wwyd? pedi wants outside eval for motor delay

DD had a checkup about 2 mos ago.....we were switching to a new pedi & I mentioned that at the time, she wasn't walking yet so they wanted to do her 2 yr checkup early. When we went to her checkup, she had actually started taking a few steps but still pretty wobbly. The dr observed her walking (and this is a dr I trust) and decided she wanted a full evaluation done by the Pedi Assess. Clinic. Said she wasn't too concerned, but just wanted it done anyway.

Here's my dilemma......DD has been in EI for several months now & normally that's who would do this evaluation. When my dr's office called to make the referral, they were told that since she's already in EI they won't do an additional evaluation. I'm not 100% confident in our PT ..... she's really nice, but seems like most of the time she's here she's just talking & not really doing a whole lot. We thought it would be nice to get a 2nd opinion. So my pedi's office made a referral to another PT office that specializes in children (not EI) and they called me today. I've already checked with insurance, this would probably be out of pocket, but go towards our deductible. The initial evaluation would be around $200, they said. Money is soooo tight right now, so that's a lot for us.

In the meantime, dd is walking like crazy! She doesn't even crawl anymore, she wants to walk. However, we've noticed a few things. 1.) she still tends to lock up her knees and her left ankle (very hard to get her left shoe on) 2.) she tires out so easily after a busy day! It took about 3 days for her to recover from Easter weekend.....the 3 days after that, she would just fall for no reason! 3.) she still keeps her legs at a really wide stance when she walks & doesn't like to walk on any uneven ground w/o holding someone's hand


So wwyd? Does it sound like she really needs the outside evaluation? Their "real" 2 yr checkup is next month & I'm not sure if I should just wait, or just make the appt.

 

if I'm reading your tickers right your kids are only 18 mos - so why the 2 year check up 6 mos early? 18 months is still within range of learning to walk and I'm not sure if your kids are early or if the 18 mos is adjusted age but if she's just starting to walk most kids are wobbly for a while - the wide stance is a very typical stance of a young toddler...

if its for peace of mind and you can find the money then do the additional eval - if it means taking food off the table then I may conider shelving it until she starts to walk with confidence and see if she's still having as much difficulty...

 

So they'll be two next month? Your ticker says they are 18 months, so I'm confused. Anyways, if they will be two next month, I'd push EI. Do you get quarterly education plans (I think they call them IEP's)? If she was almost 2 and just started walking she should have qualified for an assessment at least. Can you request a different PT through EI?

If they are actually 18 months, she's still well within range for learning to walk and I'd give it a little more time.

 

Hmm, I'm glad you ladies noticed that! I just updated my tickers & must've put the wrong birthday in or something......they'll be 2 in a month.

I don't know if we get those IEP's. Sounds kind of familiar. So far, we've had one time after she started the PT (I think it had been 6 mos) where went over some goal-type things/paperwork.

 

I'd probably wait it out for their 2 yr check up. That's a lot of time for her to make even more progress. IMO, some Peds refer out for this stuff too quickly sometimes.

When mine were 5 mo, DS wasn't rolling around as much as his sister and didn't like to hold his head up when on his tummy. We went for a very expensive eval that turned out to be a waste of time and money. He very quickly caught up and they had to scramble to even come up with any recommendations. (I say he just had a hard time lifting his big melon! )I wish we would have held off a bit, but I know your dilemma. You think you're being a bad parent if you don't take the medical advise. I don't think waiting a month, though, will make much of a difference. Good luck!