Sharing is caring!

I’ve talked before about Camden and how our pediatrician was concerned he wasn’t putting 2 words together at his 2 year check up.  She also recommend that we call the Early Intervention program in New Jersey since once he turns 3 he won’t qualify.

Qualifying for Early Intervention

I was very much in the denial phase thinking he’ll talk soon, we’ll just work with him more.  You hear so many stories about kids who just don’t want to talk, but I also secretly knew that we needed to do something.

I was so surprised with how many people told me they went through something similar with their child and they encouraged me to check it out.  I’ve been noticing that he’s getting more aggressive and while his speech is getting better we knew that as parents the best thing we could do is have him evaluated.  Why not it’s free and it’s just an evaluation.  It’s better to get the help early than to have him behind or frustrated when the time for him to be in school arrives.

When we made the call to Early Intervention we learned this is an in demand field.  We scheduled our appointment about 3 weeks out and I was nervous, eager, scared, excited and feeling very protective about the whole thing.

Delayed Speech

I was recently talking with another blogger and she mentioned that her son has delayed speech and when I told her we were getting an evaluation she gave me the best piece of advise for the evaluation.  “Do NOT focus on the positive or what he can do”.  Huh?  I was a little taken aback from this, but she explained to me that in order to qualify for the program you child has to hit a certain number and that by focusing on the positive and what they can do it could hinder them from qualifying for the program and learning what they need help with.  My mind way running a million miles a minute at what she said to me, but it made complete sense.

We had his evaluation last Friday and he indeed does quality for the program, but it was just barley and I was so thankful that I didn’t fudge how many words he could say or that that he could do all these things because I realized that this program is going to help him and us.  It’s hard to talk about what you’re child can’t or isn’t doing, but by doing this you’re doing a few things.
1.  Admitting he/she needs help.
2.  Understanding your child and what they are/aren’t capable of doing.
3.  Loving them and showing that you care to make changes in your routines and work as a family

I’m looking forward to sitting down and figuring out what we need to do and focus on how we can help Camden communicate and participate with others better.

I’ll be telling our story as it goes, but would love to hear feedback from other parents who have dealt with this or are thinking of taking the step.

Sharing is caring!