Okay, so this is complicated. But my 15-month old daughter still doesn't sleep through the night. She wakes up at least once, but sometimes twice or three times. We stopped giving her a bottle of milk, and switched to water. She'll drink a few ounces then go back to sleep - usually.
But she also has this weird habit of scratching her hair, right behind her ears. I thought it was an ear infection, but she has no symptoms of them - well, except that she still doesn't talk (see how this is complicated). She says mama, and baba for everything. No other words or sounds - not even Dada, which i thought was supposed to be the easiest sound for her.
So my question to all of you is: do you think that the not talking/not sleeping are related? Do you think that her scratching her hair is just cause she has an itchy scalp/is sweaty?
Any advice on this question, getting her to talk more, or getting her to sleep more would be extremely appreciated!! Thanks :)
I would not assume that the sleeping and the talking are related. I would be sure that the scratching and the not talking are not related though, and I would check out the not talking from every angle you can.
Ask your pediatrician for a referal to an ENT and see if there is fluid in her ears and get a hearing test. Also ask for a referal to a speech therapist and call ECI to come out and evaluate her.
Never wait on development.
M.
I strongly urge you to get her checked out for hearing loss. I doubt that not sleeping is related to that but not talking certainly related to hearing loss. I would start with her pediatrician to rule out hearing loss. If she doesn't have difficulty hearing then you can have the school district evaluate her for conditions causing delayed speech. The service is mandated by federal law and is free.
You can also have her evaluated for developmental disabilities, delayed speech being just one, by a developmental pediatrician. Frequently, a child with delayed speech also has other delays, most often ones related to sensory issues. This could be the cause for the scratching and not sleeping well.
It is common for people including babies and toddlers to wake up during the night. If she drinks a few ounces and goes back to sleep, she mostly likely does not have a sleep issue. Both of my grandchildren did that and doing so was not of concern during their evaluations.
If you don't have insurance you ;can go directly to the school district. In our state the office that does the evaluation is named (county) Intermediate Education Service District. They will also test for hearing loss as well as developmental issues that can affect success in school. They test newborn babies as well as school age children. The Federal government provides more money for treatment when the child is 2 and younger. Therefore I'd get started right away.
It's possible that all that his happening with her is benign meaning that she's just a late developer with speech. But it's best to find out while she's young so that if there is a need earlier correction is best.
she could have fluid on the ear with no ear infection.with my son who is hard of hearing I have to make him look at me when he talks. she is a little young to worry about speech but atleast have eci check her out. they may put her in speech. yes i think the not talking not sleeping are related more likely fluid on the ears. get her hearing checked. if there is fluid she will fail the test and tubes will fix that. they can tell by the test if its fluid or not. anything you do for her keep talking to her constantly. she hands you her tippy ask her if she wants a drink.
if she hands you her plate as her if she is hungry. also say I am giving you some cookies or whatever you are giving her. if she brings you her shoes ask her if she wants her shoes on. she might not pick up the whole sentence and if she tries to mock you listen to how it comes out. I talk to mine all the time if he puts his blankie over the cat I say "did you put your blankie on the cat?" if he is hollaring I say what are you talking about if he points at the tv I say "are you watching mickey mouse" ? with him being hard of hearing I also sign what I am saying to the best of my ability. but I always make him look at me if I am directly talking to him. this does 2 things it makes him learn to read lips, learn sign and he may pick up a word or two. good luck and get her hearing checked to see if she has fluid in her ears.
Wouldn't hurt to get her checked out but I wouldn't worry so much either. My 15mo only says mama baba and dada and he is fine. He also pulls his hair for comfort (not sure where that behavior started as we are his foster parents). I work rough hours so if I lose sleep at night because my kiddo doesnt want to sleep; that tends not to work well for me so if he gets up I just let him CIO after I make sure he doesn't need anything like a diaper change. He only wakes up early a couple times a week now because of this. Like Marda said about getting him checked; it's better safe than sorry.
She sounds okay on the talking. My son said 2 words at 12 months and no more than 4-6 by 15 months, plus maybe 2 signs. My daughter was about the same, maybe 5 or 6 words at 15 months. 2 words at 12 months, 6 or less at 15 months then after 18 months she was learning new words daily. My son really took off learning new words more like 20-21 months. Both were talking 2 word sentences by age 24 months. A friend's son who did get some speech therapy was not talking at all at 24 months (but was caught up fully in less than a year with therapy). I think the cut off for Early Intervention is not talking at all by 24 months.
I would talk to the doctor and get her ears and hearing checked and see from there.
You said the word "habit." Some kids twirl their hair. Just little habits
they get into. The habit is more pronounced when they are tired.
As for talking, do not worry. She is only 15 months. Sounds right on
target to me.
