I baby sit my best friends kids
I noticed that one of the girls doesn’t respond when you call her name, clap or make any noise behind her. She doesn’t turn around, barely babbles or makes noise. I’m worried something is wrong with her hearing but I don’t want to worry my Friend or make her think I’m nuts. How do I tell her without making her upset :(
Kids and hearing
Kids and hearing
Posted in:
Baby & Toddler, Milestones
9 Replies
How old is she? Sometimes, this could be a sign of ASD but it could be something as simple as a visit to an ENT specialist. Or she was just not interested.
I would just casually bring it up with her, just tell her that such and such wasn't responding when you were behind her and seemed to struggle to hear some of the noises you were making. If someone told me I would be so thankful they were looking out for my kid and I would not in the slightest be upset :)
She is 6 months old
I’ve been calling her name, clapping scrunching toys, bang pots behind her :(
I hope she doesn’t get upset when I tell her
6 months is too young for the ASD reasoning, but it is still worth mentioning. My son was also non-responsive at 6 months old, he was just laidback though and in a few short months he was responding to absolutely everything.
I would certainly just let her know that you'd notice she didn't respond to you and see what she says. She can get it checked out or leave it :)
I would tell her, early intervention for hearing difficulties is important. Xx
I would just say ‘hey, I noticed x doesn’t respond when I do y, does she do it for you’. Don’t suggest any potential diagnosis, just start a conversation.
Im the mother with this child. Speak up, start the conversation.
I think mentioning it in a way that won’t be offensive is good. Like comments above have given examples.
I’d definitely appreciate if a close friend or family member brought something like that up with me. She may have noticed, may have even spoken to someone about it but it’s always worth mentioning and seeing what she says.
Your obviously pretty close that she considers you enough to look after her baby. So I feel like she’d respect you mentioning something
It's pretty normal at this age to be honest. Just laugh about how laid back she was that she didn't respond. If she never does, mum will start to take note.
Are you a child health nurse or someone in that field that has expertise in this? If not I'd say wait a bit. Each kid is different and 6 months is quite early for it to really be a problem or potentially be a problem. If you are going to say something wait a few months as the kid might develop certain skills over the next few months.
My son was quite unresponsive at that age but he was constantly sick. We had appointments and Drs and his hearing was fine plus development was fine. It caused a lot of stress and internal blame on me. Unless you have some expertise I'd wait until you have noticed it for a lot longer.
I wouldn't be upset by my friend poiting that out. In fact I'd be greatful they picked up on something I had missed! Especially if it was involving my child's health and development. Just tel her you have noticed and it wouldnt hurt to talk to the maternal health nurse or a GP and get a referral for a hearing test. Its not as a big deal as your thinking lovely! Xxx