I wanted to share that early intervention can do amazing things. Regardless if you have a child who might have autism or just speech delays or motor delays or whatever delays. I have a friend who was initially turned down to have her son have speech therapy when he turned 2. I am still not sure why he was turned down, and I'm not sure why my friend didn't have him reevaluted months later when he wasn't progressing in his speech. He didn't have a big vocabularly at age 2, maybe 10 to 15 words, but they said he understood language well enough (his receptive language) and he didn't have any other conditions like sensory issues or being delayed in motor skills or anything. This was back in the fall of 2007. She also didn't think it was important that he was behind in what the early intervention calls adapative skills which would include self-feeding and that sort of thing. My daughter qualified for lots of stuff because she couldn't say a single word and she didn't understand a single word either. So, that produced 2 kids, about the same age... that were close enough in skill levels... so yeah... I guess I am comparing kids... which moms hate you to do. Which I usually hate doing. But what is making me do it, is trying to convey to other people that early intervention speech therapy can do wonderful things because speech therapists are trained and can teach you if you watch them, what to work on with your kids, and figure out how your child learns differently and help them then learn.
Well, my daughter and her son will be turning 3 this fall. He's one week older. And although he was ahead of her last fall, since she's been goign through early intervention therapy for the last 9 months or so, she is way ahead of him in langauge skills and sign language. If you ask her if she wants more macaroni and cheese, she'll either sign or say the word more please. She is really starting to understand questions. I really give thanks to all the speech and developmental therapy she has had 3 times each week for an hour each session. She also knows how to share and turn take. She has problems saying words, and sometimes she has problems recalling a word. But she knows sign language and can respond with sign language if not verbally. My friend's son doesn't respond to questions. Many times not to his own name. He doesn't feed himself or even try to feed himself. My daughter is not good at it at all, but at least she'll try. We live in the U.S., and kids can qualify in our state for developmental preschool or continued therapy through the public school system if you go to the school to be evaluated/assessed. My friend is not going to do that. She feels that he will talk when he's ready to talk. I can see his frustration in his face or in hearing him whine. I think he wants to communicate, he just can't figure out how. He knows words but uses them to label, not to communicate. I know this is something we've been working with with my daughter. He has not had anyone working with him.
In addition to being very thankful my daughter is progressing with her speech and much of it has to be congratulated to the therapists for showing me how to work with her (they give me "homework" assignments to work on certain concepts with her so I can continue what they were doing).... but I'm also concerned for my friend's child. Will he do as well in school if he doesn't get early intervention therapy? Would a developmental preschool help him out? WOuld a regular preschool take him and would he learn as well in a regular preschool if he's farther behind all the other kids? Would he feel incompetent or unhappy if the other kids ask him lots of questions and start asking him why he can't speak? The few words he does say now are hard to understand. Will he learn to pronounce things as well?
I have a sister (who's now an adult) who went through speech therapy starting at age 3 (there wasn't early intervention before age 3 when we were growing up) who continued to need speech therapy and help with phonix and reading through elementary school. As an adult she is very thankful she had help and assistance and realizes that she would not have gotten as far as she did in school (graduating high school with mostly all As and then going on to college and graduating with high honors, or whatever the Latin name for it is called which they use).
Anyways, I just wanted to share that therapy can be wonderful for kids. And if you can take advantage of free therapy, why would you turn it down? I'm sure my friend has reasons, but she won't talk to me about them. And I won't push her on the issue because, regretably, I don't do well confronting people or with debating. i just have so few friends, and like she's my only friend where I'm currently living. So, I haven't said much because I don't want to lose my friendship with her. Not that I see her that often, though.