UPDATE: Do we need EI?

[elektra]

DS had been making some great progress since I first posted this. He started doing a sort of army crawl and can now hold himself up standing, if we get him in that position. I still called the EI number (thanks Melinda!) as soon as I got back from my trip though, and they told me that there was a free screening through some program today, and I took DS.
Well he is not doing as well as I thought apparently.
They gave him a "fail" on the gross motor skills and he is behind in everything else except hearing, emotional health, and general health. So speech/language, fine motor and vision are all behind, but still within the range of normal. They said I need to follow up with an optometrist. DH has glasses an inch thick so this isn't a shocker but just another bummer that I was hoping we could avoid.
I realize I was just in denial about where DS should be by now. It was so weird because I was so hesitant to take him, and made up all these excuses for myself. I'm really glad I did follow through now, and we will now have the PT come to the house to do the more in- depth assessment. So it is actually possible that he won't need therapy but at this point I hope he does qualify because he does need the help. He still cannot get to a sitting position on his own or pull himself up to standing. The therapist at the place we went this morning also said he had low muscle tone.
They were all very nice, and again, I'm glad I went.

I am now thinking maybe I need to get DD checked out now too, even though her 3-year well check was fine. I'm just doubting everything!




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I thought DS would be crawling by now, but he's not and I'm wondering if I should get him evaluated. Eleven months was the cutoff that our ped gave me for DD before recommending EI. She ended up crawling a week before the 11 months.
But DS is now 11 months and still no crawling.
I happened to take DS to the dr. yesterday for a cold, and I asked the ped what she thought. At first she said no he didn't need it, but then she asked:
Does he get into a crawl position and rock? No
Does he pull himself up? No
(Something else I can't remember) No

After I answered with all of those no's she kind of went, "hmmmmmmm, well let's wait till he's a year."

I also never crawled I'm told.

I'm wondering what they do exactly in the eval. Anyone care to share?
DS can roll around and scoot backwards a bit on the hardwood. But he cannot get onto all fours. He can't get off of his tummy.
He is also very wobbly and can't stand on his own, although he really wants to.

I actually feel like he's going to be fine though. Am I just in denial?

[arivecchi]

He sounds a lot like DS2 who is still in EI. I'd get the eval. done if you are worried. Feel free to contact me offline if you want to discuss.

[JBaxter]

Get the evaluation. If he doesnt need services thats great. If he does qualify you have done the right thing and got the ball rolling early. Its a win win either way.

[sidmand]

I always feel that if you have a question, there is no harm in getting the EI evaluation done. It can either alleviate your worries or give you lots of constructive help. It's a win-win situation.

It is very hard to do though and I don't mean to sound flippant. And I've done it for two kids now and it was especially hard when calling regarding DD and I thought it would be easier having been through it before.

[sidmand]

Get the evaluation. If he doesnt need services thats great. If he does qualify you have done the right thing and got the ball rolling early. Its a win win either way.

We were writing at the same time with almost exactly the same advice

[JBaxter]

Ive BTDT also. Usually if your momma sense says you need to have the evaluation you need to call. I looked at it with Nathan that I wanted early help to get him up to speed for school. It worked for us. Our EI teacher was awesome and we had in home therapy from 24 months to 36 months then at school till 4 1/2. ( nathan only needed speech but had the full evaluation)

[elektra]

I think part of my hesitation is also because if he does need help, I'll feel bad I didn't get it done sooner.
I kept thinking, "oh he'll be fine, he'll be fine", and not doing the eval. But I probably should have taken him in a month ago.

Not a good reason to keep putting it off though, I know!

[JustMe]

I would definitely request an eval. You are still in the "sooner" category of sooner rather than later, and I can see why you have waited until this point especially given your dd's history, so I dont think you have anything to feel bad about.

As far as what they do, this may vary regionally, but you will probably have some sort of screening where they ask questions about ds' development (this is frequently done by phone where I live at least) and if they think you should go further during the actual eval they would have him do some tasks to see where he is.

[Leeannpk]

I don't think it could hurt to have the eval - but I also don't think it sounds like he's too far behind the ball. Will he bear weight on his legs if you pull him into a standing position on your lap? How are his fine motor skills (like his pincer grasp)? Is he babbling at all?

Sometimes a baby will lag behind in one area while developing quickly in other areas. DD #2 didn't roll over until she was 11 months. She never crawled, but at 15 months she stood up and walked clear across the room on her first try. She was always ahead in other areas, though, and had good muscle tone in her arms and legs, so the missing gross motor skills were not so alarming.

The eval might put your kind at ease, so it would be 100% worth it for that!

[hillview]

I'd call. I agree you feel bad if you wait (btdt).
/hillary