Monday, May 2, 2011

Lyndon's 15 month check-up

Yep, I took the little guy in for his 15 month visit today, and, after enduring his standard doctor's office freak-out, came home with some fun numbers!

My little guy weighed in at 21 lbs. 8 oz. (10th percentile) and was 29 1/2 in. tall (slightly below 10th percentile). He's in the same percentile as last time, a good sign! All of his developmental milestones look great . . . all except . . . that talking thing. I told the doc that he knows 8 signs (and just learned a new one this morning), responds to commands, and does the "point and grunt" like a pro, but has yet to say any real words consistently. I was sure she would be concerned, but she wasn't. (That'll teach me to get my developmental info. from books and websites.)

She did recommend that I "get the ball rolling" on a hearing test and contact with the developmental assessment people, not because it's particularly urgent, but because they're so slow. She said that often, kids will start talking while the family is waiting for the therapist to visit (which would be fine with me). She made it sound so normal, so regular, to call a speech therapist. I was expecting to be embarrassed or to feel like a failure, somehow. But she was so matter-of-fact about the whole thing that I didn't even have the chance.

I have to admit, my heart skipped a beat when she went to give him the infamous "MMR" vaccine, but I kept reminding myself, "Vaccines don't cause autism. Vaccines don't cause autism. There's more mercury in his tuna sandwich than in this vaccine." Isn't it funny how you can know all the facts and be perfectly convinced of a complete lack of danger, yet when the moment comes for them to do something to your child, suddenly it's terrifying?

But, we both made it through, and now my little man has two fun, red, crayon-shaped bandages on his legs, his own little badge of courage for being 15 months old.

2 comments:

Courtney Pilling said...

Awww what a champ! =) Regarding the speech therapy... my youngest nephew is now 5, and has just this school year been "granted" speech therapy. He has needed it since probably around age 2, but many hurdles got in the way. All that to say, his speech therapy was a transformation in his talking from the first visit. And now he is speaking and speaking properly like a pro... something that he should have gotten a long long time ago. So, don't be discouraged if Lyndon finds himself needing some help in that realm now or in the future. It's a beautiful service that we are now fortunate to have access to. =)

InDeeds said...

Wow, 15 months already! Crazyness! Glad to hear he is growing well! And I totally hear you about the vaccines! Its amazing how you can find out the truth (that that whole autism-vaccines thing was totally made up) and yet your previous assumptions (which happen to be those of the general public as well) can be such a huge influence on how you feel about it.