A mom writes in asking for advice about her 11-month-old infant. She says her son does not respond to his name when it is spoken. He also does not point to things. This mom plans to mention it to their pediatrician at her son’s one-year checkup, but she is curious if other moms have experienced similar with their children. She adds that she doesn’t necessarily think it is a hearing problem, because he responds to sounds such as her snapping her fingers near his ears. Should she be worried?
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A member of the community asks:
“My 11 month doesn’t respond to his name: Should I be concerned?”
“My baby is 11 months old and still doesn’t respond to his name or point at things. I’m going to bring it up to his pediatrician at his one-year check-up, but I’m just curious if any other moms have babies who were the same. I test his hearing by snapping my fingers by his ears, and he turns and looks. Thanks, and please be kind.”
– Mamas Uncut Community Member
Community Advice for This Mom Who Is Worried That Her 11-Month-Old Infant Doesn’t Respond to Hearing His Name
To see what advice the Mamas Uncut Facebook community has for this mom in need, read the comments of the post embedded below.
Advice Summary
The community offered this mom in need a lot of great advice. Read some of their responses below.
“I wouldn’t jump on the bandwagon that the child has autism straight away… He may just take his time to learn things. Every child at this age learns at their own pace… I spoke to my GP and he said too many people jump straight to an autistic conclusion at this age but they all grow and develop at different ages. Give him to 18 months is what I was advised.”
“My son is 18 months and he did this too for quite some time. We got his hearing tested and everything was fine, he just apparently didn’t want to acknowledge us.”
“No advice as I’m not a doctor, but definitely try not to get too caught up in milestones. All kids do things on their own time. It’s hard not to worry, but your doctor will tell you if he is on track or no.”
“Mine is 17 months and his hearing is fine; he just ignored me for a long while. I didn’t get his ears checked as he would respond when I rustled food. He responds now but only recently started.”
“My oldest passed his newborn hearing screening just fine. Passed his one-year hearing screening just fine. By the time he was 3 we learned he was 80% deaf in one ear. Ask for the testing.”
“From what I have learned, if he’s not responding by 12 months, you could very well be dealing with autism issues.”
“My son is 5 and still doesn’t talk very well. His hearing is fine and they said some kids just take longer to develop different things. So he’s in speech therapy and makes progress every day. Every kid does stuff at different times. Bring it up to your dr but I bet everything is just fine.”
“He’s most likely just fine and does not have autism. Children all develop at different ages. I worked in a toddler room (12-18 months) for a couple of years and most of the children did not respond to their names. They were all perfectly healthy with no issues with their hearing and no autism. You’re right to bring it up to your pediatrician and they may do a hearing test, but they will most likely tell you that your child is fine and will respond on his own time.”
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