Foremost, I need to unload this first. Last week a friend of mine, a mom of a 19 months old toddler texted me in shock after meeting with her pediatrician, from some kind of networks out there I won’t mention. I say this because you will understand that if you don't take your doctor’s information reflectively, you can end up in some mental misery. Though the subject I want to share here today is not that appointment nor how it put my friend upside down, yet I thought I had to drop this alongside, so bare with me!
Basically, the experience at the doctor’s office was a “cookie-cutter” check up visit (aren't they most of them?). At the end of it and after pointed out many times how come my friend’s son is not clearly speaking twenty words was concerning the PED. Her son, though is walking and (mostly) running 😅, he’s on point with fine motor skills, follows a conversation and verbal directions, communicates all day long and some words are phonetically recognizable, whether they will mix out in French or in English or maybe Spanish or Russian (because of the two daycare he was/is in… Well you get it.
Many years ago, I was in internship in a hospital from children affected by autism and even psychotic disorders, and today I happen to care for children with autism or on the spectrum. I am sensitive about the subject. I am not against early screening, I think this is a big step, but tactfulness isn’t part of these healthcare networks and some of their doctors. Havent they heard about the linguistic babies development? Brain plasticity? and all the wonders in neuroscience in modern time? I think our medical system and the way it treats our patients are forty years behind. In the meantime parents are bullied by their doctors (not all, of course) and commonly treated. Such a nerve-raking experience and who to trust, really. If your PED is not on your side in such a tactful and supportive manner, who will be? And how difficult it is to be a parent, young, solo, or first time?
Finally, this leads me to share to all moms and dads that linguistic development is not a linear process. In this TED presentation, Patricia Kuhl, internationally recognized for her research on early language and brain development, shares in a 9-minute video astonishing findings about how babies learn one language over another. https://www.ted.com/talks/patricia_kuhl_the_linguistic_genius_of_babies
How is or was your experience as a multi-language family? Thanks for sharing your experience here. We never gauge how much our contribution can help others.