Is My 15 Month Old Normal?

Host: A 15 month old, first of all, she will be walking? Henry Joseph Hasson: So a 15 month old really should start beginning to walk independently. Not all children can until 18 month of age, it's still within normal, and we are not going to do any major intervention, other than just try and encourage and help the child; maybe some physical therapy. But at 15 month old, they should really start being able too, especially holding onto someone's hand or holding onto other furniture. Host: Now, if the kid doesn't walk, but is cozying around the table, afraid to release, we are not too worried about the kid, are we? Henry Joseph Hasson: Sure. As long as they are doing everything else normally, they are developing fine, they just have this concern about things and just don't want to. That's okay, we will give them some more time and we will give them a couple of more months and we watch them. Host: If he could break vase on the table, he is okay, right? Henry Joseph Hasson: Sure, sure. Again, assuming that the examination is completely normal. You should still be evaluated by your doctor, but you have to make sure that as long as the muscle tone is fine and everything else is fine, it's really not too much of a concern. Host: Now speech, there are two types of speech; words and expressive. Is he speaking right now, a couple of words? Henry Joseph Hasson: Yeah, at 15 month old they should already have at least one or two words, maybe more, and they are really developing their language. They are starting to use language to communicate with parents, to get what they need, and to get what they want. Host: But sometimes the language is with the hands, gyration, those kids I am okay with, but then -- Henry Joseph Hasson: They can shake their head no, they might shake their head yes, all of these count as language. Host: But the kid is not trying to reach out of his little world, red flag, be evaluated by your pediatric neurologist; maybe he has one of those early intervention problems, because that's a really important side. Henry Joseph Hasson: Yeah, and the first thing that any doctor should be doing when a child is not speaking as well as doing the hearing testing, a lot of parents will say, oh, he definitely hears, I clap, I do this. Host: Oh, they had the newborn scream. Henry Joseph Hasson: Or they had the newborn scream. They don't realize that hearing is actually very delicate balance between different frequencies, and we speak at different frequencies and languages. A formal hearing testing, where they really test a child, well, it should be done if the child is not speaking at this age. Host: So in other words, he suddenly gets out of his little world, he is getting to a bigger world, and what you wanted the kid to do, and he starts seeing what he is doing around that house, he is getting little bit independent now, isn't he? Henry Joseph Hasson: Right, yeah, definitely, especially once they start walking on their own and crawling around on their own, this is when you really need to keep your house safe, and you can block things off. Host: That's a very good point. They should make sure nothing within his reach or her reach could be in the mouth. That's a poison or small object, little tiny magnets, cleaning agents, to all potential emergency home visits, is that true? Henry Joseph Hasson:Sure. I think many parents realize that. What I think they don't realize is what is within the child's reach. I think a lot of times parents think, oh, they can't open that cabinet, they will never be interested, or I left them on one side of the house, they will never get to the other side of the house. Kids move a lot faster than we realize, especially the first time a parent might not realize it. Host: Like a mother, don't put that on the floor, Alba. If you think that safety prescription bottle is meant for you, do not open, and the kid not to open to, I have news for it; the adult can't open it, the kids could figure out a way. So anything, that includes your pocket, because we had some situations where the mother had medicine in the pocket, but with a safety vile, and thought it was perfectly safe. I don't know, the kid must have been an Albert Einstein of safety bottles; he did it in about two seconds and swallowed about 20 pills. So that is something people forget about. Henry Joseph Hasson: This is especially of concern in that, when the child goes to let's say the grandparents' house, where a lot of times they will give the grandparents bottles without the safety tap on it, because of their arthritis, whatever, other reasons, and they think that just because it's in the high cabinet or somewhere where the child can't reach, he is not going to get to it. But children climb, they get to a lot of places, and they are very curious, and these things look like candies to them, and a lot of this medication, especially medication that older people are taking could be very dangerous for children. Host: I reemphasize, what are the kids doing, and I want everybody to videotape at different ages what the kid is doing. The reason for this is, if concerns come later on of any kind of a issue, you forget what a kid did at 15 months, or the kid did at four months, because there are certain changes, there are some concerns coming up. its a wise maneuver. Is that true? Henry Joseph Hasson: Yeah, it's always great when I get a patient who comes with concerns over what their child was doing before and is doing now, and a lot of parents would come with a videotape, and I can just sit and watch the video or the DVD on the camera itself, and that's very helpful in actually seeing, because like they say, a picture is worth a thousand words, and a video is really very crucial in making -- Host: And you know, what you are worried about, he will never do it in the doctor's office, is that true? You can videotape it. Henry Joseph Hasson: Right.