Delayed Speech In Children

As parents many people tend to worry sometimes unnecessarily about every little problem or children may or may not face. This is because our children look to us to solve all their problems and protect them from any danger that may enter their lives. Sometimes however our children face things that we simply have no control over leaving us feeling utterly and completely helpless.

On average most children are talking plainly and comprehensively somewhere around the age of two years. Because every child is different however this may not always be true of each and every child. Just because your child may be one of the few that does not talk at this time does not necessarily mean that there is a problem. It does mean however that you should look for other clues to indicate a possible problem.

One of the most common problems which may lead to a delay in speech in children is if your child has a hearing problem. To determine signs of this pay attention to how your child reacts (or doesn’t react) when you speak to him. Sometimes this is easier said than done because in some cases children hear what is being said to them but act as if they do not. For example, when you speak to your child do they respond or even indicate that they have heard what you said? If they do not react then it becomes necessary to determine if they did in fact hear you but are simply ignoring you or if they really didn’t hear you.

When a child is very young it is often very difficult to determine if hearing loss is an issue especially if they do not or cannot talk. For children that can talk pay close attention to how they talk. For instance, if they speak but it is unclear or excessively soft or loud this might indicate that there is a problem.

Regardless of the specific circumstances if you suspect that your child has a problem with hearing you should seek the advice and counsel of a licensed ear specialist. While most any health care provider can check your child’s hearing a specialist can do this with much more ease as well as give you options on what steps can be taken to correct the problem.

Not all children who don’t talk by the age of two have a hearing problem. In some cases the child may simply choose not to talk because he doesn’t really have that much to say. If you sit back and watch awhile you may notice that when he is ready he will talk and when this happens you may long for the days when he was quiet. It is important to remember that because every child is different their attitudes and personalities are also varied and not speaking may simply be a choice they have made.