Mums; when did you know something was amiss?

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Just curious to know; at what point and what age did you realise your child may be on the spectrum? What were the first signs that you noticed?

For me I got to a point when DS was 2.5 yo and he started having severe noise sensitivites that were unusual,the onset of demanding the sameness & not being able to hold small conversation without babble and replies that did not make sense ie; "five" ??! Also I had been working on changing his tantrums/behaviour for Months with no sign of improvement...just didnt seem to be able to get "through" to him.

Being that he was my first child, I didnt really have anyone to compare him to. But as my daughter turned 12 Months she started chatting and by 18Months she could say well over 100words, and can follow instructions and do as she is told first time every time... She was coming along in leaps and bounds compared to DS at that age... This confirmed to me also that there was a problem with DS.

I've been looking back through home videos, and it just seems so obvious now that there was something amiss. He really looked like he was in a world of his own...and he didnt start talking til he was well over 2...only used 20 or so words if that, and has only recently been trying to put bigger sentences together.

I had previously seen Doctors about his behaviour issues, but they all shrugged them off as though it was just a stage... Until I found one who took the time to listen and refer him on. He believes he is most likely on the spectrum.

I think for me the first signs were no speech at all until 3 years old, only babbling. (He still babbles a little at 7, but not nearly as bad as he used to) He also did not imitate anything until that age. He was very premature so I knew he would be behind developmentally and that he would have language issues so I expected learning disabilities at least. What made me think of the spectrum was that he used to roll cars on the ground and get his head down and intently watch the wheels. He would also look out of the corner of his eye and follow lines, such as window sills and chair rails. Anything with a line. He also rocked, to the point that he would hit the bottom of his spine on the edge of the crib until the skin broke, and he would still rock against the side of the crib. He was also very routine dependant. I also watched him play, and he wouldn't play with anything unless you showed him how to play with the toy, then he would play exactly like he was shown in the same order every time. I attributed the tantrums he had with every transition to lack of speech at the time, so I didn't get a diagnosis until he was 3. I would have done it sooner, but he was already in the public school and they adamently declaired that it was language only and that these behaviors were "just him" or "all kids do that". They were wrong, and I should have gone with my gut, but he's doing great now so that is water under the bridge.

I really didn't start to wonder until preschool age (around 4). My twins are also my first children (so no one else to compare them to), they were extremely precocious in some areas (large vocabs, early readers) and I attributed many of their sensitivities and difficulties to their severe allergies (as did the doctors).

It wasn't until they were regularly taking part in group activities (preschool, swimming lessons etc) that I started to notice the differences between them and the other kids.

Edited to add:
But we didn't start to pursue any type of dx until grade 2. The teachers assured us that it was likely just "social immaturity" and because they were so much smarter than the other kids in certain areas, it was hard to believe that there was something "wrong". By about halfway through grade 2, the struggles, both academically and socially had really begun for both of my sons, and it was clear to the teachers and us that they needed assessment and support.

I didn't start to wonder until half way through Kindergarten. Even then, AS never occurred to me. I was still carrying that "no emotion" stereotype. Before that, everyone told us he was just exceptionally bright, and we bought into that. Until school started, and he couldn't perform. That gap is what got us asking questions.

I was working with the diagnosis of ADD, and just attributed stuff to that. That and the everyone is different thing, and oh, he's an awful lot like me... (haha) Throw in some genetic OCD tendencies and there ya have it.

I was talking with some guild members (online game) and one of the members said, well have you ever though about this? She then pointed me to this site and that was about 2 years ago now. so he was about 8 I think when we finally got the diagnosis. It took me a couple months to research everything, then take a "report" to the doctor for him to see, immediate referral to a neurologist and diagnosis the first day there.

Thank you Bunnie.

I noticed when J was about 3 and used to sit in nursery with his hands over his ears because he couldn't stand the noise. That was about the time the obsessions started as well.

Although I had noticed this though, I didn't know that there was anything amiss - I'd never even heard of AS until he was 11. He got diagnosed when he was 14.

DEFINITELY better to have an early diagnosis!

Well, I noticed nearly immediately but I think my son was a quite a bit more low-functioning than most of the Aspie kids on here. He screamed constantly and wouldn't sleep very long at about 2 months old, and gagged all the time. He was a very miserable baby to be around, and I could never make him happy.

At 12 months it was very obvious he was delayed compared to his peers, and at 14 1/2 months when he had his evaluation it was confirmed he was globally delayed. The actual diagnosis of autism didn't come until he was 3, but the signs were there much, much earlier. It also helped that I got myself diagnosed on the spectrum, and having researched the signs and researchign my own childhood, I was able to spot it in him before we even got a legit diagnosis.