Expert: Jene Aviram - 8/5/2010

Question
QUESTION: Hi there,

I messaged you some weeks ago about my daughter as i was having some concerns about her re:autism.
She had limited consonants in her babble and was not imitating. She is now 11.5 months old and is babbling dadad, mamama, and bababa mostly. She has no real words though and does not use mama or dada to the correct people. She will not copy sounds but does now copy blowing rasperries and opening and closing of mouths like a fish! She does clap and will sometimes wave.
She will turn to her name.

My concerns are that her speech is still not where it should be and that she does not try to copy words or sounds in speech, only rasperries.

Does this sound like a red flag to you?

Thanks for your time again.


Rebecca

ANSWER: Hi there,

There is nothing in your post that would make me be concerned about autism.  It's great that she is now babbling.  It's great that she responds to her name.  It's great that she's imitating. I know you'd love her to imitate speech, but that might be just around the corner.  All babies develop at a different rate and even if a child is slightly delayed in speech, it doesn't have to indicate autism.

I think it's great that you are aware and on top of things.  Even though she's not addressing you as mama and dada, make sure she begins to discriminate between who you both are.  In the next few months, your daughter is going to gain a lot more skills.  By all means, keep an eye on her.  And I'm always here if you have questions.  If it gets to a point that I think you should take action, believe me I'll let you know.

In the meantime, just keep being the great mom that you are.

Jene Aviram
http://www.nlconcepts.com

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks so much. it is always great to be reassured. I am a bit worried about this!!

Could I also ask how much joint attention she should display at this age? she does not often 'check in' with me when playing, but does follow my point if i point something out to her.

Thankyou

Answer
If she is already following your point... well that is just fantastic.  It would be EXTREMELY rare for someone on the autism spectrum to do that, especially at her age. It's something we don't even like to judge before 18 months, because toddlers may develop this skill up to this time.

Following a point is joint attention.  In the next few months, you'll notice that she starts looking up at you when she plays, just to see your reaction.  And when she becomes mobile she'll enjoy bringing things to show you.

I know you're worried.  Goodness, it's hard not to worry when you're a parent, but for what it's worth, I think it will be just fine.

I hope this has been of some help.
Very best to you.

Jene Aviram
http://www.nlconcepts.com