Any early sign of autism in infant?

Damari - posted on 02/23/2010

I agree with all the moms my daughter is a full functioning autistic, but i didnt realize or was aware of it until she started school and had problems. If you have a doubt check it out, better be safe than sorry...Good Luck!!

Corrie - posted on 02/23/2010

Thank you to all of you for your helpful responses. We rotate his toys, and he does switch to another toy when I give it to him, or points to an item, looks us in the eyes a lot, loves to play peek-a-boo, and sometimes he does like to cuddle and to be held...
Maybe I am being over-sensitive because my brother-in-law has autism...

Amy - posted on 02/23/2010

my son didnt want anything near his mouth, we couldnt feed him. He stared a lot at the ceiling fan (spinning). He didnt smile on time, didnt respond to his name, didnt go through any anxiety if I wasnt near. Its such a large spectrum and every child is different. Go with your instincts I knew deep down he was struggling but as a first time mom I was pretty naive. Good luck

Andrea - posted on 02/22/2010

My daughter wouldn't get excited when she would see me. She would look at me as if i were just any other person. She was also very sensitive to textures especially hair! She would grab hold of it and put it to her face and get upset if we took it away. She was also extremely developmentally delayed. Didnt sit til she was like 9 months. She first stood up, with assistance, at 9 months as well. She hardly ever made eye contact or turn when we called her name until age two. She didn't start walking til two as well. She is now six and was diagnosed with PDD-NOS in January of 08. She now, of course, knows that i am her mommy and loves me more than words could say.

Stephany - posted on 02/22/2010

My son, who is now 4 years old and was diagnosed at 20 months, showed symptoms from birth. I was a first time parent, though, and I didn't realize the level of dysfunction at which we were functioning until after we had our second son (when the first was 18 mos old). My oldest hated being held and cuddled. He always wanted to sit facing out, with his back against my torso and his face away from my body. I wasn't able to nurse because he didn't want to be close to me. He didn't sleep well until we put him in his own room. Being in the same room as us was so unnerving for him that it kept him from sleeping well.
I have a stack of photos I took of him when he was 6 months old. He was laying in his crib after a nap, should have been starving and ready for a diaper change, and I was able to photograph him for 45 minutes, walking around the crib, setting my lighting, and he never once reached for me. He never once acknowledged me with anything more than a fleeting glance. At the time I thought he was an amazingly patient child, and now I realize he just didn't care that I was there.
Looking back there were many instances of "red flag" moments when I should have seen something was off.

Kim - posted on 02/21/2010

My eldest son who eventually was diagnosed as PDD-NOS would roll his head back and forth rhythmically when he was lying in his carrier. He also would get up on all fours and stick his back leg out with the bottle in his mouth, no hands. And he was a constant flipper on the changing table, to the point that it was a danger to himself. He did seem highly aware of his environment, at times, visually, such as pointing things out in a catalog that we had to look closely to see. When he was about three months he was jumping up and down on our laps, while his peers were basically limp noodles, sitting on the couch and tipping over. I don't know if anyone else would report these, and he was my first, so I didn't have any other babies to compare with him at that point! Good luck and God bless you.

Rebecca - posted on 02/21/2010

With my Aspies the only thing I can recall is that my younger son with aspergers would not respond to his name. I was wondering if he was deaf! He would however respond to other loud noises. I didn't notice any other differences until he was older. My kids talked very very early though, with my older son he said "pop" when I was blowing bubbles when he was 8 months old. and they were using sentances by 1 yr.

Amanda - posted on 02/20/2010

I have a 10-month-old daughter who is neurotypical, and it is only by watching her more normal development that I've realized some things my autistic son didn't do at that age.

Billy never engaged in the game where they offer you and object and then take it back and repeat for as long as you are willing to sit there.

He never pointed at things to show me, which Willow (his sister) does all the time.

Willow will babble nonsense that sounds like talking, look me in the eye, and wait, as though expecting a response. Billy babbled, but it wasn't like that. He wasn't that interested in engaging with me.

How do you feel about the nonverbal communication between you two? Does he gesture, reach for things he wants, get your attention in other ways?

It's very hard to diagnose autism in infants, though it's getting better. Often, though, you will only be told to "wait and see" at this stage. That being said, I would still highly recommend taking him for an evaluation by an expert -- your pediatrician ought to be able to recommend someone. Because if there is a problem, even if it's a minor one, the sooner you get him involved in some fun play therapy, the greater the chances to keep him engaged with the world and communicating at his best.

Let us know how he's doing!

Amanda
Blogging for Billy at www.AmandaBroadfoot.com

Sheila - posted on 02/20/2010

I would see if he turns his head when you call his name. Does he engage you? Make eye contact? Does he pull away from you (which is sometimes present/sometimes not)

What do you consider a long time? Is he spinning wheels on a truck, or lifting a lid open/shut open shut?

I only see what I now know to be signs when I look back at video of my son as an infant. I knew for certain by the time he was eighteen months, but not diagnosed until almost four.

Good luck, and give extra cuddles!

Sheila

Deanna - posted on 02/20/2010

My son did not sleep. He did not want to be cuddled when eating. I couldnt breast feed b/c he didnt handle being that close. I fed him while he laid on my legs. He stared at the ceiling fan alot. He has now been diagnosed as high functioning autistic. I always say that you can never be too careful and if you are truly concerned, have it checked.