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Autism/19 week old possibly autistic?

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Expert: - 11/6/2007


Question
Hi, I have a 19 week old little boy.  He just went in for his 4 month check up and shots.  When you go in you have to fill out a survey that ask questions about feeding, and what the baby is generally doing.  One of the questions was does your baby respond to their name.  Another was does your baby laugh.  Another was does your baby turn it's head towards noise.  My answer to all of these is sometimes.  He laughs but you have to work very hard to get him too.  He only responds to his name if you get his attention first.  He not always turns to sounds in the room.  If I am holding him I have a hard time getting him to make eye contact.  If my husband is holding him he will smile and coo at me for a long period of time when I am talking to him.  He is meeting all the milestones as far as rolling over, he is playing with all kinds of toys, will talk and coo at me when I read him books.  He does not mind being held.  I just now stopped rocking him to sleep and he goes to sleep on his own in his crib.  The doctor is concerned with the lack of eye contact, and not responding to his name.  He has contacted a therapist through a program in our state to be evaluated.  Does this sound like a typical Autistic baby?

Answer
Hi Shae,

He has just reached the age where the answers to those questions should be "yes." Not all babies reach all milestones at the predicted time. Babies come with so many variations in temperament. He may just be a bit reserved about some things.

I would go ahead and let the therapist do an evaluation. It won't hurt to check.

Nearly all babies are screened for hearing at birth, but also be sure he hears well.

Try not to panic. Let me know how the evaluation turns out.

Best wishes,
Catherine

Autism

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Catherine Ridenour

Expertise

I can answer your questions about parenting your High Functioning Autisic or Asperger`s Syndrome child. In particular, questions about family life, discipline, siblings, finding resources, and working with (sometimes opposing) the educational system are welcome.

Experience

I am the parent of an Asperger's Syndrome child who is now 22 years old. She went undiagnosed for 14 years of her life, so I have done extensive reading and Internet research into the possible cause of her difficulties. Even a short 8 years ago, A.S. was practically unheard of by the public educational system.

We fumbled our way through her childhood and early adolescence without any effective outside support. In some ways, that may have been a blessing as we were focused on her abilities rather than a label for her disability. However, I can think of many times when knowing WHY would have been comforting.

Had we known very early on, some social skills interventions might have made her life in school easier. At this point, I like her for who she is so I do not regret how things have turned out. More importantly, she likes herself.

Education/Credentials
I have a Bachelor of Science in Education.

I have worked to educate myself about Autism in general and HFA/AS in particular.

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