This post was written by SpeechKids’ therapist, Christine Raymond-Winne. 

Noah’s parents were feeling frustrated and defeated. Their first son, Liam, had been a precocious talker and had impressed everyone with his speaking skills. Noah, now 18-months old, wasn’t speaking at all. They dreaded family get-togethers and playdates at the park, fearing questions like, “Why isn’t Noah talking?” and people expecting Noah to use his words. He seemed to understand everything they said, but refused to say a single word. Noah’s parents thought he was “lazy” and “stubborn” and that’s why he wasn’t speaking. That, and Liam speaking for him all the time, had to be the reason for his delay. 

It wasn’t.

When Noah began speech language therapy, it was clear that he was indeed a very bright boy. He understood directions and showed us that he understood what was being said around him. He loved playing with all sorts of toys. However, Noah was extremely quiet, barely making any noises outside of some grunts and laughs. His parents said sometimes it did seem like he wanted to talk, but he wouldn’t open or move his mouth at all. It was just mumbling they couldn’t understand. 

Noah had begun to show some frustration too. He didn’t have a way to clearly communicate what he wanted. How frustrating for someone who knows exactly what he wants! I also saw his parents trying with all their might to get Noah to speak, saying “Tell me…”, “What’s this?”, “Noah, say…”. Unfortunately, Noah either didn’t respond or walked away from his parents when these requests continued. 

We began on our speech therapy journey by focusing on several different factors to help Noah find his words. First, we used parent coaching and education to rethink how adults were talking to Noah. Second, we made sure that therapy sessions and “work” time with his family was fun, motivating and engaging for Noah. We met Noah where he was and built his confidence and skills. Third, we focused on getting Noah to imitate short sounds and gestures. And then, we focused on getting Noah to make more noises, more connected sounds, and more different kinds of sounds by moving his mouth in ways that he hadn’t before.  

Even after just a few sessions, we could see tremendous changes in Noah’s self expression. The changes we made to how adults were talking gave Noah the support he needed, and the ability to imitate sounds gave him so much power! The look of pride on both Noah’s and his mother’s faces after he used his voice to ask for his favorite snack was priceless! Soon, simple sounds turned into word approximations, which turned into short phrases and sentences. While talking was still challenging for Noah, the reason he made so much progress was because we kept therapy engaging, motivating, and focused on skills Noah needed to speak. His parents were delighted he now had a way to communicate with them and share his world with them. Noah found his voice!

Although this is Noah’s story, I’ve seen so many kids like Noah in my work as a speech therapist. Late talking is not usually something that goes away on its own, and the frustration and feelings of failure that come with late talking can cause behaviors that can be hard to unwind. Noah’s parents took the step of getting him therapy early on, and it made a big difference. It’s never too late to begin, but starting earlier definitely makes things easier on kids and parents.

If you know someone like Noah and his family, I hope you’ll forward this to them.

xo G

TL;DR: Late Talking doesn’t resolve on its own. A speech therapist can help figure out what’s going on and what to do about it. Spread the word!