Classic Autism?

[Thompsons]

Hi, I have another question.. Maybe one for the people more experienced with 'classic' autism?

 

Just to give you some background information - As I've mentioned previously both myself and youngest brother have Aspergers. And my Mum and I are pretty sure that we get it from my Dad (he's a whoooole other story, lol) and I can see AS traits in his father also. Now my Dad's sister has a little girl (my cousin), she's her first and only child and we love her to bits.

 

But I'm a little concerned. I haven't mentioned anything to my Aunt as I don't want to seem like I'm interferring. My cousin is almost 2 years old now and she hasn't said her first word yet. Would this be a symptom of autism? Could anyone here tell me a little about their autistic child when they were toddlers/babies? My aunt just seems to think that she's shy I still think she should have at least attempted to say something. She doesn't even make baby talk. She'll squeal occasionally, but that's it. She also seems to be behind in other areas: she can walk now, but she can't wave or point yet and she doesn't seem to understand a whole lot. I tried asking her things like 'where's your mummy?' and she just appeared to ignore me. I tried reading a simple baby book to her, but she wasn't interested, she just wanted to suck on the book.

 

Could this be autism? I'm just thinking about the genetic factor is all.. Do you think I should try and approach the subject with my aunt?

 

Thanks x

[Tally]

If she's not talking, is she making attempts to communicate in other ways? . . . it doesn't sound like it . . . the not pointing is often an early sign of autism.

 

It's probably best not to say anything direct about to your aunt about your cousin. Some people get very upset if they feel like you are criticising their child. Perhaps discussing your own AS will get her thinking.

 

Does the chlid mix with other children her own age? If so, your aunt will soon see if your cousin is not developing the same as other children.

[jordansmum33ok]

I know with my son i just knew deep down things was different

He did talk some basic words but then stopped.. started babbling words that did not make any sense.. like he was from china or something.

 

He didnt want me to feed him and would feed himself.. thought if i went in kitchen food would come out.

would say "bath" whilst shopping?

used to get excitited about going to bed... like twirling hair.. loved washing machine.. teletubbies

covered himself in poo... every damn day yuk..

all before age 2

couldnt walk but could scate

didnt like being held at all.. screamed if anyone got too close to him..

 

would say as above.. it can be very hard to hear.. so tread carefully

[Thompsons]

Thank you both for replying

 

She doesn't really have any other way of communicating. Perhaps that's why she gets so frustrated, she'll often run to her Mum and pull her hair or pinch her face. The only thing she will gesture for really is food. She's very food motivated - there's nothing that she doesn't like. Everything goes in her mouth, edible or not. She'll often take us by the hand and lead us into the kitchen, to show that she wants food, and she will reach out for things she wants too. So I guess, maybe there is a little communication there, but not much.

 

She doesn't socialise with other children yet either, I'm not sure why my Aunt doesn't take her to playgroups and things. However, I think she is due a check up at the doctors sometime soon, so maybe they might say something. The only thing they mentioned last time was that she's very small for her age and that they wanted to keep an eye on her growth - I've not heard of this being a symptom of autism though.

 

I guess I'll just have to wait and see. I don't want her to think I'm being critical at all, I'm just worried. My Aunt doesn't really mention the fact that she's not talking at all, despite the fact that I know she has got baby books, which should list the basic behaviour of two year olds. She just doesn't speak about it, so maybe she does have some worries herself and just isn't sure what to do? I dunno..

 

Thanks again!

[Sally44]

Girls tend to talk sooner than boys. That is a generalisation I know. But my daughter was talking sentences at one. I think from a developmental point of view a child aged 2 should be making at least 2 word combinations. My son who is autistic was making 2 word combinations, but then he didn't get that explosion of vocabulary at age 3+. He started using echolalia and repeating what he heard others say or repeating TV/DVD dialogue.

I think the mother definately needs to raise this concern at the next developmental check up if one is coming soon. If not she should make a separate appointment to see the GP. It might not be an ASD. She might have a hearing problem and that would need to be ruled out. But as there is a genetic link in autism, I think it would only be sensible to raise concerns about the lack of speech and to mention the fact that ASDs are present in the family. As she is your aunt, couldn't one of your parents (the one who is her sibling) have a talk with her?

