UPDATE!! My 2yr old is autistic?

[Trey]

Originally Posted by Charity Most children with autism develop normally then begin to regress. With your little one having a speech delay and no other symptoms, I think your doctor is jumping the shark a bit. I'd see another pediatrician along with the speech therapist. IMHO, pediatricians too damn fast to jump to a dx of autism. (Coming from a pediatric RN)

Well, a lot of times it's critical for getting services for a child. Without a diagnosis, they can't get much of anything (which obviously varies by the state). That's why the provisional diagnosis helped us so much, because we could get services, but if he was just delayed a bit, he would not have a lifelong inaccurate diagnosis. I would rather them be overcautious than be sparing with feelings. But I do agree, a pediatrician (normally, unless a specialist) cannot just diagnose that without testing and observing the child for more than just a 15 minute checkup.

[afcopholtz]

Originally Posted by erickson007 so the only reason the doc thinks she is autistic is her speech? if so i thnk thats jumping to conclusions a bit! then again i am no doctor

See that is what I don't get. My DS had to have speech therapy for years starting at age 3!!! He is now 8 yrs old and still needs help in school but more because of ADD not Autism. We were never ever given a diagnosis of Autism. I would get a second opinion!

[jana]

Originally Posted by army mommy We had our first appt with the pediatrician here on schofield today, we went for a well baby checkup, i was excited to see how well DD was doing. Well talk about a punch in the gut... The pediatrician believes that DD may be autistic She will be two on 10/4, she listens and can perform actions better then any of the other two year olds she plays with, but when it comes to speech she is behind apparently. I knew she was lagging but she has been doing sooo well lately, "thank you", "love you" "please" "doggie" "fishies" and many more. They are now sending us to a speech therapist and a developmental ped. Im soo worried, im on the verg of tears i dont know what else i can do to help her, or what i could have done to stop this... i feel like a faliure, i should ahve worked with her more...i dont know im sorry for rambling...just needed to get it out somewhere i guess.

Did your Dr. mention the words autistic like behaviors? If so, there are many characteristics. IT DOES NOT MEAN SHE IS AUTISTIC. Do you know much about autism? Does your daughter engage with other children when she plays? What about eye contact?

[ColCoolPants]

Wow... I can't believe a doctor would even say that to you.

Let me preface this by saying my little brother who is now 16 was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome (a type of autism) when he was 6. It took a while to get a solid diagnosis because not much was known about autism at the time. My brother was late on EVERYTHING. He never smiled as a baby. He never cooed. He didn't walk until he was almost two. He didn't talk until he was almost three. He never got along well with others. Those aren't the things, though, that led doctors to his diagnosis.

First off, a diagnosis of autism is not the end of the world. Yes, my brother struggles every single day of his life, but he also is one of the brightest and most interesting people I have ever met in my life. Yes, raising a child with autism is a daily struggle and a battle that never ends, but it is also very rewarding. Autistic children just think in a whole different way than most children. If you as a parent can understand the way they think, parenting an autistic child will be a lot easier. Siblings of autistic children typically develop a very strong and protective relationship with their autistic brother or sister. It's a very rewarding experience in that sense because the children will have a strong bond. The hardest part of having an autistic child is watching them in their daily struggle to socialize and interact with other people and their surroundings.

Second off, there is nothing in your original post that suggests your daughter is autistic. One of the most obvious indicators is sensitivity to bright lights and loud noises. They will make all the noise in the world, but as soon as someone or something else is loud, they get very very angry. Autistic children are typically extremely aggressive, especially when spanked. Spankings are a completely non-effective way to punish an autistic child. Autistic children will not play well with others. They have mood changes very abruptly. What a lot of people don't understand is that autistic children typically also have other psychological or neurological diseases as well. For example, my brother is very bipolar, and has epilepsy (seizure disorder) and schizophrenia. Autistic children also tend to be very compulsive (will pick their nose CONSTANTLY without realizing it OR with boys they will play with their junk a lot).

In a previous post you said you had never noticed anything that would lead you to believe your daughter is autistic. Believe me, even for a mother who loves their child with all their heart (as I am sure is the case with you), you would notice something and you would have taken action by scheduling doctor appointments. Yes, symptoms get progressively more apparent as the child gets older, but many things are apparent early on.

I'm not saying I know everything on this topic, but I have done countless hours of research on this topic. I lived with my brother for 8 years before going away to school. I still am very very close to him. I have gone to support groups. I think the world of my mother. She gave up a lot (her career, social life, etc) when my brother was born because of how much she had to care for him. She still doesn't work because she has to keep in contact with him all day while he is at school. I think the world of my mother and think she is so strong and so loving. She has grown so much over the years and has so much insight and patience. Like I said, it's a struggle, but autistic children are very wonderful wonderful kids.

