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anyone else have a 2 year old who cant talk yet?

25 answers /

Last post: 07/03/2023 at 8:26 am

LOUISE M(783)
louise m(783)
20/09/2010 at 2:56 pm
hi,i am a mum to a gorgeous little boy who is now 29 months.

he is not talking yet and is in the process of having speech therapy(he has had his first appointment and has had a hearing test done-his hearing is fine.)

sometimes i get so frustrated with him because he cant talk and i feel so bad.
he is a typical 2 year old and has tantrums when he cant get his own way,i  find it hard because i cant reason with him as i dont know how much he understands.

its becoming obvious now he is getting more and more frustrated at not being able to communicate with anyone.

he was just at hospital last week for his hearing test and there was a little girl with her mum in the waiting room.she looked about the same age as my son and was chattering away to her mum and my little boy was playing happily with all the toys but was totally silent.
i felt really sorry for him:(

i would like to hear from other mums who have or have had children who were late talkers.

thanks for reading!
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Chosen by Netmums
Chelle - 09/12/2022

Hey everyone, Netmums moderator Chelle here, just jumping in to add a link to some official info...

According to Healthline: "A typical 2-year-old can say about 50 words and speak in two- and three-word sentences. By age 3, their vocabulary increases to about 1,000 words, and they’re speaking in three- and four-word sentences.

If your toddler hasn’t met those milestones, they may have a speech delay . Developmental milestones help gauge your child’s progress, but they’re just general guidelines. Children develop at their own rate.

If your child has a speech delay, it doesn’t always mean something is wrong . You may simply have a late bloomer who’ll be talking your ear off in no time. A speech delay can also be due to hearing loss or underlying neurological or developmental disorders."

https://www.healthline.com/health/speech-delay-3-year-old-2

The NHS says: "If you're worried about your child's speech or language development, talk to your GP or health visitor . If necessary, they will refer your child to your local speech and language therapy department."

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/baby/babys-development/play-and-learning/help-your-baby-learn-to-talk/

You can also read our article on speech delay for more information, plus tips on ways to encourage talking at home: https://www.netmums.com/child/delayed-speech-what-happens-when-your-child-isnt-talking

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ANONYMOUS
Anonymous
20/09/2010 at 6:18 pm
Hi...not sure if this helps but my DD is 2 and we are bilingual in my house(my hubbie is Greek) but she doesnt say much...I have taken her to the HV who told me all is normal and she will do it in her own time. I feel that as a result of little speeach her understanding is poor. I am a teacher and am aware that in nurseries the age for speech therapy referral is 3. Im imprssed you have managed to get it for your son.
I understand what a worry it is....as regardless of what people say it is natuarl to worry. Hope all goes well...keep me posted.
Bex xx
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ANONYMOUS
Anonymous
20/09/2010 at 7:28 pm
hiya you are not alone!! my little boy has only just started saying few single words although his prounaction is not clear. He is 2 yrs 7 mths and currently under the Kingfisher centre and speech therapy . He gets extremley frustrated when you cant understand him and at nursery he has a one to one worker for twenty hours a week !! My little boy talks in mainly jargon with a few single words. But i have photos of things like juice, milk, banana, apple , cereal etc which i put up on my fridge using velcro its taken a while but when he wants a drink he gets the photo and brings it to me. I also use makaton with him , he begining to pick up a few signs and i also offer him choices example' i show him milk or juice and he chooses by pointing but this has only happened in the last month. Hope this helps.
carole
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Anonymous
20/09/2010 at 9:59 pm
I have a daughter who is 25 months and she only has a few single words.   She has been saying mummy and wow for a while but only just started to say baby, daddy and hello in the last month.   She understands everything, way more than I realise sometimes so for that reason I'm not too worried.   Think if she still not saying much by christmas I will go to Health Visitor.   She has always been shy so I think perhaps its lack of confidence that is stopping her from saying much.

Carolyn
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LOUISE M(783)
louise m(783)
21/09/2010 at 6:04 pm
hi thanks for the replies,
my son got referred for speech therapy at his 2 year check,maybe we were lucky but got his appointment through within a couple of months.

the speech therapist did advice to give him choices like "juice or milk" which i am doing but have not made much progress yet.

his understanding is fairly good so i am trying not too worry too much but it is really hard not to!
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ANONYMOUS
Anonymous
21/09/2010 at 6:43 pm
Hi Louise, I don't have a 2 year old who can't talk, I have a 12 year old who sometimes has serious teenage attitude and a great vocabulary. But when she was 2 she didn't say a word, and at 2y3m started talking but it was all gobbledegook. Her speaking improved a bit, but only those close to her could understand.

What really helped her, IMO, was when she started school and learned to read, she learned to pronounce words properly. She attended speech therapy but I'm not sure it really did much, except point out to us where she was having problems. For example she didn't know words describing position, e.g. next to, behind, and I was quite shocked that I hadn't noticed this. She never really got frustrated, as I always knew what she wanted, pointing to the biscuits.

Her speaking now, as I said, is fine, slightly more babyish than her peers, but her vocab is great. I really couldn't see her ever talking when she was little, but things do get better.

I had guilt too, thought it was somehow my fault, but when dd2 came along with no speaking problems at all, I realised it is just one of those things.

HTH, Gill.
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ANONYMOUS
Anonymous
21/09/2010 at 6:56 pm
my Ds is 20 months and can only say mum n dada, got a referal to speech therapy denied :/
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LOUISE M(783)
louise m(783)
22/09/2010 at 6:29 pm
hi Gill,thanks for your reply.

i feel at the moment he will never talk and i also feel guilty like you said.sometimes i think it is my fault,that i have held him back somehow.

its nice to know im not alone in feeling this way.

thanks again everyone!
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ANONYMOUS
Anonymous
23/09/2010 at 9:21 am
Hi,

My little boy now 3 1/2 did not say a word until he was 2 3/4. And then that was literally a few words. He is very shy and lacks confidence. He was always happy to play quietly and would concentrate for long periods of time on books, puzzles, colouring etc.

