My 2 year old stoped talking

[Mason23588]

Hi ... just looking for some advise ... and seeing if any 1 else has experienced anything like this ....so
My son hit the not mile stones walk . crawl . Laugh . At the average age .... at about 14/16 months he could say Mamma dada nana .... naanaaa(banana) .... he also usto know the sound of animals ... I would say what does the dog do heed bark ... why does the snake do heed hisss ... for some reason his stoped talkin when I ask him what does the snake do he looks and waits for me to say it wil a smile on his face ... asif he know what I’m Askin and sayin but won’t respond ... he is good at eye contact when sat on lap doin nursry ryms heel Rowe the boat ... heel wind my fingers for wind the bobbing up .... heel clap MY hands for Pata cake but won’t do his .. he wants me to pay them ... also got books that make noes when U press the animal heel bring me the book and want to use my finger to press it :/ I’m so worrid ... as I’ve red a lot on autism and he has got so many trates but then when some times heel do things they say auntism children don’t do ... I’m waiting on speech and Lang app and my HV is comeing back out to asses again in April I realy hope he will get to understand questions , commands , etc .. any 1 else experienced this or have anyadviese
Will be much appreciated
Xx

[JiltedJohnsJulie]

What sort of things does he do that you think children with ASD don't do?

[Mason23588]

He will play with me for example .... if I run after him heel run off ... I’ll hide heel come and find me to chase him again ! ... also when I sit with him to sing nursry ryms heel happly let me sing nursry rhymes and join in duin actions ... with good eye contact smiling .... he will also bring books to me to read to him with him tiring the pages ..... some times gets bored easly tho x thanks for you comment back to me x

[JiltedJohnsJulie]

So he's making good eye contact, that's great.

If you are still worried about ASD, and I'm guessing you are as you've been googling so much, I'd do the m-Chat. At least then you'll know if he's high risk for ASD and needs an assessment

Can you self refer for a hearing test too or get your HV to refer you?

[Mason23588]

Heath visitors has refer me for hearing test but his hearing seems spot on .... sounds silly .. I can shake his dummy so the candle ov it’s clicks as such if u get me .... n he comes and finds it straight away ... no matter what his doin or watching .... :/ and what’s the m chat ?? I will have a look x

[Mason23588]

Hi I have done the m Chart and it indicates high rish ://///
What do I do now as the number u contact on ther is in Spanish or something who do I get intouch with cuz my H/v and other professionals seem to say he’s to erlie to diagnose :/ so what do I do or do I contact or shall I wait to see speech and language and ask them ... x

[JiltedJohnsJulie]

If he's high risk on the m-Chat, I'd book an appointment with the GP, make sure you take the m-chat results and ask for a referral for assessment for ASD.

From what I've read on here, it can take 2 years to get a diagnosis so the sooner you start on that journey the better

[Mason23588]

Ok that’s great thanks so much corn advise
Can I ask ... have u experienced with ur children anything or is it what u have read ? X

[JiltedJohnsJulie]

It is from what I've read sorry. We have suspected DD might be on the spectrum but she's not affected that much iygwim?

[AladdinMum]

You have very valid concerns. Your various examples of hand leading (using your hand as a tool), together with a delayed expressive language (which you mentioned in a previous message), a regression in expressive language with a high failing score in the mchat at 25M is very concerning and an autism diagnosis would be likely. Not pointing to request (like to food or a toy) AND to show interest (a plane in the sky) by 20M nearly always means autism. Your son needs to be referred to a development pediatrician.

[user1486640640]

Hi alladinmum, are you a health professional by any chance? or an autism specialist? I've seen you post on a more recent thread about autism and you'd said again that not pointing to objects 'nearly always means autism'. And I'm wondering where you get your statistics from. because there are other ways for a child (especially one with a speech and language delay like speech apraxia or dyslexia) to get a parents attention.

[Goldmandra]

OP, try not to make, or listen to, too many assumptions.

Children with ASD can be very, very different. There isn't a rule that they all follow.

It's really good that you have identified that he may have ASD early on. Interventions work better if they are in place early.

Nobody can look at a snapshot of a child and say whether they do or don't have ASD. Diagnosis is a long and complicated process that usually involved a number of professionals from different discipline spending time observing the child, talking to you and then comparing what they have recorded against the diagnostic criteria.

You DS is a long way off from an autism diagnosis just now. However, he may have a neurodevelopmental disorder and identifying it now would be helpful to him.

Go to your GP and ask for a referral for a neurodevelopmental assessment. You aren't asking for anyone to diagnose him. You're asking for professionals to assess him, identify any additional needs he may have and make recommendations for supporting him.

