16 month old not talking

I’d appreciate either some advice or even to see if there are any of you who might be in the same boat as me. My LO just turned 16 months. She has only been able to say baba mama and uh-oh. I try to talk to her all day, even talking to her about random things, or what I’m about to do next. She seems to be more interested in toys and exploring the house, which is fine, but I’m worried about her not really talking. I try reading to her, but she doesn’t pay attention. She just goes off doing something else, or wants to grab the book off me. She doesn’t have a hearing problem. She also doesn’t point, wave or shake her head. She understands only a few commands like if I tell her to dance or clap her hands. Sometimes she plays pretend and tries to give me some of her milk or tries to brush my teeth. She plays peekaboo. If I point to something, I can’t get her to look at what I’m pointing to. She does have screen time because that’s the only time I can get anything done. I’m a SAHM, my husband works in the night and sleeps in the day and we don’t have many visitors (only really my parents probably twice a week). We are also a trilingual family. I primarily speak to her in English, though. My husband and mother speak to her in different languages and my dad speaks to her in English. Basically I’m just really worried at this point. Does anyone have any tips that I can try?

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If you’re worried get her to see a speech therapist, they can check out and let you know if there’s a problem. But I found with my almost 17 mo, it helps to talk really simple, like shoes on and 1 words phrases.. My 3 year old goes to speech therapist and we’ve been told growing up in bilingual household doesn’t affect speech.

I'd book in to see a speech therapist because sometimes there can be quite a wait. I've heard that bilingual children sometimes talk later? But I don't have a reputable source to back that so you'd be best to do your own research on that claim. Also, is your little one very active? I think sometimes early walkers/movers are later talkers. My son is 16 months and very chatty but he isn't walking yet haha! Good luck!

Hi I would love to hear if you explore this further. You have pretty much described my 16 month old except he nods and shakes his head

It's actually typical for children to talk anywhere from 6 - 18months. I wouldn't stress until after then but if you want some peace of mind I agree with @Katie, book in to a speech therapist as the waitlists are looooong. Also, don't let anyone tell you bilingualism causes a speech delay. So false!! I did find with my first baby that he said very little and just when I started to worry then all of a sudden it all came rushing out. I'm not sure if this would help you but because my husband isn't bilingual he repeats the exact same sentence over and over with our 16mth old... that way they both learn haha. So, for example "where is your bib?" (In spanish) literally every single time we go to eat. After so much repetition it gets into their brain lol Don't know if that might help you or if it's possible. Also songs are really good

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