Just looking for others opinions please!?

[shannan]

Hi , i hope this is ok to post. Im new here and i arent asking for a professional diagnosis, i dont even know if i am posting on/in the right place.
My son is 26 months old and around 3/4 months ago stopped talking, role playing, colouring, playing football etc. He used to say more than 20 words and put them together things like ' all gone'. this doesn't happen now. he doesn't make eye contact and rarely gives kisses now. however he cuddles all the time. He generally doesn't answer to his name and the games he like to play will be putting pasta from one pot into another. he does this for a long period of time. i've also noticed if we look or try make eye contact he covers his face with his hands or pokes our eyes ( not nastily.) he doesn't/ wont use cutlery although he can. There's a couple of other things too! we are awaiting hearing tests & i know this is long winded im just worried sick and would like others thought/opinions. Thank you

 

[Magna]

Welcome. Have you brought up these concerns with his pediatrician? Do you have any autism in your families?

 

[tree]

 

[Alexej]

Hi @shannan and welcome.

I agree that taking these things up with a paediatrician is a good place to start. Definitely worth pursuing since something is definitely going on here.

 

[shannan]

Hi ! I have our health visitor is aware and arranging hearing test she is also going to carry out the general 2 year old check up due to COVID this hasn’t been done . then I’m guessing we just take it from there x

 

[shannan]

& no autism that I know of in our family x

 

[Magna]

I'm sure the healhcare provider will be able to do an evaluation based on your concerns if you raise them

I know it's difficult not to worry about the child development. I'm a parent as well. Worrying seemed to be more of a thing with our first child since we were new parents.

I will offer you two different perspectives based on my own experience.

I know someone who has children and one of her children was diagnosed with autism at a very early age (approximately 2.5 years old). This person was devastated. She enrolled her child in intense Lovaas based ABA therapies for years and has constantly pushed for her child to be mainstreamed in the age suitable class/grade. Her child will be entering middle school soon and it's now becoming very obvious to everyone that her child is learning at a pace slower than the rest and is developing a lot of anxiety. This person seems to want her child to stay in the age based class with peers even if it means increasingly intense struggle and anxiety for her child. Does this person wish that her child was "cured" of autism? I would say, yes. Do her actions appear to others to seem as though she resists acknowledging her child's autism thereby refusing to accept her child for who her child is? I would say, yes. This is not to say that I think there is anything wrong with a parent wanting the best for their child and wanting their child to be the best that they can be. All parents want that.

One of our children is autistic (as am I). My wife and I accept him fully as he is. We did not choose ABA therapy for him. He has an IEP and he's doing well in school. He's a wonderful human being and I can't imagine our family without him. I celebrate his strengths, but I also acknowledge that he, like everyone else has his own set of challenges, weaknesses and limitations. Refusing to acknowledge those things in my opinion would be refusing to accept him fully for who he is.

I wish you and your son all the best. I'm sure you already know he's priceless and as each year goes by, it will become more apparent as to how rare and special he is as a person, autistic or not.

 

[Finder]

That could be autism, but you need to talk with a professional.

As a parent, I can imagine this is very scary. It is not what you imagine you wanted for your child. But autistic people can have very full and rewarding lives. No, it is not easy, there are definitely downsides. But life is not easy and there are many hazards along the way whether you have autism or not. However, knowing if this is autism will help your child--I was 56 when I was diagnosed and had a great deal of trouble navigating this world. Knowing about my condition would have helped. (Yes, even at this age, I find eye contact uncomfortable. I don't know why, beyond that I have ASD.)

Anyway, welcome.

 

[Neonatal RRT]

As others mentioned, there should be no hesitation, from a parent's perspective, to have your son evaluated. It's not a difficult thing to do. Takes a few hours.

As you may have already done some research on this yourself, between 1yr and 5yrs is when the brain is "remodeling" itself. The brain basically says to itself, "If you don't use it,...you loose it." It's a process known as "autophagy". Neural pathways and neurons that are "hypoconductive" or "hypoconnective"...(low voltage,...small wire) will be sacrificed and the other pathways will be strengthened and supported.

All that is just fine and dandy in the neurotypical brain. It just gets confused with the autistic brain because the autistic brain will have areas of altered neuron migration, the neurons may have too many or too few synaptic connections, the neurons tend to be smaller in size, but packed together tightly, and will have areas of hyper and hypo conductivity and connectivity. When this "autophagy" or "synaptic pruning" occurs starting at the age of 1 or so,...mom's and dad's start to notice things are changing or are "different" and rightfully, get concerned.

As others mentioned above, the earlier a specialist can intervene and do specific therapies to strengthen and challenge "weak" neural pathways,...the less loss of function in those areas. The great thing about children is that they have the advantage of "neural plasticity" and the brain can grow quickly.

Hang in there. Talk to the right people. Get your answers, and if needed, some help.

 

[Alexej]

& no autism that I know of in our family x

Good point, but are there autistic traits visible in others in the family?
I my family I have a diagnosis, but my grandfather may have been autistic and a couple of my grandchildren seem to be on the spectrum, but not diagnosed as such.

 

[Neonatal RRT]

& no autism that I know of in our family x

There is a lot of information we don't know about the etiology of autism,...however, what we do know suggests it is multi-factoral. We do know that scientists in this area of research have identified over 100 different autism markers on the human genome,...people must love autistics or else those genes would never be passed on. That said, some families will have multiple members on the spectrum,...and yet some may have a set of identical twins, one with autism, the other not,...suggesting a less genetic cause. Some associated intrauterine risk factors would be parents of advanced age (over 30)...I know, that's more the norm now-a-days,...hypothyroidism, elevated testosterone, lower estrogen, and mothers that are overweight and having elevated insulin levels,...just a few of the more common ones. There are also a handful of environmental exposure associations (not necessarily causations at this point),...mothers with levels of certain toxins in their blood.

 

[Mary Terry]

Your description of your son's behavior is almost identical to my nephew's behavior at the same age. My nephew was diagnosed with autism at that time. I think you're on the right path. The professionals will figure it out.