[army mommy]

Originally Posted by jana Did your Dr. mention the words autistic like behaviors? If so, there are many characteristics. IT DOES NOT MEAN SHE IS AUTISTIC. Do you know much about autism? Does your daughter engage with other children when she plays? What about eye contact?

nope, she said "im sending her to a dev. ped because i think she may be autistic" I would be much happier had she said the other... at least it would leave room, but she acted like she was determined. DD plays with two children all day, like i said they fight over toys, and yes she makes eye contact with us, she does zone quiet a bit but i figured she was just ignoring me

[Christine]

Originally Posted by ColCoolPants Wow... I can't believe a doctor would even say that to you. Let me preface this by saying my little brother who is now 16 was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome (a type of autism) when he was 6. It took a while to get a solid diagnosis because not much was known about autism at the time. My brother was late on EVERYTHING. He never smiled as a baby. He never cooed. He didn't walk until he was almost two. He didn't talk until he was almost three. He never got along well with others. Those aren't the things, though, that led doctors to his diagnosis. First off, a diagnosis of autism is not the end of the world. Yes, my brother struggles every single day of his life, but he also is one of the brightest and most interesting people I have ever met in my life. Yes, raising a child with autism is a daily struggle and a battle that never ends, but it is also very rewarding. Autistic children just think in a whole different way than most children. If you as a parent can understand the way they think, parenting an autistic child will be a lot easier. Siblings of autistic children typically develop a very strong and protective relationship with their autistic brother or sister. It's a very rewarding experience in that sense because the children will have a strong bond. The hardest part of having an autistic child is watching them in their daily struggle to socialize and interact with other people and their surroundings. Second off, there is nothing in your original post that suggests your daughter is autistic. One of the most obvious indicators is sensitivity to bright lights and loud noises. They will make all the noise in the world, but as soon as someone or something else is loud, they get very very angry. Autistic children are typically extremely aggressive, especially when spanked. Spankings are a completely non-effective way to punish an autistic child. Autistic children will not play well with others. They have mood changes very abruptly. What a lot of people don't understand is that autistic children typically also have other psychological or neurological diseases as well. For example, my brother is very bipolar, and has epilepsy (seizure disorder) and schizophrenia. Autistic children also tend to be very compulsive (will pick their nose CONSTANTLY without realizing it OR with boys they will play with their junk a lot). In a previous post you said you had never noticed anything that would lead you to believe your daughter is autistic. Believe me, even for a mother who loves their child with all their heart (as I am sure is the case with you), you would notice something and you would have taken action by scheduling doctor appointments. Yes, symptoms get progressively more apparent as the child gets older, but many things are apparent early on. I'm not saying I know everything on this topic, but I have done countless hours of research on this topic. I lived with my brother for 8 years before going away to school. I still am very very close to him. I have gone to support groups. I think the world of my mother. She gave up a lot (her career, social life, etc) when my brother was born because of how much she had to care for him. She still doesn't work because she has to keep in contact with him all day while he is at school. I think the world of my mother and think she is so strong and so loving. She has grown so much over the years and has so much insight and patience. Like I said, it's a struggle, but autistic children are very wonderful wonderful kids.

Flapping arms, rocking, spinning around in a circle all the time, lining up toys in a straight line, I mean perfectly straight over and over. It's more than a speech delay. My son hates loud noises and bright lights, won't eat vegetables or meat unless it's a Mcdonald's chicken nugget. Sensory issues, etc. My son stopped talking/babbling at 11-12 months old. I thought it was because my husband had just left for a 6 month deployment. He didn't talk again until he was about 4-5 years old.

[ColCoolPants]

Also, please please please continue to keep your little girl up to date on her vaccinations. There is no sound medical research that correlate vaccinations with autism. Also, would you rather your child get extremely ill or possibly die from a disease that could be prevented through a vaccine or would you rather have a child who struggles in school and has some social issues? That's my whole logic on the issue.

Not saying you were considering not vaccinating, I just wanted to throw that out there just in case.

[ArmyCupcake]

My parents were worried about me when I was little. Instead of speaking I would point to things and my parents and my sister would try and figure out what I wanted. I caught up and now they can't get me shut up. I am not autistic. Get a second opinion.

[Caimbrie]

Sounds like the dr is overreacting just a bit. Deplayed speach alone is not enough to even begin to diagnose autism... not even close.

[MS234755]

I would personally get a second opinion, b/c it doesn't sound like traditional autism. But even if she is hun, "working with her more" or doing EVERYTHING differently would not change or prevent it from happening. You did nothing wrong