Bailey might have autism! :-(

I have had many people comment over the years that Bailey showed signs of autism but it has recently been getting worse so i have looked into it a bit and i think i may have to take him to get checked out! - under the symptoms for babies with autism he had ALL of the 10 or so symptoms and under the child list he has around 70% of them

Does anyone else have a child with autism or have any info that you can share with me please...

TIA

ask your doctor for a referral to a specialist. You come up a bit to auckland dont you? Can you get a referral to starship perhaps??? or via whirinaki (formerly campbell lodge?) now based in Otara / Otahuhu.

There are different degrees of autism too and different ways of handling the levels.

i always wondered when he was a baby why he NEVER wanted to play with toys, he never moved (until he got up and walked at 10ish months!)he didnt roll at all; just layed there staring around, why he didnt like to interact with people or kids, why he ate hardly anything...and then a year ago his speech went back from having an advanced speaking level to not even being able to string a sentence together!!! and when i asked someone about this they said it was normal???, he also does the staring off into space thing, not being able to understand direction, when we call him he looks at us blankly and takes ages to register!...theres heaps more!!

The only thing is that he is not a "slow" kid intelectually he just has communication problems! and he is a somewhat cuddly child (autistic kids arnt cuddly)

I know i need to see a specialist and will be making an appointment on monday, but i just needed to vent and hear others opinions on the subject....

Hi Hon,

Firstly big Hugs to you

My oldest son Josh has a syndrome that has a lot in common with Autism, but sister's son who is four now was diagnosed with Autism at age 2.

I was the first to notice that something was different and supported my sister through the diagnosis.

The best thing to do is to get it checked out as you say, sometimes people can be well meaning with comments but often they can be wrong. Take it one step at a time, check it out and go from there.

I would recommend seeing your GP as a first point of call as they can refer you to a funded specialist in your area. You need the referral to obtain funded specialist services.

I could go on and on here, but won't, if you need someone to talk to just PM me. I would also be happy to put you in touch with my sister as well.

big Hugs and phone your nearest branch of a group called Parent2Parent they should be able to put u in touch with Mums of autistic children and there are autistic associations in most cities

dont think the worst till you have facts... Lots of kids display lots of aspects of autism but it doesnt mean he has autism. get it checked by a professional and put your mind at ease.

My son was diagnosed with autism at 22 months.He was a very content baby always smiling and laughing.After receiving the MMR and the meningoccal vaccine at 15 months his whole attitude changed and he will just scream and head butt I still think that the MMR had something to do a lot of chmeicals going into his body and he couldn't handle it.Later on we learnt changing his diet to gluten free has made him a lot better person although we do give him a bit of gluten.At 4 years and 8 months he says a few words like Uh-Oh, Dad/Dadda, Look, Bye, Ball, That One, That Way and Bob(as in Bob The Builder) and has said a few at daycare.He understands everything nothing gets past him, he has a very loving care nature and if you ask him to give so and so a cuddle he will go up to them.He has been going to daycare since he was 21 months old and it has certainly helped with his socialising and he just loves the attention.

Best thing is to take him to a developmental pediatrician or get in contact with the ministry of education.

Edited by kiwigal

kiwigal I hear you on the MMR BUt I also think that up until that age they are like "Normal" children its when they get to around 2 that signs show up. I did hear that they had done lots of tests into the MMR and came up with that that didn't cause Autisum - and that Austism is created in the wonb in the first trimester... although most test are always unconclusive and futher studies will be done.

thanks ladies! its great to know that i can come on here and get advice and support with stuff like this!

I went through the list of symptoms kiwigal listed and marked the ones Bay displays... (YES - he has the symp and NO - no he doesnt)


Failure to respond when his/her name is called. (YES)
- Inability to communicate his/her needs or wants verbally. (HALF AND HALF)
- Delays in verbal communication skills and repeating words or phrases instead of normal speech. (NO)
- Failure to follow directions. (YES)
- Occasionally appears to be deaf even though hearing test results are normal. (MOST DEFINATELY YES!)
- Doesn’t point at objects of interest. (YES)
- Doesn’t wave good-bye or hello. (NOT SURE ACTUALLY??)
- Stops speaking. (YES!)
- Unusually forceful tantrums and unusual emotional responses. (YES)
- Strange patterns of movement. (YES)
- Hyperactive, obstinate, or defiant. Can display overly aggressive behavior or tendencies to self-harm. (HES ONLY DEFIANT OUT OF THESE ONES)
- Appears not to know how to play with toys. (WAS MOSTLY LIKE THIS AS A BABY)
- Fails to smile when smiled at. (NO)
- Doesn’t make or maintain appropriate eye contact. (NO)
- Performs repetitive motions or routines. Wants to have the same daily routine and dislikes change. (SOMETIMES)
- Prefers playing alone. (YES)
- Thinks only to get things for him/herself and not others. (NO)
- Exhibits more independence than is normal for his/her age. (YES!)
- Early performance of activities. (YES)
- Ignoring or tuning out people. May not like to be hugged or have physical contact. (YES BUT HE IS A CUDDLY BOY BUT ONLY WITH IMMEDIATE FAMILY)
- Shows no interest in peers and may be scared of crowds. (YES, MOSTLY MORE NOW THAT HES OLDER)
- Tiptoe walking. (NO)
- Will only eat certain foods and have many food allergies. (YES)
- General ongoing digestion problems. (YES!)
- Unusual sensitivity to normal noises, smells and an over or underdeveloped sensitivity to pain. (HE CAN TOLERATE PAIN ALOT MORE THAN I WOULD EXPECT HIM TO)
- Unresponsive to normal teaching methods (YES)

some of those things that i marked YES i wonder if its just because he a boy!!

I know it's hard, but I wouldn't jump to conclusions, I think a lot of kids could have a number of those things. DH was referred to a psych when he was little because he barely communicated and didn't socialise or play with others and he was fine. The psych said that he just wasn't a socialite. And still isn't!

As for the non-cuddly thing, if you were to go down the autism route, aspergers children are more likely to be quite cuddly. Actual autism is quite severe, but there are a lot of things on the autism scale.

I hope you get some answers soon for your own piece of mind