by Helen Richardson

Created on: April 07, 2007   Last Updated: April 25, 2007

I'm on a forum for moms who have kids around my daughter's age of two years. One thing we've all noticed is that pediatricians are referring more and more parents of younger and younger children to speech therapists. It seems that the developmental speech milestones are being pushed to earlier and earlier ages in children.

And so parents are left wondering: is my child normal? Is my child not talking much at 18 months of age because he's got a potential learning disability or developmental disorder, or is he just on the lower end of the bell curve? Moms on the board point out again and again that Einstein was a late talker and that some kids just have other things to work on before they're interested in learning speech.

I met a speech therapist on-line who is also a mother, and asked her what her take on it was since my daughter seems to be on the low side of the curve. She said that yes, doctors are referring kids earlier and earlier, but that's because research has shown that the earlier you are able to intervene in children with speech disorders, the better their outcome will be. She added that she saw a lot of toddlers who she was sure would have improved on their own without her assistance, but she also knew that she had helped a lot of children by nipping their delay in the bud.

So when should you pursue speech therapy? If you have concerns or your pediatrician recommends speech therapy, do some research. Ask your pediatrician what their concerns are first. Then look on-line and get other opinions from parents who have been through similar circumstances with their children. Learn as much as you can and decide whether you really feel that your child needs to see a speech therapist.

If you decide to take your child to a speech therapist, the first thing the therapist will do is evaluate your child's speech. They use a combination of play and observation to determine what exactly your child's weak spots are. Then they will determine the best way to treat your child's speech problems according to his or her individual needs.

Treatment can last for a few months to a few years based on the severity of the problem and usually involves specific exercises, play, and lots of repetition.

Learn more about this author, Helen Richardson.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.