely went to the dr. because he seemed over all healthy unless it was a check up.  

I do not think your ds has epilepsy, but you should definitely talk to your doctor about all facets of the situation.  Get evaluated; contact your local school district to find out if your ds can be evaluated by their speech pathologist.  Do not worry about medication until you know whether or not the situation warrants it.  More likely speech therapy will be the result.  

Just curious, when your ds was vaccinated, did he have a reaction?  There is compensation for children that have epilepsy due to vaccination, I think, but it requires medical documentation.  Maybe the same might be true for other poor reactions.  

[dayiscoming2006]

Thanks Melissa. My son doesn't slur or anything and he is understandable. My son didn't have any noticeable reaction to any of his vaccines, but he was my first and I don't know if I would have even noticed if he had unless it was really severe. 

I really feel like he will catch up as he's been advancing much more lately. I just thought I'd ask about it here to see what others may think. 

[Emmeline II]

Originally Posted by dayiscoming2006 
Also, my son has some moments of extreme defiance where any disciplinary action means almost nothing to him. He can also be quite aggressive at times. 

He is very particular about things. Maybe slightly OCD? It's not real bad, but noticeable. And it's definitely different from my younger son.

Your son is too old for EI but you can still ask for a speech evaluation from your district through Child Find.

Also, I'd get on the list for a developmental behavioral pediatrician. I recommend doing this now because it can take 9-12mo to get an appointment--the above describes my son at that age and the aggression/defiance accompanied by non-response to disciplinary action can get ugly in Kindergarten.

General pediatricians tend to err on the side of "they'll grow out of it" (I've seen that a lot on this board) which can leave you scrambling when they don't. The developmental pediatrician may seem like overkill, but they are in the best position to help you discern what is in the range of normal for his age and direct to services to help with what is not.

My son is doing a lot better this year with CBT therapy and medication (for ADHD)--without the medication he would not still be in school.

[KCMichigan]

Originally Posted by Emmeline II 

Your son is too old for EI but you can still ask for a speech evaluation from your district through Child Find.

Also, I'd get on the list for a developmental behavioral pediatrician. I recommend doing this now because it can take 9-12mo to get an appointment--the above describes my son at that age and the aggression/defiance accompanied by non-response to disciplinary action can get ugly in Kindergarten.

General pediatricians tend to err on the side of "they'll grow out of it" (I've seen that a lot on this board) which can leave you scrambling when they don't. The developmental pediatrician may seem like overkill, but they are in the best position to help you discern what is in the range of normal for his age and direct to services to help with what is not.

My son is doing a lot better this year with CBT therapy and medication (for ADHD)--without the medication he would not still be in school.

Ditto above.

I have twin DDs. Both had the same vaccination schedule.

One has a PDD_NOS dx. She is very quirky.

We got therapy through EI and then the school system. We have never done meds for any of her problems since they are mild and occupational and physical therapy has helped, but I would not be adverse to it IF I felt it was needed. I try to keep an open mind on therapudic sources. Sometimes things that work for one child will or will not work for another.

DH, I , and the variety of therapists really think it is a personality thing. She is just wired that way. Her twin does not have the same struggles she has (social, sensory, etc).  Not every child will be the 'same' even when raised in an identical environment. My two hit milestone at different times and had different development patterns, even given the exact same foods, environment, and being the exact same gender and age etc.

If you have concerns, get an evaluation through your schools. No matter what it will provide you with some information on how he is doing developmentally for his age.

Edited by KCMichigan - 4/7/11 at 12:50pm