Hi all,
I would like some advice if anyone has experienced this before.
I have a 3yo DS who has a language delay, which has resulted in a SALT referral. His language has developed okay; the main concern is his pronunciation (which most adults find hard to understand). I understand him majority of the time but some things I haven't a clue on what hes trying to say. We have attended our SALT appt today, and the therapist has said that my DS is showing SOME signs of neurodivergence. She brought up the same things that his nursery highlighted during our parents' evening. He repeats things over and over again until he sees it through, for example, asking for a biscuit many times before he actually gets it in his hand. When he is excited, he'll jump up and down with his hands straight (this is a relatively new way he expresses his happiness; before this it was clapping and other ways of showing joy), and he also has been having terrible tantrums since I removed his dummy a few weeks after he turned 2yo. Most of his tantrums are neurotypical (gets over it quite quickly when hes had a cuddle) but then other times, if he's extremely angry they can last up to an hour. And lastly, when he is at school he knows the routine of things very well, for example the teacher said when she ticks off all the childrens names during registration, until he sees her do the tick against his name, she can't move forward.
Aside from the above, my DS is very sociable, takes to new people very well, likes to join in with games, plays with other children well. He is very 'go with the flow' while hes at home with me, he answers to his name, has very good eye contact, he pretend plays, he points things out while we're out, trys to describe what hes done at school, he takes directions very well, if he's unsure he'll ask for help. He is VERY observant and has been this way pretty much from the day he was born and he has a marvellous memory. He only has to go somewhere once and remembers the way, for example he'll count down the bus stops and knows which stop is ours. When we moved house, I took him to our local park which is a good few streets away, and he knew the way the second time we went to the park. Also, he only has to be shown how to do something once, and he'll remember how to do it (of course, within reason for his age group). He knows alot of the other generic stuff, ABC'S,counting,colours,animals,vehicles. He also takes directions like hopping, running,walking,stop,go,wait,climbing,skipping. He is very good on bikes, a tricycle,a balance bike, a scooter. He is very much a typical boy.
He was born tongue-tied, and he is also lip-tied. He is suspected to have large adenoids. He also has sleep apnea because he is always congested- like he has a constant cold and he kinda almost talks through his nose. Which I also had as a kid which resulted in me having adenoids and tonsils removed when I was 6. We're waiting to be seen by a paediatrician for these issues.
My apologies for such a long-winded post, but ultimately my question is: has anybody else's child presented some ASD traits but not had a formal diagnosis?
If no diagnosis, what interventions took place to help support your child and lastly did SOME traits progress into more neurodivergence with a diagnosis.
Of course, I would prefer that my child isn't on the spectrum- my godson is on the spectrum, and I've had my best friend on the phone in tears on so many occasions because I know its such a fight to get SEN kids the support they need. I'm a single parent without any support so it's really not an extra fight I want to do. However, if it is the case I'll get on with it how mums do. If you have gotten this far in my post then bless you lol. Any opinions or thoughts is welcome.
Thanks :)