If this child does have an ASD then the sooner therapies such as Speech and Language Therapy start the better the prognosis. If she isn't speaking she will find it very hard to go to nursery (and that maybe why your aunt is avoiding play groups because she can see that her daughter will not be able to cope) and if it isn't even recognised that there is a problem by school age, what type of school will she be able to go to? If she isn't speaking she will need a school that uses something like PECS and those are usually Special Educational Needs schools.

[smiley1590]

does she seem affectiate? or cold? she hate being touched? does she show emotion? or hate eye contact? does she have any other signs>? the communication side of what you've explained does sound like possible ASD of some kind maybe ask your mum what you think going on how to approach the subject with your aunt? in sensitive manner! has anyone in your family got classic autism? does she respond to faces mum dad etc? does she hate change? is she developmentally delayed in other areas? has anyone else noticed what could be? anyone said anything already? does she get unsetlled and upset quickly and hates loud noises? can't cope with bright lights? does she not sleep well?! sounds like could be genetical yeah! i have auntie and cousin i'm pretty sure have AS and dyspraxia signs but never been officially diagnosed though they not as severe as me they very alike to me alot of ways clumsy forgetful don't understand emotions etc PECS system could be useful and helpful as mentioned before and also SLT when older as i don't if can have when proper baby or not think you can but not sure so have to check it out further? can you see alot of her in you with her signs were you like that when you was baby? what does your mum and dad think about her maybe having ASD! maybe her mum in denial don't want to face up to she may have ASD! early help and support is so important to get in place and get an official diagnosis! will only in end be positive for everyone as you understand( personally) though takes while to adjust and accept shock to the system whether good or bad! just getting used to difference! has your aunt and unlce accepted the other ASD diagnoses within the family or not? as this may help you judge!

 

take care

good luck

XKX

[Thompsons]

Sally - Thanks for your comment and input into the situation.. I'm pretty sure she doesn't have a hearing problem, as she will cry at loud noises and she does look when you call her name. My Mum has tried to explain about mine and my brothers Aspergers to my aunt and uncle, but she said that they seemed uncomfortable and didn't really ask any questions about it, so she wasn't sure how to bring autism into the conversation and so she left it. My Dad's side of the family tend to ignore it really (unlike my Mum's who have researched it and are always interested in how we're doing with things) which is a shame really because I think they're the side of the family that we get it from. Maybe there's some denial? I remember when my Mum was having concerns about my little brothers behaviour and she mentioned it to my Grandmother (Dad's Mum) and she simply said "Oh no. He's exactly like his Dad was at that age." My Mum and I both think my Dad has aspergers, and once after assaulting a doctor, the doctor dropped the charges as he thought that he may have a mental problem, but he refused to accept it and so he lives a pretty solitary life despite living at home with us still. So, in short I do wonder if my Dad's side of the family just isn't very accepting of these things. Part of me so wants to say something, because I think now, that even if she hasn't got an ASD, she's a long way behind other children her age and she may need a little extra help.

 

 

does she seem affectiate? or cold? she hate being touched? does she show emotion? or hate eye contact? does she have any other signs>? the communication side of what you've explained does sound like possible ASD of some kind maybe ask your mum what you think going on how to approach the subject with your aunt? in sensitive manner! has anyone in your family got classic autism? does she respond to faces mum dad etc? does she hate change? is she developmentally delayed in other areas? has anyone else noticed what could be? anyone said anything already? does she get unsetlled and upset quickly and hates loud noises? can't cope with bright lights? does she not sleep well?! sounds like could be genetical yeah! i have auntie and cousin i'm pretty sure have AS and dyspraxia signs but never been officially diagnosed though they not as severe as me they very alike to me alot of ways clumsy forgetful don't understand emotions etc PECS system could be useful and helpful as mentioned before and also SLT when older as i don't if can have when proper baby or not think you can but not sure so have to check it out further? can you see alot of her in you with her signs were you like that when you was baby? what does your mum and dad think about her maybe having ASD! maybe her mum in denial don't want to face up to she may have ASD! early help and support is so important to get in place and get an official diagnosis! will only in end be positive for everyone as you understand( personally) though takes while to adjust and accept shock to the system whether good or bad! just getting used to difference! has your aunt and unlce accepted the other ASD diagnoses within the family or not? as this may help you judge!

