9 month baby occasionally has 'few seconds' stare...normal?

[chestert]

My otherwise very alert, chatty, hugely watchful, engaging - masses of eye contact since v eraly - DS has been occasionally drifting off into space - maybe just looking intensely past me for a few seconds, no more. I can call his name and he'll smile etc.

Is it normal? I really worry about ASD...

We used to joke that DS could see ghosts as when he was a baby he'd stare intently just past you at absolutely nothing for a few moments. He's 2 now and seems ok - well as ok as a toddler ever can be

perfectly normal.

why are you worried about asd?

My DD does this a lot, she's 18mo.

We call her Dolly Daydreams and think no more of it!

all of mine used to stare intently at a space just above my head.

none of them are on the spectrum. well, ds1 might just flick the gauge, but for sensory/ other issues rather than eye contact.

I'm glad to know it's normal. It just scared me a little; he's so full on engaging otherwise

For some horrible, shameful reason, I am just scared of him being on the ASD. Don't ask my why that's my particular fear. There is no reason it, it's just something I seemed to attach to during pregnancy and still rears itself now. Please don't judge me; I'm well aware of the horribleness of it. I probably could do with some therapy around it.

Thanks for the reassurance, appreciated

part of your job as a parent is to worry about everything. x

if it helps, dd2 has cp (obv we didn't know before she was born and it hadn't crossed my mind) and all sorts of things seem really v terrible and frightening at a distance. the reality is always less so. x

madwoman 'the reality is always less so'

I know. I really do know. As I said, totally irrational and so shaming. It makes me cry thinking of how irrational it is.

I have prodded dd1 in the past and made her start and cry when she used to do it. I was convinced she was having some sort of fit

dd2 is not assaulted in such a manner when she is staring aimlessly!

We are all irrational don't worry

ah bertie, prodding not necessary, you can do the 'chuck a cotton wool ball' test to rule out absences.

I think I'm more irrational than most. I must reign it in. It makes things so joyless, unnecessarily