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Does my 34 month old son have Autism?
My son looks like your average little boy, but we have always thought something was different about him since he was a baby. I took him to church this last Sunday and to Nursery there. There was a couple over the Nursery who has an autistic son. They asked me a few questions because they noticed some things in his behavior and were wondering if he was autistic too. They said that he would not play with any of the other children. He would color on everyone elses coloring sheet, except his own. He would play with everyone elses playdough and not his own. He was only focused on the door and escaping. He escaped 5 times, even with a childproof doorknob.
I do have lots of these problems at home as well. We have childproof locks on all our doors, even in his bedroom. He does not take naps during the day and will be very tired by night. By night time, he is on "wired" energy and is extremely hyper. We go thru our normal night time routine to put him to bed (which he loves). We will tuck him in, but he will get up as soon as we leave the room and will play for an hour and a half before going back to bed. He wakes up throughout the night and will play. We put him back to bed several times throughout the night. He wakes up every morning at 6:00am and begins to play some more. We put him to bed around 10:00pm, and he arises around 6:00 or 7:00... up several times in the night and no naps during the day.
He does not respond to his name. He sometimes asks as if he is deaf. We will tell him we have a piece of candy for him and he still will not respond or look at us. He stays focused on whatever he is doing. I have to say "look at me" several times and eventually, manually, turn his head to look at me. Even then, his eyes will try to point at what he was focusing on. He does respond sometimes, but most of the time not. He loves staring at the spinning cd in a cd player. He seems hyperactive all the time and is always "on the go" (that's why he is even crazier the later it gets, because he gets so tired). He does not like to be held and has never been a cuddle baby. He just wants to be put down so he can run or do his own thing. He is very independent. We have to keep him strapped in a stroller wherever we go, because he will run off and does not care if we are with him. If we go to drive somewhere, once I open the door, he rushes out and runs off. I have to climb in the car, start it, honk the horn and pretend to drive away before he comes back. Sometimes he still does not care if I drive off, so I have to get out, chase him, and put him in the car. We love him so much and want him to know that we love him, but he seems not to care. Everything has to be his way and he has no time for us to hug or kiss him. Even when we do snatch him and hug and kiss him, he seems to tune us out.
He says very few words and only one at a time. He loves shapes and colors and will point them out. Things are only identified by their shape. If he wants a chip, he will say "circle". He is a very picky eater and will not eat, even if he hasen't eaten all day, unless it is one of the foods he likes. We are limited to Macaroni and cheese, eggs, chicken nuggets and juice. I have put chicken in his macoroni and he will not eat it. If i put pepper, or anything he can see, in his eggs, he will not eat them. If I cook his eggs a little too long and they have a little bit of brown on them, he will not eat them. He will only eat McDonalds Nuggets. The breading has to be a certain way, or he will not eat them. He will drink any juice tho.
He seems to act before he thinks. He will throw a tantrum and go to hit or bite the person. He knows he is not suppose to and he will catch himself before he actually bites or hits someone. He will start to put his teeth on you or swing his hand to hit, but stop before because he realizes what he is doing. He shows little interest in other children. He prefers to play alone. The only time he is interested in other children is when he goes to hug them, when they don't want to be hugged and ends up knocking them down. We went to the park the other day and he played by himself. Later, he started throwing wood chips at the children and enjoyed chasing them. We eventually had to leave. He would get destracted by a slide, or a set of stairs, but go back and start chasing the kids again with the wood chips. Also, ever since he learned to walk, he has been walking on his toes.
Whenever we go to someones house, he has to walk thru the whole house to know his surroundings, unless he gets distracted by a dog or cat. He does not mind to have furniature moved around in my house tho. He is okay with change, just has to know where everything is.
I kept telling myself for the longest time that he is just a hyper little toddler, until my friend asked if he was autistic. Please let me know what you think, or if this sounds like something else. We are desperate to know what is going on and want the best for our son. Thanks!
I do have lots of these problems at home as well. We have childproof locks on all our doors, even in his bedroom. He does not take naps during the day and will be very tired by night. By night time, he is on "wired" energy and is extremely hyper. We go thru our normal night time routine to put him to bed (which he loves). We will tuck him in, but he will get up as soon as we leave the room and will play for an hour and a half before going back to bed. He wakes up throughout the night and will play. We put him back to bed several times throughout the night. He wakes up every morning at 6:00am and begins to play some more. We put him to bed around 10:00pm, and he arises around 6:00 or 7:00... up several times in the night and no naps during the day.
