hair pulling,head banging,delayed speech

I have a 27 month old sister who has just recently began pulling her hair out and rubbing it on her mouth.  As an infant, she would play with her hair while drinking her bottle at bedtime.  She now does this and bangs her head against walls, cabinets, and floors.  She seems to do this when she wants attention or when she is tired.  She has also become very shy, sometimes even with family members.  She has a vocabulary of 6-7 words.  Her word association and comprehension level is within the normal range or greater.  Some of her past history includes: open heart surgery at birth (hospitalized X 1 month), parents separated/divorced, changed daycares, and now our mother isn't a full-time stay at home mom.  My mother has been advised to have her evaluated for any developmental delays.  Do you have any suggestions as to what we can do for now to prevent her from performing these unwanted behaviors and/or why this is occurring?

                                                Thanks.

[Kevin Kennedy, Ph.D.]

Dear Beth,

I agree that the most pressing need is to have your sister undergo and evaluation by a team of developmental specialists. Without such an evaluation it is impossible to determine the nature of the symptoms you describe. They may be manifestations of a developmental disorder, and it is important to figure this out ASAP.

[A]

Dear Beth,

A decent developmental screening can be done by your local school district or health department.  Before the age of 3, the program that could be helpful is called Early Intervention.  The evaluation is free, and the services or therapy they determine to be necessary are also free.  If you disagree with their results then you can ask your sister's pediatrician for a referral to a developmental specialist.  Often though, the EI evaluation is enough.

Speech and Language therapy in particular are most effective when begun before age 3, and continued from there.

Developmental disabilities can be overcome, but they need to be addressed as early as possible.

Good luck, A.