Could my son be autistic?

Question

I'm concerned that my 23 month old son could possibly be autistic. He refers to himself by name, "Matt"... and never uses the words I or me. He loves to stack and line up ALL of his toys, he calls this "parking". He says quite a few words but rarely puts two words together. He loves his puzzles, he does them all almost every day. He has always been rather challenging and not what I would call a happy baby.

Answer 1

You seem to know something about this , but also i have an

autistic nephew and i would say no one picked anything until

he was around 4 and a half.  It is really difficult at the age your

talking about to label a child.   I am sure you don't want to do

this, but as a parent.   It is hard to ask you to wait too.

You know your child best and if not for anything else, ask to

be referred to a specialist by your doctor, so to clear this up.

Answer 2

Autism affects Communication, Social Skills and Development as well as having elements of Emotional difficulties.

At 2 yrs it is difficult to say one way or another.

Most children who are autistic are late in developing speech (most dont speak fluently until they are around 6-8yrs) and toilet training can take even longer. However in 'high functioning' Autism such as Aspergers there is little or no speech delay but social skills are affected. Usually it is one way or the other, although some types of autism such as pragmatic semantic disorder do vary in speech / developmental delay, although comprehension is an issue. Autism is a massive spectrum which varies in 'symptoms' so it really is a case of waiting.

Keep an eye out for obsessive behaviours such as twirling or arm flapping, dislike of change, being indifferent to facial expressions / body language. Usually Autistic Children are not clingy - far from it, usually they appear indifferent to cuddles etc, tho not always.

Dont presume anything, treating a child who doesnt have autism as if they do can be just as damaging as not reacting to their needs at all.

Check out these sites so you know what to be on the look out for:

www.oaasis.co.uk

http://www.nas.org.uk

http://hcd2.bupa.co.uk/fact_sheets/html/...

Keep an open mind!!

Answer 3

If you have a program called Child Find or something like that in your area, usually the area school can refer you, Child Find or a similar program can test your child for free and see if they can get in Preschool with Disabilities for a couple of hours a day. They can also start anytime through out the year. This is what I'm doing for my 3 year old.  

Answer 4

I'd say he's quite intelligent for a 23 month-old child.  He's talking, some thing autistic children don't do at an early age, and that's wonderful.  It isn't until a child reaches 2 that they begin making 2 word sentences.

Let me ask you this.  Does he make eye contact with you?  If you say "Matt, look at that," does he look?  Those are some of the things autistic children don't do.

If you're that concerned, ask your pediatrician

to refer you to a testing center for autism.  

My daughter was more than challenging and always seemed frustrated.  Make sure you keep your pediatrician informed.

Answer 5

It's possible he is autistic, but I think it is equally possible he is not.  Some other things to look at are whether he is developing any imaginary play, eye contact and sensory issues.  Does he seem interested in people? Even if he is not a bubbly boy, is he interested in people?.  Does he push cars appropriately in addition to stacking them? Does he have sensory issues, such as an aversion to certain textures or fabrics? Does he over-react to sounds? These are all things to talk to his pediatrician about.  Insist upon a referral to a developmental pediatrician, they are much more knowledgeable.

Answer 6

He may very well be, or he may have a hearing loss that would show itself through delayed language development. There are a number of possibilities. If you call your local school district office, they can either arrange to have him evaluated, or can refer you to someone who can.

Answer 7

Early intervention is key for autism, so if you suspect autism, you should see a developmental pediatrician, a neuropsychiatrist or a child psychiatrist.  Although some autistic children are diagnosed as early as 10 months, a lot are not.  Add in the incorrect information out there about "labeling" your child and some kids are not getting diagnosed until they hit Kindergarten or later.

There are many screening tools like the MCHAT, the GARS, CARS, etc, but there is only one true diagnostic measure and that is the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-IV).  On our website, there is a document called "Take the Test" which can be found here:  http://www.valleysnafu.com/SAMPLE%20DSM....  It has a Word document that you can insert your child's characteristics under each area of criteria, print it out and bring it with you to the appropriate doctor.  In California, there is also Title 5 Section 3030 of the California Education Code.  This is also included in that document.  If you don't live in California, you may disregard this portion of the document.

Your son does exhibit some behaviors that are characteristic of autism.  However, this does not mean he automatically has autism.  Pronouns (I and me) are a difficult developmental milestone for children to reach and your son is a bit yound to worry about this.  But you are the best expert on your child.  If you are concerned, err on the side of caution and get him checked out.

Answer 8

i don,t think so  take to the pediatrician to an evaluation  

Answer 9

Since you have concerns, your best bet would be to call your local area early intervention for an evaluation.  While they can't/shouldn't  diagnose autism, they can provide services for developmental delays.  They would have a good idea if he has autism or not.  

When you're concerned, and waiting, I know you're going to keep investigating and trying to figure out what's going on. A good website to check out is First Signs.  http://www.firstsigns.org/concerns/index...

The MCHAT is an excellent screening for autism that you can do with children ages 16-30 months.

http://messageboards.ivillage.com/n/mb/m...

The Childbrain pdd assessment is also an excellent screening tool to see if further evaluation for autism is in order.

This link is for the grading guide. It explains exactly how to answer each question on the page.  http://www.childbrain.com/pddassess2.htm...

Here's the link to the questionaire itself. http://www.childbrain.com/pddassess.html

If you get scores that indicate further evaluation is in order, you might want to get an appointment with a developmental pediatrician or pediatric clinical psychologist, someone knowledgable in autistic spectrum disorders.  There's no way to tell from your question if your son is autistic, but you should trust your gut instincts and investigate your concerns.

Answer 10

First, don't assume go get him checked out. It seems like he has some of the tell signs so I would recommend you get him checked.  Don't be alarmed, with enough drive, you can get him to the point where, if it is Autism, it will be less noticeable.  This disability also has something thing to do with his diet so try to eliminate gluten and wheat from his diet and stay away from the sugar.  Any how do a google search on autism and all type of stuff comes up that could be of assistance, but do so after you get professional advice...

To ease you spirit, just know it's a social disability and people with autism tend to be very intelligent.  I have a nephew with it and he's great...stay positive.