Cases where speech is extremely delayed

When a child is slow to start speaking...

Moms and dads get very, very nervous, don't they? I was the same way.

Maybe it's because he's a boy...
Maybe it's because he was born small...

I would look for reasons like that to try and convince myself.

In reality, the timing for when a child starts speaking really varies for everyone, doesn't it?

My son started speaking in the second grade of elementary school. It was just before he turned 8 (7 years and 11 months old).

It was extremely late, but why it happened at that time remains a mystery even now. It is true that his homeroom teacher at the time was very enthusiastic and often provided individual support, but... I can only say that for my child, 'this moment' was his time to express himself.

My son was originally a low birth weight infant (premature baby) weighing about 2 kg, so he was always right on the edge of the growth curve, and he was also late to start walking, at a year and a half.

I wondered if he was just slow, or if there was 'something else' beyond that. However, even if he was just slow, he seemed to have a lack of facial expressions and didn't seem interested in the people around him, and I thought that might be linked to his speech delay.

At nursery school recitals, he would sing or act (without lines, of course) even though he couldn't speak, and it felt out of place for him to be there, which was painful for me to watch.

I felt like I was pushing my son too hard, and I felt sorry for him. (At the time, I was also taking him to developmental support, but I couldn't go very often because I had to take time off work.)

However, even though his development was slow, he was able to learn letters, so he could use a letter board.

When he was in his final year of nursery school, I was talking to him in the bath, saying, 'Yuta (pseudonym), we were together today,' and my son pointed to the 'A-I-U-E-O' chart stuck to the bathroom wall, spelling out 'Yu', 'Ta'.

I was surprised, thinking, 'He communicated with words!!' It was the first time my child had communicated words on his own, and I was so happy.

Even at developmental support, when he communicated words using the A-I-U-E-O chart, the teacher cried with joy. My son also seemed happy that his words were understood, and he was smiling.

I will never forget him communicating with words for the first time in the bath, and the developmental support teacher crying with joy, even more than 10 years later.

After entering elementary school (special needs class), we set up an environment to make it easier for him to communicate by using various tools, such as:

• Hanging an 'A-I-U-E-O chart card' around his neck
• Fixing an 'A-I-U-E-O chart desk mat' to his classroom desk with tape to use for class interactions
• Installing an A-I-U-E-O chart app on a tablet device at home to communicate via voice

We set up an environment to make it easier for him to communicate by using various tools like these.

Because he has autism, he doesn't forget things once he learns them. While he was learning to make simple sentences on the letter board, one day,

M A M A L O V E (← Mom love)

He told me this via voice, and I was so happy again.

Just before he turned eight, when I was thinking that my son would likely continue to weave words using a letter board, he started speaking, just as I mentioned at the beginning.

Until then, the only words he could say were "Mama" and "Yeah" (as a response to questions). But then, he started being able to say things like "Anpanman."

Around that time, we happened to go to the Anpanman Museum, and during the Anpanman show, he was cheering loudly along with the little one- and two-year-olds, shouting "Anpanman!!" He had such a truly happy smile on his face.

Although I realized he was starting to speak, communication was still difficult, so at school, they supported his expression with picture cards, while at home, we sang songs.

He was able to sing songs like "The Frog Song" and "The Dog Policeman" almost immediately, regardless of the pitch, which made me realize that he had a lot of words stored in his head.

By the way, my son had been perceived as the quiet type until then, but after he started speaking, his expressions became much richer, to the point where even my mom friends asked, "Ri-kun, did your personality change?"

I gained many insights through my son. I know many people are worried about their children's speech issues, but in a good way, you really never know what might happen and when!

I sincerely hope that all parents and children find happiness!