Parents of autistic children with similar early signs, how are they now?

[TNL]

My 3 year old daughter is currently being looked at for possible autism and is under a portage team . She’s abit of a conundrum as there is many aspects of her presentation which don’t fit under the conventional symptoms of autism
I’m looking for any parents who’s children presented a-bit like my daughter and tell me what their children are like now , did things improve ? How much support did they end up needing and did they go on to achieve positive things ? I’m new to this so apologies if I have not phrased anything well .
my daughters presentation is this

• speech and language delay ( getting better everyday and now is beginning to say 2 work sentences ) , can gesture , hand lead and point to make her needs known .
• socialy she struggles , while she loves adults and plays well with adults she’s got not interest in her peers . She will join in with a group activity if she finds it interesting but will play along side rather than with . At gatherings she would be happy being alone doing her own thing
• she is incredibly observant and ‘ switched on’ , she’s very good at problem solving and often takes things apart to put them back togeather . She finds anything more than simple instructions diffecult .
• is not sensitive to sounds , lights etc , can get overwhelmed but have not witnessed her having a traditional meltdown in the true meaning of the word. She if anything is a sensory seeker , loves sensory input and often puts things in her mouth
• isn’t restricted to routines or ritualistic behaviours , she’s able to go with the flow and has no issues with eating etc .
• she loves the outdoors , anything messy / sensory based , loves music , lives arts and crafts and is incredibly affectionate. Very soft natured
• on paper she’s about 15 months behind on her speech , language and social skills

Any insight into what people whom have had similar difficulties are like now would be very much appreciated, also did they do okay in mainstream / resource centre ? thank you in advance! X

posting here to gain traction

That doesn't sound like an atypical presentation to me! To my mind most of the traits in your list are fairly standard within the spectrum of autistic traits (I'm sure someone will be along to disagree with me in a minute).

My eldest DS was very similar at age 3. He has always been a sensory seeker and doesn't have meltdowns. The main differences from your list were that while he was very speech delayed, he went from single words to full sentences with a lot of echolalia thrown in. He never did the whole 'putting 2 words together' stage at all. Now the biggest speech issue is interrupting and talking over other people instead of having a 2-way conversation. He is also an atrocious eater to the point where I probably need to get him referred for possible ARFID diagnosis. His main 'atypical' trait for ASD is that he has always been an amazing sleeper.

DS is 8 now and doing well in mainstream primary with a 1:1 TA for about half of every day. He has some fairly superficial friendships but really prefers the company of adults, or his younger brother. I do have my doubts about whether he will achieve the necessary level of organisation/executive function to manage mainstream secondary though.

Firstly, it sounds like you're doing everything you can to understand and support your daughter, and it's completely natural to wonder what the future might look like.
The fact that she's making progress with her speech is really encouraging. At 3, there's still so much development to come, especially with the support of Portage and speech and language therapy. Many children who have delayed speech at this age go on to thrive, whether in mainstream school, a resource provision or with additional support.
Her strengths really stand out too, being observant, enjoying problem-solving, loving the outdoors, arts and crafts, and being affectionate are all wonderful qualities to build on.
I found it reassuring reading information from Autism Detect UK, which explains that autism presents very differently from one child to another, and that early support should be based on a child's individual strengths and needs rather than whether they fit a "typical" profile.
I'd love to hear from parents whose children had a similar presentation. Every child is different, but hopefully you'll get some encouraging stories from people who are a few years further along the journey.