Early signs of autism- Flapping arms & not answering to name

[horrorrockett]

there is nothing in this video that says "autism" you put him in a ball pit..how do you expect him to react?

[HiKick92]

Is this kid alright now?

[bpoag]

This is a baby being a baby... hardly autism.

[aware4autism]

@bpoag and where did you go to medical school? I just love how people can undiagnose children on youtube. You see, multiple signs are needed for a child to be diagnosed on the spectrum. In fact, ALL children will display a sign or two of autism during their development.

I am relieved however, that so many people see the normalcy in autism. It does give me great hope for my daughter's future. Thankfully, she was dx'd early, and with the benefit of early intervention, is doing great now!

[bpoag]

..Where did I go to medical school?

I -have- Autism!

Look. Your child would benefit more by having a less paranoid mother than he would by carrying an unnecessary label throughout his life, receiving treatment he or she may not even need.

YouTube is loaded with videos being shared by concerned parents going, "See? See?!! He's flapping his arms and not acknowleding me when I use his name!!" ... Just stop it.

Worry less, and enjoy your child learning about the world.

[aware4autism]

@bpoag I have a vagina, and have given birth to 2 children, that does not mean I am a qualified OB/GYN!!!!

Who are you to determine whether or not this child needs therapy? Perhaps we should worry less, and forget about carseats and seatbelts while we are at it, according to your logic.

How did you determine that this child's mother isn't enjoying him learning about the world?

[aware4autism]

@bpoag Please don't tell me that you are one of those that didn't get diagnosed until after you started school. If so, you have an entirely different type of autism than what these children have. My child, at 6, cannot answer questions. I am thankful for what little communication she does have- I credit early intervention for this.

[aware4autism]

@bpoag There is nothing wrong with parents identifying the differences in their children as early as possibly, in hopes of understanding and accepting their differences, rather than continuing to expect them to behave in a nuerotypical fashion!

[AENIMA42069]

i dont see the autistic signs here. just a really focused baby having fun. it kind of seems like alot of what are labeled as early signs of autism are also normal behavior for healthy babies. do most of the signs exhibit at a later age? like 3-6? i have an 8month old, no real reason to be concerned that she has autism.. she has exeded many of the behavioral benchmarks that are set for a later age.. but just like any parent i am curious and want that reasurance that my child is healthy....

[Weisenheimer78]

I agree that this short clip does not accurately portray all the dimensions that make up autism, but the signs DEFINATELY appear before 3-6. The biggest sign (in mu opinion) is a gut feeling that your baby is developing differently: a genius that is somehow missing the point of the game/activity/interaction but is experiencing what they are experiencing on such a more intense level that you wonder if the whole world has the point of the game misconstrued.

[aware4autism]

@AENIMA42069 many signs of autism are normal baby behavior! However, when toddlers persist with this behavior & have multiple signs of autism, intervention should be made as early as possible. A good tool is the MCHAT (modified checklist for autism in toddlers), it is very accurate, and is the reason my daughter received the early intervention that has saved her at 22 mos. She's now 6, and in a high functioning regular standards autistic kindergarten classroom- and may be mainstreamed one day!

[AutisticWhoLives4God]

I didn't respond to my name when I was little, but again, nobody knew the signs. I probably could have been diagnosed when I was less than two years old, but I was diagnosed at 13. I'm doing fine now. I love learning about autism.

[Yavvy]

He's never going to be a typical child; Autism is a different way of being & seeing the world, not a disease that can be cured.

In any case, it's good that you've found out early, so you can better understand & teach him and avoid a lot of suffering. Just stay away from Autism Speaks!

[kimaam]

my 3 yr old flaps his arms and hes been doing that since he was an infant, I thought it was autism but when I took him to a autism dr. two days ago he told me its not autism. That all hes got is PDD, and that with medication it should go away and not turn into autism.

[Gemineyes6190]

PDD is autism its just not specified, which means they don't know exactly what is wrong..there is no medication for pdd, but there are vitamins and supplements kids can take to help them with symptoms..so i would get a second opinion if i were u...

[Weisenheimer78]

@Kimaam, thanks. I always thought PDD_NOS was lifelong and mostly like autism but without the checklist, thanks for helping me to look further.

[lucandreea]

my 6months old baby flaps her hand...is it normal?plese ansewer

[Southsider75]

It can be. It depends. Pay more attention to her interactions with you. Even though she doesn't talk yet, does she communicate somehow/point at things/look at you in response to sounds/smile at you? She should have a "social smile" by now. If you make funny faces or sounds does she look at you and laugh or smile? Will she look at you? If she is around other kids, does she seem more focused on objects than the other kids? (rather than people and their reactions/expressions)?

[mamacordelia]

Thanks for your reply South side75...I have not been on comuter much over past few months due to divorce and moving in new place among a million other things...but your answer was great so thanks a lot...God Bless