# speach delay? or autisum?!



## TaylorsMummyx

Hi there :) Im kim, i used to be on here but havent for a longggg time :(

So, i have a little boy [my 2nd child] Called Dexter whos 21nhalf months old. He will be 2 on 1st oct.

He doesnt say a word.. Not one! No mum dad ect all he says is "mmmmaammmaaammaa" at a push. Doesnt say yes or no or anything. He didnt sit up until 9months, didnt crawl but "comando crawled". Didnt walk until 17ish months.

been to see HV soo many times and brushed off with the "he will catch up" orr "second child syndrome"!

He has very weak core muscle strengh, so he cant lift his head up of floor, roll over. But he can climb.

he is very angry little boy :( hates cuddles, hates change, if anyone comes into room he screams at them. he hits people, just seems frustrated but not about anything.

i have no idea where to turn. been to the drs "hes a normal boy". But in my heart i dont know if soemthing is wrong?

He has been referred for a hearng test because he doesnt answer me ect

he also been referred for speach thearpy after hes 2.

advice please :(


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## fairywings

Hi my nephew has autistic spectrum disorder and was slow at starting to speak. He had other little things he would do though like line things up neatly - really obsessive. My OH has ADHD and was really quick at everything. He did have anger issues though, so it could be something spectrum related although it will take a while to clarify if this is the case.

My nephew also has dyspraxia, where he can't use his hands properly and they shake. With phsiotherapy your sons core muscle strength could improve but I would think since you are being fobbed off at the moment you would really have to push for it. I would seek second and third and whatever amount of opinions because as parents we know when something just isn't right.

When he has had his hearing test and speech therapy and they see themselves his weakness they could refer you to a physiotherapist and see if he needs it.

Hopefully it is just a speech delay. :hug:


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## fairywings

There is a post below this one which may help you, too. xxx


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## velvetina

Hi lovely,

Sorry your little man is having rough time, I have certainly come across children with speech delay who exhibit asd traits and as the speech comes the traits disappear. The fact he is so cross may be to do with his lack of communication and expressive skills. 

Have you thought about looking at a pecs book for him? It may help with his frustration if he can communicate this way with you until his speech comes.

I have posted this many times before and will again because you are asking about asd. To help you look in detail at those areas where asd traits are visible and to help awareness, I have attached a link for the Mchat which is a checklist for autism in toddlers, it should give you a good idea of what to look for. I would suggest making notes on all these, noting the date and his age, it will be a good marker for when you see the salt and any other health professsionals. Keep notes of what he is doing and his age.

https://www.childbrain.com/pddassess.html

He sounds very similar to a friend's son last year who had severe speech delay and exhibited many asd traits. This little boy has made so much progress it is incredible. 

I would suggest you taking the mchat to your gp and presenting your findings and your concerns and asking for a referal. I had 4 health visitors tell me my son was fine, he was not, I knew he wasn't. 

Please let us know how you get on and wish you all the best. :hugs:


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## TaylorsMummyx

i have just done that scoring and it came out as 158?!


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## WearMyKissx

TaylorsMummyx said:


> i have just done that scoring and it came out as 158?!

If it helps, my son got a 179 with that test, it says thats a severe PDD - which I looked up and it means ASD. 

My son is 2 and a half, not really talking but can say some words (first word was at 2 years old) and we are waiting for speech therapy for him and they're quite certain he has autism. They just want to rule out hearing/eye problems before they properly diagnose him with autism.


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## velvetina

Hun, have you thought about taking this questionnaire to your gp and explaining how worried you are and cannot wait until he is 2. x


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## Marleysgirl

Andrew will be 2 in August, though he's only 20m corrected. He has a hearing disorder, he has feeding & growth issues, he had epilepsy last year.

He makes a tuneful noise but there are no real consonants in his speech. However, his pre-schools advisor and his teacher of the deaf are BOTH very happy with his vocalising, and they believe speech will catch up eventually.


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## Midnight_Fairy

Hi, I would skip HV and go straight to doctors xxx


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## MUMOF5

If in doubt keep pushing for a referral, I had a health visitor and two GP's tell me there was nothing wrong with my son, it wasnt until I changed doctors and got a new health visitor that i was taken seriously. My son has now been diagnosed with severe autism.xx


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## flowertot

hi, im in the same position as you with my little boy. he is 18 months old and i took him to the HV at 14 months because i was worried he was showing symptoms. they sent me away saying he was too young. i took him to the docs at 17 months and he said wait and see. i wasnt happy so went back to the HV and finally they did the CHAT checklist and referred his straight away. we are just waiting for the first appointment to come through now. my DS only said mamamamam until a couple of days ago, now he has started to say dada too but thats it. i understand what you're going through. make sure you keep pushing and ask them to do the CHAT checklist. xx


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## JASMAK

First, I really doubt your HV is qualified to make any diagnosis or not of whether a child has autism. My daughter has autism, and we long suspected so before we finally questioned at 18 months. You will hear of a child with autism who has classic symptoms, and others will only have some...or their symptoms will be different. Makena had NO speech either, but was no delayed in her motor development (but is now). You will hear of some who line things up, flaps their hands, and doesn't like hugs...well, Makena loves hugs, has never flapped her hands, and I have never seen her line anything up. So...go with your gut. Your gut is worried. Listen to that. You feel something is wrong. Get an appointment with a pediatrician. If you can, see a Developmental Pediatrician. Also, if you can't see speech yet, pay for it. It costs about $100/hr here, but you can get stuff you can work on at home. A good book for ANY child without communication is called "More Than Words". Get it. It has activities you can work on with your child. Also, you could try some sign language. We started that with Makena. The system is slow...so do what you can on your own...diagnosis, or not. x


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