My Date with Early Intervention
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
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Sara Rontal FisherRecent posts
Another date with early intervention? - 12/10/2010
Chicago Baby Holiday Gift Guide - with giveaways! - 11/27/2010
Baby, it's cold outside - 11/23/2010
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I know, I've been kind of (very) MIA. With good reason. The end of the school year for my eldest, plus the worry that my baby wasn't reaching his milestones put me a little over the commitment edge.
See, even though I blew off my baby's milestones, I was still a little nervous that he wasn't on track. So I called up Early Intervention and within one week had an intake and evaluation all set up. For those newbies, Early Intervention is a FREE service the state provides to evaluate, diagnose and then give discounted therapy to children from birth to age three. Many of my friends have used EI for their children's speech and physical therapy.
I was blown away by the ease and professionalism of EI. From the moment of the intake until the evaluation and commentary, they were on time, thoughtful and seemed very competent at their jobs.
On the evaluation day I was quite nervous of what they might find wrong with my sweet guy. Five different therapists showed up: speech, congnitive/ developmental, physical therapist, OT and the intake lady.
They sat on the rug with him and went through a series of tasks. Me, being the helicopter parent that I can sometimes be, kept cheering him on, hoping he'd not "fail" any of the tests. He did the worst with eating, but that was expected: the kid doesn't like baby food.
All the other evaluations thankfully turned out normal or above average, and as a result he didn't qualify for any therapy.
That being said, being the helicopter parent that I am, I still booked a feeding eval at Children's Hospital for August. He may not like baby food, but eventually he's going to need something more than formula.
I had a great EI experience. Have you all dealt with them before? Good and bad? They were looking for feedback so let's give it to them!
Sara Fisher is a mother of two living in Roscoe Village. She also blogs at selfmademom.net.
See more of Sara's stories here.
agree!By Sara on Tuesday, November 13, 2012 Thanks Robin, I'm glad you had a good experience too. I know some people have had trouble. |
I too had a great experience with EIBy robin gruen on Tuesday, November 13, 2012 When my first born, Charlotte, was 15 months old and still not even standing (let alone walking) on her own, I called EI. Like the above experience, mine was SO easy and SO wonderful. Although Charlotte didn't quality for PT (you must be more than 33% delayed to receive free "help" post the EI eval), the EI team (of four) did suggest we enroll Charlotte in some PT, which we did at Children's Mem Hospital for three months. She finally walked (BEFORE she could/would stand on her own -- an odd fish, clearly) at 19 months. Bottom line: EI is a great resource. USE IT. |
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By amy on Tuesday, November 13, 2012
I too had an EI, and the experience was very reassuring. my son had some delays, he was a very late walker and refused baby food. It was very reassuring to know that there was not a mechanical issue with my son. They were also the first to raise flags about the level of care we were recieving at our 'highly respected' peidatrician, with whom we have now seperated from and are considering legal action against. So yes, early intervention is very helpful and if you have any questions please use it.