He does not respond to his name. He sometimes asks as if he is deaf. We will tell him we have a piece of candy for him and he still will not respond or look at us. He stays focused on whatever he is doing. I have to say "look at me" several times and eventually, manually, turn his head to look at me. Even then, his eyes will try to point at what he was focusing on. He does respond sometimes, but most of the time not. He loves staring at the spinning cd in a cd player. He seems hyperactive all the time and is always "on the go" (that's why he is even crazier the later it gets, because he gets so tired). He does not like to be held and has never been a cuddle baby. He just wants to be put down so he can run or do his own thing. He is very independent. We have to keep him strapped in a stroller wherever we go, because he will run off and does not care if we are with him. If we go to drive somewhere, once I open the door, he rushes out and runs off. I have to climb in the car, start it, honk the horn and pretend to drive away before he comes back. Sometimes he still does not care if I drive off, so I have to get out, chase him, and put him in the car. We love him so much and want him to know that we love him, but he seems not to care. Everything has to be his way and he has no time for us to hug or kiss him. Even when we do snatch him and hug and kiss him, he seems to tune us out.
He says very few words and only one at a time. He loves shapes and colors and will point them out. Things are only identified by their shape. If he wants a chip, he will say "circle". He is a very picky eater and will not eat, even if he hasen't eaten all day, unless it is one of the foods he likes. We are limited to Macaroni and cheese, eggs, chicken nuggets and juice. I have put chicken in his macoroni and he will not eat it. If i put pepper, or anything he can see, in his eggs, he will not eat them. If I cook his eggs a little too long and they have a little bit of brown on them, he will not eat them. He will only eat McDonalds Nuggets. The breading has to be a certain way, or he will not eat them. He will drink any juice tho.
He seems to act before he thinks. He will throw a tantrum and go to hit or bite the person. He knows he is not suppose to and he will catch himself before he actually bites or hits someone. He will start to put his teeth on you or swing his hand to hit, but stop before because he realizes what he is doing. He shows little interest in other children. He prefers to play alone. The only time he is interested in other children is when he goes to hug them, when they don't want to be hugged and ends up knocking them down. We went to the park the other day and he played by himself. Later, he started throwing wood chips at the children and enjoyed chasing them. We eventually had to leave. He would get destracted by a slide, or a set of stairs, but go back and start chasing the kids again with the wood chips. Also, ever since he learned to walk, he has been walking on his toes.
Whenever we go to someones house, he has to walk thru the whole house to know his surroundings, unless he gets distracted by a dog or cat. He does not mind to have furniature moved around in my house tho. He is okay with change, just has to know where everything is.
I kept telling myself for the longest time that he is just a hyper little toddler, until my friend asked if he was autistic. Please let me know what you think, or if this sounds like something else. We are desperate to know what is going on and want the best for our son. Thanks!
I work with children with autism and I am sorry to say that your son has many red flags for an autism spectrum disorder and at a minimum has a language delay. I really encourage to get him evaluated by a professional team, either through the school district or privately. Early intervention can make such a difference. Good luck
My son is 3.6 and showed many of the symptoms that your son seems to be showing.I don't want you to jump to conclusions, but I would suggest to get him evaluated by your county.There is nothing to loose.If he is diagnosed with any delays..there is lots of help out there and things you can do to help him.He is still young !
My son has been diagnosed with ASD when he turned 3 and we have come such a long way in the last 6 mths.
What I have to share with parents is listen to your instincts and gain lots of knowledge.Look at your kid for answers.
Do feel free to keep in touch.
All the best !
My son has been diagnosed with ASD when he turned 3 and we have come such a long way in the last 6 mths.
What I have to share with parents is listen to your instincts and gain lots of knowledge.Look at your kid for answers.
Do feel free to keep in touch.
All the best !
At 34 months, looks like he has a speech delay and you need to get help for him. If you live in the states, get the public school district to evaluate him. If you can afford, get also a private speech therapist, occupational therapist and child development doctor to evaluate him.
My son has sensory integration disorder and did many of the things you describe. We had him evaluated by an occupational therapist and he does occupational therapy once a week. I can't even begin to tell you how beneficial it has been. If you have any questions about sensory integration disorder, let me know. I'm happy to help.
Some of the things you said sound exactly like autism. The limited speech / speech delay, staring at spinning cd's, extreme food aversions and the fact that parents of autistic children noticed your son. I can pick out other autistic children 9 times out of 10. A lot of times autism will have a co-diagnosis of ADD or ADHD. My daughter is 13 and still will only eat chicken nuggets, PB&J, hot dogs, canned lunches, french fries and macaroni and cheese. It's actually a sensory problem. Talk to your pediatrician and request to have your son tested. Even if he isn't autistic, he could probably benefit from speech therapy. Good Luck!
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