Autism concerns

[Emmaflo]

Hi

Just looking for some reassurance really!
I have a beautiful 9 month old daughter. We had a rough start, I would say the first 5 months, where she was a very difficult baby who cried a lot and seemingly hated the world around her. She screamed and cried at loud noises, refused to be held by anyone but me and her dad and generally did not engage well with people at all. I feel we have come such a long way since these early days but there are still some things that niggle at me that (after some googling) have given me concerns about autism. I'll list what she does brilliantly and then my concerns and if anyone can give me any advice I would really appreciate it 😊

Pros:
Dd has hit all her physical milestones either early or on time. She is a brilliant crawler, cruises round the furniture and is now starting to stand on her own. She can also use a push along walker

Dd's receptive language skills are brilliant. She understands so much of what is being said to her eg gives me her dummy when I ask for it, sits down on her bottom when I ask her to, looks/points at objects when I ask who/what/where they are.

I'm pretty convinced she knows her name. Rarely responds to it when engrossed in something but has responded to her name numerous times in other situations.

Has been pointing for a good few weeks now - both to show you something she is interested in and to point to something she wants. She also waves hello and goodbye and claps. Both when I ask her to and in imitation of someone else.

Very successfully weaned, doesnt appear to have any problems with food.

Concerns:

DD s eye contact is rubbish, whilst she can maintain eye contact, this is rare and when Someone is close to her face she will not look at them at all. She better from a distance but still reluctant to look.

Hates people touching her hands, will actively pull them away to stop people touching her.

Not very affectionate, doesnt mind being carried (and will put arms up to ask to be carried) but doesn't really cuddle in at all and will actively push me away to stop me getting close.

Has only started babbling in the past week and only says babababa, no other consonant sounds. Although I must say she has started to copy my noises and bababa sounds back to me.

All i can think of at the moment but any thoughts appreciated xxx

The concerns you list are not really concerns at 9 months and very typical - baby's naturally turn their head away from you if your head gets too close to theirs (like an adult would too) so it'as not a worries. Her positives are incredibly advanced for a 9 month old baby; such great receptive language and already pointing to share/label at such early age makes autism incredibly unlikely.

Sounds like she’s doing brilliantly to me!

Sounds perfectly normal for a 9 month old. The fact she is showing understanding (and pointing!!!) at only 9 months is very good. I really wouldn’t be concerned with anything you described :)

Thanks for your messages on this, they were very reassuring and I must say 99% of my concerns have gone away. Dd continues to make great progress, she is now walking And her babbling has now improved- we have mama, dada (although not in contact yet), nana and some other odd consonants thrown in. Still not massively chatty like some other babies but I'm guessing that's just her personality. She is also attempting some words that begin with a 'b' e.g. baby, bird etc. Gesturing is still brill, she joins in with actions to lots of nursery rhymes, pointing, clapping, waving etc all right on track. Understanding is coming on leaps and bounds- dd follows instructions, looks at the right things/people when you ask where there are, takes off her bib when you ask her to, points and some things in her books when asked e.g. can identify an apple and a dog etc. I'm thinking this is all pretty good for an 11 month old (as of today!)

The only thing that still bothers me is her eye contact. It's ok from a distance - she will make eye contact when you call her name and look to you when she wants help with something but it's fleeting most of the time. There is no gazing ever (although not sure if that's still she appropriate) and often when I think she's looking at me it turns out she's looking at something just past me. When I'm making her laugh she won't look at me but will always be looking over my shoulder. Is there anything that explains this? Do some people just feel uncomfortable with eye contact? From what I've written above I don't think that autism can really any longer be a concern but can't shake it completely due to my concerns over the eye contact.

Thanks again all xxx

I wouldn't worry about the eye contact, there is a big world for babies to explore and so much to discover around them! I dont expect many babies so young to maintain eye contact for very long at all.

Maybe have a chat with your HV but I think its far too early to worry about autism at this stage anyway.

Be proud that your baby is so advanced for her age! My son is alomst 11 month old and STILL not crawling but would rather bum shuffle and stand against the furniture. Ive stopped worrying about him now crawling yet as not every baby will be the same and they willdo things in their own time at their own pace.
There is always something for us Mummies to worry about, a lot of it unecessary!

Hi, your DD sounds like she’s right on track. The advanced receptive language and use of gestures makes asd really unlikely.

As for eye contact my understanding is that the frequency and duration is less important and it’s more about whether she uses eye contact to communicate (eg pairs her pointing gestures with some eye contact, looks at your when upset or looks at you when wanting to share interest in something.) My 14 month DS is identical in regards to eye contact and will look away if anyone gets too close, never gazes at me for a long time but does look at me frequently to communicate his needs. Am hoping that’s nothing to worry about either.

I get the anxiety though and spent a lot of time in a PND haze worrying about autism. Am sure your DD is absolutely fine though x