Is this normal childhood behaviour or something else?

[Zfbaby]

Hi all,
Firstly I just want to say if this is just normal baby behaviour and I'm being a neurotic FTM then I apologise if anyone is offended.
My lo is almost 9 month and for a long while he has been sticking is legs and arms straight out and makes a growling noise. He also goes very quiet for a minute stares off into the distance like hes zoned out and then suddenly screeches really loudly. He's a very vocal baby often screeching and screaming especially when excited. At first I just thought it was that he'd discovered he could make sounds and would repeat it over and over. Now I'm not sure. A friend has started commenting on it because her baby is the same age and my son makes hers cry when he screeches and she said her lo never makes rigid jerky movements like mine. My hv also mentioned it in passing, she joked he looked like Frankenstein like it was something she hadn't seen before and now I can't shake the idea there could me more to it. She also asked me why he was covered in scratches because his skin is so soft when I said he's constantly scratching himself she said "hmm that's odd". I've since read autistic children do tend to scratch themselves repeatedly, is this true? He seems fine another than that although he has been a little slower to do things like rolling and standing etc he has no idea how to flex his knees and never bounces just goes ridged if you stand him up. he's quite a chunky baby so I had put that down to that. He's smiley and laughs etc but the weird noises seem not quite right.
I also wanted to add that I mentioned to my hv that he's not very good at making eye contact with me and he doesn't mimic us (like poking tongue out etc). I was watching a news clip about autism and they showed some basic tests which included calling the child's name and talking whilst looking straight at the child. When I call ds he may look very briefly and then looks away and if I follow him he looks away again. when I make eye contact and speak to him he does the same or looks at my mouth. His fine motor skills are very good, I'm always being told that but something FEELS wrong.
Again very sorry if this is nothing but I just wondered if anyone could put me at ease or advise me on what to look out for. I read things online and think oh wow that's what Lou does but then others tell me it's nothing.

 

[sequeena]

You won't be able to have autism diagnosed at such a young age but if you are worried you should speak to your GP and be referred to the relevant people - perhaps a paediatrician

 

[Zfbaby]

Thanks- we have an appt with gp today. I'm worried she will laugh us out of the surgery.
The more I read the more I find sounds like my son and the more worried I am.
I've realised from reading information online that some of the "quirks" my baby has might point to sensory issues? He hates loudspeaker noises eg the blender, Hoover and hair dryer yet as a nb he would be lulled to sleep by them. He loves bath time but goes nuts when we wash his hair and ppl have always laughedt the fact that we call him canary because to get him to sleep we have to put a blanket over he pram and block out all lights even the small light on the baby monitor needs to be covered before he will sleep. He has horrendous sleep issues, wakes every 1-2 hrs at night and only naps for 30mins twice a day. He's also not cuddly and will arch away when held and cry more if upset.
My dh is of the opinion I'm looking for something where there is nothing and he's fine. He says that as he makes eye contact and smiles there is no issue. I can't help think of all the little things that add up though. Also and this could be where I sound ridiculous, my sons head is very flat at the back. I've heard that this can be linked with autism. Is that true? Is it worth mentioning to gp?

 

[sequeena]

Flat head is common in babies. My son had it. It's usually nothing to worry about. Explain all your worries I'm sure your GP won't laugh at you. It is hard to figure out what's going on with a child so young though so please don't be surprised if they want to wait for another 6 months or so. The behaviours he's displaying now may disappear x

 

[Zfbaby]

Again thanks!
We went to dr today who whilst on one hand laughed at the idea of an 8 month old showing signs did also say that his behaviour was unusual but that you can't get a diagnosis until 4yrs so she was unprepared to do much until much later, around 2.5. She also told me that nothing can be done about autism so it doesn't really matter either way!!!! I'm pretty sure that from what I've heard from other forums, medical sites, journals etc that a diagnosis can be made before 4 and therapy can help improve the situation so I'm at a loss as to what to think really. She had me call my son and there was no response, he didn't reach to be picked up/ anticipate being picked up and when she took him away from us and went outside the room he didn't get upset. She handed him toys that he took from her and raked along the floor and chewed on so she said that was him engaging. she thought he was fine but that as her colleagues would laugh at her for referring us to a specialist at this age she wouldn't. She could only get a small smile out of him and we've struggled to get one today but normally he's really smiley. A friend if mine thinks that this is normal change in behaviour around this time and that it's caused by a growth spurt. I'm lucky that another of her friends is a consultant paed and she's going to ask her to take a look.

Sorry my posts are so long winded!!

 

[Nibblenic]

It is young for a diagnosis, not impossible but young. I agree the early you start helping the child cope with ASD symptoms the better. However there is nothing to stop you treating any on spectrum behaviour he has like he has ASD as he grows.

You're obviously doing your research, keep doing it. Keep noting behaviours. You dont need a diagnosis to be a good mum to your individual child.

 

[lozzy21]

The reason they don't diagnose untill 3/4 is because most behaviours displayed by autistic children are also normal at some point or another. Nothing you have posted is unusual at your child's age and the more you look for things the more you will see even if they are perfectly normal.

 

[Zfbaby]

Hi all! Thanks for your thoughts. I managed to get some of his "odd behaviour" on video and showed it to both my friends peads friend and my hv they both told me to take him back to the dr. We saw him today and he believes Louis is having seizures of some kind. We now have to wait until Monday to see a consultant near us.
Waiting is horrendous!

 

[Eternal]

I was going to say the rigid body and grunting sounds like possible fits of some kind, glad you are getting them looked at.

Any signs of ASD at this point is very young, yes looking back many of my sons signs were there from birth, but they could equally of just normal childhood things, children so get diagnoses before 4 though, my son will be formally diagnosed this year but entered the pathway last week, he is 4. ASD takes a long time to get a diagnosis from and I out needed from various specialised professionals, I would not get too focused on that yet, 9 months is quite young, but the fit type behaviour does need investigated and you may find that of any medical cause is ruled out they may start looking at behavioral problems, but as I say. The wait and process is very long. Keep us updated x