My HV told me not to worry until he was 3.
I sent ds to preschool at 2 1/2 and that has made such a difference!  He started using his words at home, but didn't talk at school until after the first term. He is in his second year there now and he talks non stop!  It hasn't hindered his ability to join in or to learn. He is still very shy, he won't talk to people he doesn't know but that is just him.

You are not to blame, and it is not your fault!  I had a lot of "input" from family and friends - my advise is go with your gut feelings. As ds lacked confidence I tried doing things that would boost that for him. He hated toddler groups and crowded places so I avoided those as he would get so worked up it made him ill. Library rhyme time worked well, play areas where he could join watch other children but didn't have to join in, art and crafts to express himself. etc.

All children develop differently - if they were all text book life would be very boring. My dd is 2 1/4 and she does not stop talking - full sentences & answering back!   So the complete opposite to ds....

Hope that helps x
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Anonymous
25/09/2010 at 8:32 pm
Hi can I just offer my experience?  My little boy is 4 in December and like yours didnt really say much at 2.  i contacted my HV as i was concerned he didnt really say much.  We had hearing tests - and like yrs he was fine.  As he was under 3 we were referred to a special school and he was in a 'class' with 2/3 other children with different levels of speech.  He was there about 6/8 mths and they told me he wasnt really for them ie he just seemed to have a speech delay and no other 'problems'.  His speech had come on a bit.  I then referred him to private SLT and he now attends a NHS SLT and is going for another batch of therapy from this Wed.  He can say words and sometimes wonderful sentences but a lot of it would still be misunderstood by others.  He has just started nursery and his teacher has spoken to me twice about it already!!  SHe is due to speak to me again on Monday.  I mean, for goodness sake give him a chance!  And i am doing all i can ie taking him for SLT but like you i feel like an utter failure as a mother and any progress he was making i feel has been taken away from us by the comments (constant) by his nursery teacher.  I'm already tense about our 'chat' on Monday so I'm completely in the same boat and it is so comforting to know we are not alone.  x:nmskissbetter:
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ANONYMOUS
Anonymous
25/09/2010 at 8:56 pm
Remember that Albert Einstein didn't speak until he was three. Didn't do him much harm!! xxx
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ANONYMOUS
Anonymous
27/09/2010 at 4:54 pm
Hi my oldest son didn't talk until 3.5 years old.  My second son is 3 and 3 months old and he still isn't saying much. He does actually say lots of words but doesn't actually converse as such.  I am so not worried about him.  It is driving me crazy with frustration but he just seems very similar in his speech development as my oldest son (who is nearly 7 now and a fabulous speaker).  TBH though what is driving me crazy more is other people's opinions about it and suggestions and I have just spent a  tense afternoon at a neighbour's house watching her ask him very loud and pointed questions in an attempt to get him to talk which has turned him and me quite frankly, right off.   I honestly have no idea why they have been late talkers, we play with them, read to them, take them out to parks, swimming etc but I strongly believe that in another six months he will be the fabulous talker that my older son is, it's just taken him a bit longer to get started.  Phew feel a bit better for getting that off my chest.
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ANONYMOUS
Anonymous
29/09/2010 at 7:04 pm
Hiya...my son is 4 in february and most of his friends spoke quite well when they were 2..one of the girls used to say 'mummy nappy wet' when she was 18 months old... my son said mama and dada and that was it.. i'm fairly relaxed anyway so was determined not to let it get to me as i thought he'll be fine talking when he's 9! Then dh nan said that ds was backward because he didn't speak properly to which i felt i'd been hit in the stomach, silly cow!! then i started to question everything! i sent ds to preschool when he was 31months old and i can honestly say i saw a huge change in his speech, and now you can't stop him talking! So i'm glad i didn't worry and its a lovely big fingers upto the nan as he is SO not backward!!! And even if he was, it wouldnt worry me. Ds walked at 9 months and have heard the saying lots 'fast walker slow talker'...my dd is 2 next week and is the same as ds was at that age and i'm not going to worry tho it is very annoying when said-nan says 'wass she sayin' when dd is doing her 'chat'...:roll:  my son had his own little language that only a few could understand eg: logalog was ambulance!!! docto was helicopter, even now he can't pronouce 'br' for example bra he says giraf but i'm not concerned as he'll soon get it sorted and then i'll want him back to the 9month old stage of just gurgling instead of answering back!!!!

i've read the other posts and it seems that all children are just so so different and EASIER said that done i know but try not to worry too much, before you know it they'll be reciting shakespeare in the middle of Eastenders and you'll want them to shush!

xxx
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Anonymous
16/01/2020 at 1:45 am
I have a 4.5 year old Daughter who also didn’t really speak until she was around 27/28 months. Before then she would only say the beginning or words (Ma (mummy) da (daddy) wa(water). She now speaks completely fine. She started nursery at about 2.5 years old and within 6 months she was a chatterbox!
I now have a son who is turning 2 in 2 weeks and also doesn’t say anything (except mama and car). I’m not worried as eldest was also a late speaker. He understands most instructions. All children reach milestones at different times and I think it’s best to go with the flow and not compare with others. Hope this helps put anyone’s mind at ease 🙂
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SARAH L(21)917184
Sarah L(21)917184
11/05/2022 at 6:10 am

Hi  @louise m(783)  just wondering how your little guy is doing? My 31 month old has no words at all. We’ve been told it’s not autism but rather a language delay or disorder. I always thought by now he would have at least a few single words 🙈 it seems like he may never talk. Thanks

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