 

take care

good luck

XKX

 

Thanks for your reply She can be affectionate.. She's a bit of a busybody, she likes to run around grabbing everything, so she doesn't have too much time for affection, but then I guess most two year olds are into everything She does pull my aunts hair and pinch her face a lot.. I wouldn't say she hates being touched, but she did go through a phase of only wanting her Mum to hold her. And she does still cry if she sees someone wearing a hat - not sure why! She shows emotion - she shows frustration and happiness, though she doesn't have a proper laugh as such, she mainly squeals. I think she can make eye contact.. I'm not too sure as I don't make much myself, lol.

Other than the other signs that I listed previously, the only other thing I noticed about her was that she didn't really crawl, she kinda skipped that and she also hates loud noises.

No one in our family has classic autism that I know of, but I do know that my Dad's cousin had a little boy that died as a child and I know he had a learning disabilty of some kind, but no one has ever said what.

 

She recognizes her Mum and Dad's faces, but if you say to her "where's mummy or daddy?" she ignores it or looks blank, she doesn't seem to know that's who they are if you know what I mean.

 

My Mum agrees with me that she thinks something is wrong, but we're unsure how to approach the subject really, they don't seem very open to listening.

 

She does get upset quite quickly and I mentioned earlier, she does hate loud noises. I'm not sure about bright lights, I've not noticed. She sleeps very well. Although, when she is tired she will fight it a bit and my aunt has to rock her off to sleep. But once she's asleep she sleeps right through. I don't really see many similarites to myself as a baby and her. I was quite advanced for my age. At two years old, I pretty much spoke normally, as did my brother. The only thing I can see a likeness in, is the temper tantrums. I know a lot of two year olds can be a handful, but my Mum's always said that I used to bite and pinch a lot seemingly for no reason and I know my little brother did too - he had a terrible temper very young. At the time, I didn't realise that most one year olds don't throw things at you deliberately!

 

I think it would be good to see if there is a problem before she starts school. The earlier you recognize it, the better.. But I just get the feeling that my aunt and uncle don't want to even think about it. I understand that it's difficult for any parent to come to terms with, but I'm worried that they might get angry if I suggest anything. My aunt does seem to make a lot of excuses for her.

 

Thanks again for your comment x

Edited May 17, 2009 by Thompsons

[Sally44]

Maybe it would be better to approach this from a 'language' perspective rather than an ASD one. If she isn't talking at all at two years old then she needs to be seen by a Speech and Language Therapist. Then the Speech Therapist should do their assessments and if they suspect there is an ASD behind the difficulties then it is up to them to speak to the parents and refer the child onwards. This child is going to struggle at nursery and school.

My nextdoor neighbours are both teachers, and it was them that raised their concern with me that my own son was not talking enough. In my case I did go to my GP but my concerns were ignored eventhough I know now that I was telling my doctor that my son was echolalic as he frequently appeared not to understand what I was saying to him. He had pronoun reversal and he repeated back what was said to him or he could watch a DVD and know the dialogue and repeat it to himself for hours at a time, but without fully understanding what it meant.

It is very hard to be black and white about any abilities really. My son is probably HFA and he is affectionate and has a sense of humour and has empathy. I think alot of the difficulties are not down to being incapable. It appears to me, from watching my son, that it is more to do with processing information - sometimes from many sources - and managing to do that in real time and integrate and make sense of all that incoming information. If you have a moderate or severe language difficulty you may find it impossible to process, understand and respond to language in the timeframe allowed at that given time. So, by the time you have processed it and know what you want to say or do, the conversation has moved on or the people may have left!

 

[smiley1590]

hating loud noises common autism sign to have cause anxiety! and maybe she got hat phobia alot autistics pinch! it shame if aunt and unlce don't think bout it i hope Health Visitor says something of like ASD! may get signs looked at bit closer!

[Thompsons]

Thanks again.. I'm going to wait for her to have her check-up and hope that they say something to my Aunt. I mentioned it to my Dad (her brother) and he said that he thought she would be offended and that I should mind my own business My Mum on the other hand completely sees where I'm coming from, but she also feels that it's not right at the moment to say anything.