speech therapy

[mamaley]

My 3 year old is a little behind in his language skills, and we've decided to get it checked out--dh had a speech problem when he was little, said he didn't get help until he was in the 3rd grade, and we don't want ds to have to wait that long.
Anyway, our doc left a message for a referral to a speech therapist to evaluate if he needs speech therapy, and also an ear nose and throat doc. Doe anyone know why we'd need to see an ear nose and throat doc? Is it just for testing hearing? I'd call my pediatrician and ask her, but it always takes them forever to get back with me if it's not important--just wondering if someone here might know.
Also, if any of your little ones have done speech therapy, i'd really love to hear what it was like, if it helped, etc.
Thanks

[alexa07]

Yes, any time there is a speach delay it makes sense to have the hearing checked. Thsi is usually done by an ENT. You don't want to ignore a potential cause.

And definitely go for the speach therapy. It is done in such a fun way for most kids. MY DD LOVED it. It was like a personalized class for her.

And, they taught her to use sign language, which kept her frustration level down until she could learn to speak.

[Kirsten]

I would just go to the speech therapist first - she (or he) can evaluate your son's hearing. Has your son had recurrent ear infections?
I also had speech therapy in school (1st and 3rd grades). It was fun; the therapist was very nice; I don't remember ever being teased about it. In fact, it was such a positive experience that I got my degree in Speech Pathology.
Good luck finding someone you like who can help your son catch up. There is such a range of normal - don't worry. Even if he really is behind, he will figure it out.
Kirsten

[LunaMom]

Yep, the referral to the ENT must be for a thorough hearing evaluation. Any time a child has language delays, the first thing they look for is hearing loss, espoecially if the child has had recurrent ear infections.

[DreamerMama]

ITA, with all of the above. A trip to the ENT would rule out any other potential problems. My ds had speech for three and half years, and we loved it. When he was about two we had him evaluated and he needed speech. He was so introverted that we waited six months to start again. He was so shy and quiet it was hard for him to interact with anyone besides me. At the age of three he started therapy and soon he was talking up a storm (he was non verbal before). Therapy really helped him. I went with him for one hour sessions, four times a week, for three and a half years. He stopped when he was in first grade because he no longer had a speech delay, and now at age nine you can't tell he ever had a speech problem.

Jenny

[MamaAcorn]

My son is 27 months old and started speech therapy about two months ago. Prior to speech therapy, he was not speaking or vocalizing. We had his hearing tested, and it was fine. I heard about a program offer through the state called Early Intervention and did my research. As far as I know, each state has a similar program. We took him to be evaluated for developmental delays by the state's specialists, and got immediate feed back. They recommened speech therapy and gave us the resources to get it for our son. We pay around $5-10 per session versus $70 for private therapy. His speech therapist comes to our house twice a week and uses play therapy to interact with our son. He LOVES it and looks forward to it every week. She reads him books, plays games, and began teaching him to sign. After about 3 weeks, my son began signing with ASL! In another week, he began whispering some letters and numbers. Now and for the past 2-3 weeks, he is talking! He said mama and daddy for the first time on Father's Day this year!

So definately look into the speech therapy! The wrost that can happen is theyturn you away saying all is well.

[jempd]

My son started speech therapy at 20 months. We had him evaluated at his doctor's suggestion, because we told her at his 18 month visit that his aggressive behavior was really worrying us, and she felt, in conjunction with the fact that he wasn't saying as many words as a lot of kids his age, that it was warranted. It turns out that delayed speech has a lot to do with behavior. And his speech isn't all that delayed--just by a few months, according to the HELP (Hawaiin Early Learning Profile) standard. BUT, if caught early, a slight delay can really affect a child's early development and learning experiences--there is a lot of research that basically says that the early intervention lessens or avoids altogether learning disabilites. And socially there is such an advantage if they are caught up by the time they are in first grade. But anyway, you are asking about people's experiences with speech therapy: We found, for the problems we were having, that it was (and is ) enormously helpful and we are grateful. Having hearing (and eyesight) checked is part of the regular evaluation to recieve it. Luckily we live in a state that has an Early Intervention program that provides it to any child ages birth through three for free with a prescription from a doctor. The therapy itself is enjoyable for the child--I can't imagine a kid not liking it as the therapist plays with the child and incorporates language into the play. We were also lucky in that the therapist we got is terrific--really dedicated and skilled. Our son really bonded with him. We got a lot of suggestions and ideas of things to do with him to support the therapy in every day activities, besides reading to him and singing. Basically, you interact with your child a lot which I will say seems pretty obvious. Good luck.