Is this my daughter?

by Melissa
(Altoona, PA)

For over 2 years I have took my daughter to every doctor I could find. Up until my child was 18 months old all of her developmental milestones were met. She was starting to turn sounds into simple words, physically she was an over achiever, walking at 10 months old. She hasn't stopped moving since.

Right around this time she just stopped talking. No more mama, juice, binky, doggie, etc. She just stopped. I took her to a Child Development Unit, no diagnosis for Autism or PDD. I had her put to sleep to have her hearing tested. All within normal ranges. I had her blood drawn for genetic tests. All normal. I had her eyes checked. I had her teeth checked. Took her to a psychologist once a week for over a year. I had an MRI done of her brain. Normal except a slight sinus infection. I got her early intervention, a speech therapist and a teacher both came in my home once a week for one on one assistance with her.

We finally ended up teaching her sign language. She learned 2 signs in less than a day, using them properly. She is very intelligent and can figure out anything. If she wants it she will get it. If she don't want to do something she won't do it. She was off the bottle at 11 months. She was potty trained at 28 months. Completely. Even through the night. She was 3 and a half when I finally made her binky disappear. She mouths everything. Not really chewing but just sticking everything in her mouth, except anything that would harm her.

She knows safety, hot/cold, poisons, cleaners, etc. She knows to look both ways before crossing a street. She can dress her self, undress herself, brush her own hair, drink from a lidless cup, this child just amazes me. But a year and a half after she completely stopped talking (today) she has a vocabulary of over 400 and is saying simple 3-4 word sentences. Still mouthing everything. She is a huge thrill seeker.

At one point pain did not bother her at all, but that is seeming to gain her attention. She now will whine when she falls and wants a band aid. Before she would fall 5 feet off a sliding board jump up and walk away. She loves to spin, be tossed around, climb and the trampoline she will jump for hours on. Do you think it is possible that my daughter who will be 4 in November could have a speech delay from hyposensitity to oral input? I think she may also have hyposensitvity to movement as well. Looking at all the signs nothing else really stands out. I have searched endlessly for answers. I am trying to seek professional help from an OT she has an appointment on Tuesday. But how can I help her at home? Calm her down during school? Keep everything out of her mouth? Impetigo is very common in this child. Like every other month.