Non verbal autistic children

[Doggydoggydoggy]

I hope it doesn’t come across wrong but can they be ‘normal’ in every way except verbal speech?

By that I mean, can they understand everything, follow instructions, communicate clearly (but without speech), be attentive to their surroundings etc just like a verbal child, just without speech and still be autistic?

My youngest DS still isn’t talking, not even babbling.
He communicates by shaking his head, pointing/grabbing/holding out hands and squeaking.
He was 2 at the end of September last year.
He has seen a therapist who says she has never before seen a child like him which isn’t terribly reassuring...

He is being referred for a hearing test but seeing as he responds to absolutely everything and understands everything I don’t see how it could possibly be a hearing issue.

Sounds like DLD - Development language disorder. He’s probably too young for a diagnosis though.

If a child is completely typical in their communication but is unable to speak, they would not meet autism criteria. Without looking at your son obviously it's not possible to comment on whether his interaction and non verbal communication is in fact typical for his age of course.

Autism is fundamentally a communication disorder; not a speech disorder. Atypical communication is an essential feature, whether or not there is speech present.

There are several developmental language disorders which can affect a person's ability to speak (several previous posters have mentioned verbal dyspraxia, which is one example). I would not suspect hearing impairment - at least not severe enough to prevent any speech development - if he has good understanding, unless he is an excellent lip reader. But it should be a first Port of call to rule it out.

Bugger, zombie thread. That was a waste of 15 mins typing then....

Op, can you find another therapist?

My ds didn’t say a single word until he was 27 months. Then he said “key” a lot. And then moved onto whole sentences.

He’s fine. No issues. He’s 11 now.

My son didn’t speak until he started school aged 4. His pronunciation is still poor though he can speak clears now and again. . His speech therapist has been rubbish tbh,won’t even hint what is wrong with him. I think it’s verbal dyspraxia. I did think he was autistic when younger due to his meltdowns

Ah FFS, I hate getting duped into zombie threads.

I think the poster who resurrected it was new and genuinely wanted some advice though