Toddlers: 12 - 24 Months
DA682
member
signs of ASD or just a language delay?
DA682
member
Hi all- I didn't see much activity on the special needs board so I am reaching out here to see if any of you have any insight into our problem.
My son is 23 months old. He has a severe language delay- only knows a handful of words "mama, dada, hello (pronounced "aya" only when using a phone) and our dogs name). Occaisonally he will make an animal sound. He has made almost no progress since 18 months, in fact I feel he has regressed. He knows "more" and "all done" gestures and uses them very appropriately. When he wants something- for example a snack out of reach- he will go to it, reach and look at me, and grunt/moan until I get it for him. If he wants to be picked up he walks over and puts his arms up and looks at you. He does make great eye contact and seems to have humor, does look to us to see if we are watching when he's doing something fun, or turn around to look for us if he is walking somewhere. He will occasionally bring a toy over to play with us but not frequently. If we are doing things such as tickling or making him laugh in other ways, he will ask for more using his more sign. The two things he doesn't do well are respond to his name (however he does turn, look up at me and smile when I enter a room if I just start talking to him) and he rarely points unless its something he wants. In other words he's not saying "hey mama look at that plane" by pointing. He follows commands (go get your shoes, etc) pretty well even without nonverbal cues. He does some pretend play- brushes a dolls hair, feeds his toys. Sometimes I feel like he tunes me out, but its usually when hes doing something he's very interested in, for example if hes very hungry I will have to ask multiple times to feed me a bite. if he's watching sesame street its almost impossible to distract him. We like to say that he's just being "rude" but I don't want to make excuses if there is something wrong.
In terms of other typical ASD behaviors he doesn't seem to have- he doesn't line things up or have trouble with changes in routine, is a good sleeper/eater. He is appropriately scared around strangers. He doesn't have major tantrums and is good with transitions. I don't suspect any sensory issues. He DOES jump up and down and flap his arms but its a very predictable behavior- only when hes very excited/happy. I don't think this counts as stimming but I don't know. He's started randomly cupping and pulling his ears in the past 2 weeks. Its not in response to sound. Its almost like he's just playing with them. I don't know if its normal or not. No ear infection as he was seen by his doctor last week.
We had an early intervention evaluation and they felt he had language and social delays. He will be starting speech and occupational therapy soon. I am now freaked out about possible ASD but nobody will give me an answer and we have to get a formal eval by a developmental pediatrician which will take months. We are also giong to get hearing checked but I feel he can hear me well b/c he follows my verbal commands. I'm wondering if any parents on here have experience with developmental delays and can help me better understand what we are possibly dealing with. Thank you.
My son is 23 months old. He has a severe language delay- only knows a handful of words "mama, dada, hello (pronounced "aya" only when using a phone) and our dogs name). Occaisonally he will make an animal sound. He has made almost no progress since 18 months, in fact I feel he has regressed. He knows "more" and "all done" gestures and uses them very appropriately. When he wants something- for example a snack out of reach- he will go to it, reach and look at me, and grunt/moan until I get it for him. If he wants to be picked up he walks over and puts his arms up and looks at you. He does make great eye contact and seems to have humor, does look to us to see if we are watching when he's doing something fun, or turn around to look for us if he is walking somewhere. He will occasionally bring a toy over to play with us but not frequently. If we are doing things such as tickling or making him laugh in other ways, he will ask for more using his more sign. The two things he doesn't do well are respond to his name (however he does turn, look up at me and smile when I enter a room if I just start talking to him) and he rarely points unless its something he wants. In other words he's not saying "hey mama look at that plane" by pointing. He follows commands (go get your shoes, etc) pretty well even without nonverbal cues. He does some pretend play- brushes a dolls hair, feeds his toys. Sometimes I feel like he tunes me out, but its usually when hes doing something he's very interested in, for example if hes very hungry I will have to ask multiple times to feed me a bite. if he's watching sesame street its almost impossible to distract him. We like to say that he's just being "rude" but I don't want to make excuses if there is something wrong.
In terms of other typical ASD behaviors he doesn't seem to have- he doesn't line things up or have trouble with changes in routine, is a good sleeper/eater. He is appropriately scared around strangers. He doesn't have major tantrums and is good with transitions. I don't suspect any sensory issues. He DOES jump up and down and flap his arms but its a very predictable behavior- only when hes very excited/happy. I don't think this counts as stimming but I don't know. He's started randomly cupping and pulling his ears in the past 2 weeks. Its not in response to sound. Its almost like he's just playing with them. I don't know if its normal or not. No ear infection as he was seen by his doctor last week.
We had an early intervention evaluation and they felt he had language and social delays. He will be starting speech and occupational therapy soon. I am now freaked out about possible ASD but nobody will give me an answer and we have to get a formal eval by a developmental pediatrician which will take months. We are also giong to get hearing checked but I feel he can hear me well b/c he follows my verbal commands. I'm wondering if any parents on here have experience with developmental delays and can help me better understand what we are possibly dealing with. Thank you.
Re: signs of ASD or just a language delay?