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Very early signs of autism

NAS77863

When you finally got a diagnosis for your little one of autism did you think they showed signs as a baby looking back?

I have several people in my family with autism and I have a little girl (6months) who I believe might be showing some behaviours.

I know 6 months is very very early, but I know stimming is a behaviour of autism.

my little one started off tossing her head to each side very fast whilst trying to get to sleep, I thought it was just a self soothing thing, but she has now started to do it during the day, constantly.

she also raises her legs and bangs them on the floor very forcefully over and over.

she has also just started to open and close her right hand quickly throughout the day

any advise would be appreciated!

is there anything I can do to help support her?

  • in reply to NAS77528
    NAS77528 said:
    Zero interest in playing with other kids. Other children might as well be furniture as far as she cares.

    I'm assuming this is meant to be funny! :)

    We are much more in-tune / intuitive with our surroundings & environment. Walking on ones toes would be initiation to hunting. women with 4 cones would easily tell the difference between nutritional Red Berries and poisonous ones. The nuances in symbols such as bird markings or animal droppings, the subtle difference between the geometry of poisonous leaves and safe ones... We were medicine doctors for the tribe. Every element of the autistic brain is wired to survive in pre-technological society and will be advantageous in post-apocalyptic society. 

    Recognising that repetition is a grounding mechanism for humans and animals alike. Neurotypical humans utilise social echo-chambers in the same way we use dance, sound, and more tangible rhythms.   

  • Anyways, normal toddlers do all these things, but here are some things my oldest does that caught my attention:

    • Hand flapping. Lots of it. Whenever she's angry, excited, frustrated or otherwise overly emotional. Little sister does it too, but it's like 10 times a day vs 3 times a week.

    • Toe walking. Again, a normal way for kids to explore their bodies and muscles. Older daughter just does it more often, but not to a dramatic degree

    • Tooth grinding/Lip licking/tongue clicking.

    • Upset by changes in routine.

    • Does what I tell her most of the time (so I know she hears) but rarely looks at me when I talk to her. This is probably one of the best indicators. She doe this a lot more than her sister. But again, all toddlers do this. One of the questions the evaluator asked was "Have you ever wondered if your child is deaf?" That should give you a sense of the degree of this.

    • Repeats things. Sometimes hours later she'll start reciting a YouTube video.

    • Zero interest in playing with other kids. Other children might as well be furniture as far as she cares.

    • Occasional extreme tantrums.

    There's other things I'm forgetting, I'm sure. She always stared at ceiling fans when she was under 2. She had a precocious ability to recognize letters and numbers. By 18 months or so she could recognize any letters she saw and would sometimes spell words she saw. She doesn't really read yet (not quite 3) but she does recognize several words now too. If she sees the word "Zoo" she'll let us know. Now she obsessed with animals and has a prodigious memory for them (seriously I think she can recognize lots of animals most adults have never heard of). And yet, overall, her younger sister has basically caught up to her verbal skills (presumably because she pays attention to mom and dad when they are talking and big sister does not). Her sentences are very basic (caveman talk without pronouns and such).

  • Hi there Blush  so I know as you've stated it is still pretty early days yet as she is really young. I was just wondering is there any other signs to of why autism is suspected?  

    My little boy who is nearly 3 was diagnosed just over a year ago but I had always suspected something and even my health visitor flagged it from 1yr old. 

    My little boy was very behind in every milestone which was always my concern, wasn't sitting at a certain age, wasnt very playful, we had none of the baby babbling, never seemed to respond to his name etc. 

    The banging of the legs all of 3 of my children have done but my little boy definitely was the worst for it. He was pretty still as a child until about 10months and that's when the legs started. 

    I would definitely suggest taking a look at the link kevin has provided and see if anything stated applies to your little girl. 

    The only thing I could personally suggest is with the leg banging put something soft under her legs she may stop or even if she doesn't least it's something soft for her to be banging her legs on. Keep an eye on the head tossing and possibly any other signs that you may find concerning and definitely always 100% flag your concerns with your health visitor. 

    If you feel like your getting fobbed off at any point, keep expressing your concern to your health visitor or gp and if needed ask to speak to different people. It can sometimes be a lengthy process but there is always somebody out there who is willing to listen.