3 year old speech gone downhill, is this normal?

Our 3 year old has always been great with speaking/sentences etc. Over the last few weeks, everything has changed. She is not really getting the sentences out and stutters now and again. Is this normal? We're a bit worried, she won't ask for say 'toast' anymore, she'll just point to the bread and whinge. She also is fully toilet trained but instead of saying "need to wee Mummy", she'll just hold herself and whinge, whilst she is crossing her legs. We also have a 9 month old son who just babbles, could she be copying him for attention? She used to get up out of bed herself in the morning and walk in, now she's lying there (like the baby) and just babbling too. Thanks for your help.

have you told her to use her words, speak like a big girl, that sort of thing?
she might just be copying bub to get some attention, i'd maybe see if putting a bit more time (not saying you don't) into doing her activitites with her, and see if it makes a difference.
does she hang out with other kids her age? it'd be interesting if she did it with them - if she didn't, she's just doing it for your attention.
other than that i don't know, maybe if it goes on for a while, i'd take her off to the gp who might be able to recommend someone.

My eldest DS did this when he thought that his younger brother was getting more attention that him. He was almost 3 at the time.

He grew out of it. I did make sure my DH and I had more one-on-one time with him. We would also sit and just have conversations about things with him, like cars, toys, his new shirt etc. If it was really interesting, he would talk normally.

However, if you are really concerned then take her to the GP.

Does she do it all day long, or are there times when she acts just like normal and speaks as she always did? If so, is it mainly when she is tired/bored/you are busy? Hopefully its nothing, but if she is doing it all the time i would see your GP about it.

My eldest dd does this sometimes, she points and says err, or uses gibberish like her sister. I refuse to listen to when she does it. In our case it is attention seeking behavior.

Dd stopped feeding herself. In fact, even after ds started feeding himself I still found myself feeding her on the odd occasion. He dressed himself before her too (there's 2 years between them).
I chose not to comment and just got on with it rather than focussing what was going on but would always heap the praise if either if they did it alone.
Eventually she realised she could do more than him and began taking pride in that, but it was a natural transition

Hi everyone, thanks for you replies. I found a similar situation on the Fisher Price website tonight. I'm quite concerned actually so I went googling. DD has now stopped all other words apart from Bubby, Daddy and Mummy. When she wants something, she'll point to it, won't say the words like she used to. She used to talk so much but now nothing. Here's what I found (written by a child psychologist):

Question:

It used to be that we could never get my 3-year-old daughter to stop talking. The problem now is that she won’t speak! She gets my attention by tapping me, pulling my pants and pointing to things. I tell her to use her words, but she won’t even tell me she wants to use the bathroom anymore.

Can watching TV have anything to do with this? She also has a 1-year-old brother. Should I be concerned about this behavior, or is it a phase?

Answer:

I don’t think watching television has caused your daughter to stop talking. It seems that she has found a way to capture your attention and to get you focused on her. I suspect that she has regressed from speaking to not speaking as a way of dealing with her baby brother and what she perceives as a big change in her life. Here are some tips that I think can help:

- Since she is the oldest child, make sure your daughter has a later bedtime.

- Remind her that since she is the oldest she has privileges that her baby brother does not, like a later bedtime, having a friend over or going to a movie with you.

- Plan one-on-one time with her a few times a week while the baby is asleep or with a sitter. If there is a dad in the picture, make sure he spends private time with his daughter, too.

- Once you’re satisfied that you’re giving your daughter the attention she needs, let her know that you have a new rule: you will only talk with her when she talks. Your daughter probably will try to continue not speaking, but you must not respond. Don’t be angry or act irritated. Just patiently ignore her physical gestures until she speaks. The moment you hear a word, turn to your daughter and engage her in conversation.

My best guess is that you have a sibling rivalry problem on your hands, and that your daughter has found a way to feel important again. If the situation doesn’t improve in a month you need to consult a child psychologist to figure out what else may be going on between you and your daughter. I hope my advice will help you.

Interesting huh? Will keep an eye on it.

ummmmm....she MIGHT be copying but as someone who has a neice with a serious disorder which first presents a normal development followed by regression I woul probably be getting her thoroughly checked out by a paediatrician not a GP to rule out any underlying cause...but that's just me who is slightly paranoid on this issue based on family history....

I hope it's nothing......

hey, that made me feel so much better!! OH NO! i hope it's really nothing serious. a bit worried now :( what has your niece got out of interest? that's not good :(

sorry if I scared you hun...I debated about posting cos I didnt want to upset you and the chances of her having anything like that are very very slim like miniscule but I thought maybe it is best to check it out and know for sure if you know what I mean...I know as a mum I would want to know the good and the bad scenarios.

My neice has a condition called Rett Syndrome...it is very very uncommon but can happen.....
:hug: I didn't mean to freak you out....

That's cool, no worries! Like I said in the previous posts, she's been excellent up until a week ago and is 3 years old, she starts kindy in a few weeks too!

DD has been saying a couple of sentences this morning actually and a few more words. All morning I have spent time with her whilst DP has been spending time with DS (it's normally the other way around), she seems a bit better (but still a bit jealous of DS), I will just see what the next few days bring and take her to the doctor if it continues. I did catch her talking in her room before to herself when she was playing and it was very clear. She just babbles around me (it was getting a reaction of course the last week or so) so I'm just going about our normal day and not making a 'thing' about it. See how she goes!

Thanks everyone :-)