I have two DDs with ASD. They were diagnosed at 12 and 7. I wouldn't change them for the world. If your DS gets a diagnosis, it won't make him any different from the gorgeous little boy you cherish right now.

[user1486640640]

what's important to remember is that there are many speech and language delays and development disorders that can sometimes display themselves as autism before a proper diagnosis. I'm going through the same thing with my son. lack of pointing and waving is very common among children with speech and language delays.
Get a proper diagnosis as fast as you can as early intervention is important if your son is autistic. my sons speech therapist said that she sees hundreds of children who show symptoms of autism and dont have it.

[Goldmandra]

my sons speech therapist said that she sees hundreds of children who show symptoms of autism and dont have it.

Just a word of caution.... this could be because some of these children are denied a diagnosis at this stage, only to receive one later on. This happens far too often and confirmation bias can play a significant role in this poor decision-making. It can result in children missing out in early interventions that could have improved their outcomes.

[user1486640640]

Hi, Thanks for the info, I want to get him privately assessed. So that way he won’t miss out on the early diagnosis

[AladdinMum]

@user1486640640 - yes, I have been studying children development for many years with a specialization in autism - I have looked at hundreds of diagnosed cases, being present in many ADOS tests, consulted with many DPs, etc. If a child is just speech delayed (including apraxia) a child will INCREASE its use of gesturing specially pointing (not decrease it or not point at all). So while the average child under 2 with no speech delays points between 15-30 times a day, the same child with a speech delay will on average point between 50-75 times a day - this is always the case in hundreds of cases and studies. If a child is not pointing both to request and share by 20 months there is nearly always something going on more than a speech delay, in just over 90% of cases its autism, in the other 10% it's cases that include vision issues (unable to see properly to point or follow a point), physical issues (physically unable to isolate an index finger using hand or lift arm), or something along similar lines. While there are cases of children not pointing by 20M but pointing by 24M with no impairments and go on to develop normally these cases are extremely rare, I have only seen one (possibly two) cases in the past five years (out of hundreds and hundreds). Not pointing/pointing is considered by many professionals in the field as one of the best and most reliable hard markers for the onset of autism by 24M.

A speech therapist is not qualified in any way to even mention the word autism. This point is really frustrating as I hear it all the time from worried parents but I have witnessed hundreds of cases where professionals from EI (so speech therapists, occupational therapists, play stepsister, etc) have said that a child has no or little signs of autism and then go on to see a DP and get diagnosed.

[hullaboo]

What are the early interventions for Autism? I always hear about people wanting early diagnosis to get this help, but do they actually exist via the NHS or pre school ?

My son may have Autism. Sometimes I think he doesn't, then I see him with other children and see how differently he behaves. He has a speech delay diagnosed, so that could be part of it, but they is very little help for his speech so far.

A few friends have school age children with ASD and all they seem to say is there is no support for their children. Maybe this is just due to the area I live in?

[hullaboo]

Sorry for being a bitter jaded moo in my recent post.

I was I should of said OP is that unfortunately somethings that seem like they could be signs of Autism, can be just normal toddler stuff or a phase. Especially if there is something else going on like speech. I know what it's like to worry, I still worry. It's good to be aware but don't over do it.

I feel I have not enjoyed my DS enough due to worrying about everything. They are still your child. As frustrating as it is the watch and see what happens is due to age

Ps my son used to use my hand to press things around 18 months - 2, and no longer does this. He was quite obsessive with certain toys, but is now very good at role play games.

[triballeader]

If a child is not pointing both to request and share by 20 months there is nearly always something going on more than a speech delay
I am going to concur with this.

There are three types of delay, speech, language and communication. They can occur for reasons other than autism. Sometimes it can be something as simple as an active child whose development progress has favoured activity over speech. If you feel your seeing strange development quirks it is worth seeking advice from a peaditrician who knows about child development. IF a child does have a noticeable delay the quicker this is picked up then you give a child a chance for a better longer term outcome for a child as they grow.

My eldest [autism picked up with atypical signs and development from day 1] did NOT point, did NOT seek to try and play with anyone, did NOT make sounds resembling speech. He has a severe communication disorder as part of ASD.
My third had a language delay from ASD, [Aspergers and gifted] he struggled with the semantic pragmatic side of language and had word finding difficulties [described objects & people by what they did rather than by name] He did not point- he would howl form frustration.
My fourth does not have ASD but had a speech delay and pointed a lot. Partly down to severe IUGR & severe failure to thrive causing dyspraxia and dyslexia but mostly down to her older sister doing all the talking for her rather than let her get her own words out.