After having a child, every parent eagerly awaits their baby’s first. Every first step, gesture, coo, and babble is not only a method of communication, but a way for your baby to express themselves and interact with the world around them. While children will naturally begin to develop these communication skills at their own pace, and perhaps at a different pace from the rest of their peers, it’s okay to wonder whether your child may need some help along the way.
Speech Therapy can be essential in ensuring your child can express themselves and navigate the world independently. By addressing articulation, language, fluency, and social communication, speech therapy can make all the difference when it comes to academic success, reducing frustration, fostering independence, developing social skills, and boosting self-esteem.
If you’re unsure whether speech therapy might benefit your child, here are five behaviors that could indicate it’s worth exploring. Every child develops at their own pace, but scheduling a consultation with one of our speech-language pathologists is the best way to determine whether therapy can help your child communicate to their fullest potential.
1) Limited Vocabulary
If your child is experiencing difficulty in using words in conversation, has a limited vocabulary, or comprehending and understanding new words, this may be a sign that your child would benefit from speech therapy. A study published in the National Library of Medicine reveals that children in need of speech therapy “show more difficulty learning and using verbs compared to nouns.”
2) Difficulty Combining Words
If your child is 24 months or older and unable to construct 2 or more-word sentences, this may be an indication that your child needs speech therapy. Before a child can combine words, they must understand a wide variety of words, and be able to express 2 ideas at the same time.
3) Struggles with Social Interaction and Communication
Communication decisions are made every day based on who we’re around, where we are, and what we’re trying to express. These decisions are shaped by both experience and learning. For example, being taught to say “please” and “thank you,” or to speak in a hushed voice in a movie theater.
If your child has difficulty making appropriate communication choices, joining conversations, or following social cues, it may be an indication that speech therapy could benefit them.
4) Difficulting Swallowing
While it may seem unrelated, difficulty swallowing can be a sign that your child needs speech therapy. Signs such as requiring extra effort or time to swallow, a wet or gurgly-sounding voice after eating or drinking, and food or liquid leaking from the mouth may indicate dysphagia—a condition that can be effectively treated with the help of a speech-language therapist.
