Update on Owen

For the last 3 months Owen has been participating in play therapy to help him increase his vocabulary and speech. Once a week a therapist would come to our house and play with Owen trying to get him to say words. In my opinion, I didn't really see that it was helping a whole lot. The therapist was doing the same activities I was already doing with him, like puzzles, naming pictures, singing songs, etc. For the most part, Owen liked the extra attention but he didn't like being told what to play with and for how long. For the first time in his life, temper tantrums started and he would refuse to sit for her or participate. June 30th was our last session in Rocky Mount because of the move.

This week we have been in contact with the Charlotte CDSA about starting up his services here. After consulting with the new service coordinator, we decided to have his hearing checked again. During his hearing check back in April, the audiologist found fluid in his ears, which was causing a hearing loss. Once the fluid cleared his hearing was never checked again. Call it mother's instinct, but I still believe he is not hearing us correctly.

This morning we went over to the CDSA to have their audiologist test his hearing and vision. Once again, the audiologist found fluid in both ears. Luckily they weren't red or infected but the clear fluid was still bubbling behind his ears. Even though the fluid was there, she did the test and of course it showed a hearing loss again. He is not hearing high frequencies and the audiologist said this is definitely affecting his speech. She thought that the next step should be a visit with his pediatrician to see if they can clear up the fluid.

Of course, we didn't have a pediatrician yet because we have only been here for a week. As soon as we got home, I called upon all my mommy friends here to get a recommendation. I called the one that I kept hearing and luckily they were able to fit me in right away. I must say that I LOVE this new doctor; she was so personable but also very knowledgeable. She confirmed the fluid was not infected but definitely present. She also said that Owen's tonsils very big and his nasal cavity tissue was swollen. While he didn't show really any signs of being sick, she said that the enlarged tonsils could be preventing fluid from draining properly. Her recommendation was to follow up with an ENT to see if tubes are needed or if something needs to be done about his tonsils. I'll call tomorrow to set up the appointment after the doctor sends over the referral. The pediatrician also prescribed a steroid nasal spray to help strengthen his naval cavity hopefully helping the fluid to drain. She said it could or could not wok but it was worth a shot until we could see the ENT.

I also met with his service coordinator today we agreed to have his speech specifically tested. We want to see if he's made any progress and to see if speech therapy is needed instead of play therapy.

So a lot is going on..hopefully we'll get some clear answers within the month. I worry about the little guy and his speech and I'm hoping that this will help him to communicate with us better. I'll keep you updated!