Expert: James Michael Roan - 7/16/2006

Question
Hi James,
Thankyou so much for your time.

My son turned 2 in February and speaks no real words. He babbles alot (eg. bababa) and is forever making vowel sounds and alot of closed mouth sounds. He yells at us when he is angry or when we tell him no.
He understands simple instructions..eg, come here, sit down, jump, clap, look, and also game instructions like 'high 5, round and round the garden'.
He does not point but uses gestures like his gimme gimme hand gesture if he wants something. Or he will bring us his cup if he's thirsty or the bread if hess hungry, but doesnt seem to understand when i ask him to bring me his cup.
His eye contact is fine, he answers to his name, he will mimic facial expressions.
His pretend play is fine when prompted or if we initiate it.
He LOVES kisses and cuddles and tickling. He will both initiate those or participate when asked. He has no problem at all in spending time with me and his dad. He will follow us from room to room, lay with us, read with us, play, even help me put the clothes in the washing machine.

He will play with other children he knows fine, but if they are strangers then he needs alot of prompting and encouragement.
He will bring us his book or another toy if he wants us to play.
he is very physical. loves to run, jump, climb, wrestle with his dad. he is very impatient though and doesn't like waiting. he will make sounds at us and gets frustrated when we dont understand what he is trying to communicate to us.
sometimes he seems in his own little world. he will look into space for a few seconds then back to normal. sometimes he gets the giggles but we arnt sure what he is laughing at. he hand flaps occasionally when excited and also the body tremors when excited.
he has been in speech therapy now for a few weeks and has been evaluated at a 12 month old level which really concerns me. I asked her about autism and she said he does show an autistic repetitive behaviour when he turns the pages in a book over and over but doesnt seem interested in whats on the pages. Yet he made the mummy doll kiss the baby doll when asked and played with the cars in a proper manner as well.
His paediatrician doesnt seem to think it is autism though.
He doesn't line things up or spin things.

Could you please tell me if it sounds like he is on the spectrum? I have been so worried about him and trying our hardest to give him the extra time with activites and fun and games. Although he is absolutely loving the extra time and games, it doesnt seem to be bringing out his words.
I am very sorry for the novel.
Thankyou again,
Kellie.


Answer
Hi Kellie;

It sounds like you have an adorable little boy. Enjoy all the time you have with him. Please keep in mind that I do not diagnose over the Internet, however, based on my experience I suspect your son has an expressive language delay along with some other developmental delays. Please note that I said "delays" and not disability. A delay is just that, a delay. I work with many preschoolers every day with a variety of delays. In a few years they grow out of them and blend in with their peers.

I can see you are very well read on the subject of autism. Have you given your son the M-CHAT yet? If not, you can get it here http://www.firstsigns.org/screening/tools/rec.htm#asd_screens  along with the scoring instructions. It is only a screener intended to capture as many children as possible who may have autism. It is possible to fail a few items and not have autism. You have to be courageous early on because early intervention means everything to these folks, but then you have shown great courage in contacting me.

Let me know if there is any level of risk noted in the M-CHAT and we can discuss it further.

Keep in mind that children who are on the autism spectrum have other developmental delays, so many behaviors are shared between a child on the spectrum and a child who has a few delays.

Oh, I will be on vacation and not near a computer from the 18th through the 22nd of July. I suspect you are in the U.K. are at least 8 hours ahead of me.

Kind Regards,
James