3 month old - tenses body when upset or excited

[Ljordan13]

I am a FTM - who is currently dealing with PPA. Therefore please be kind with your replies. I have already sought help for this.

I have a 3 month old baby boy… since he was about 1 month old he has tensed his legs and arched his back when upset… normally when tired or hungry. He can escalate to intense crying quite quickly. However when the issue is resolved he is then a normal tone.

In the past few weeks I have noticed following singing him a nursery rhyme or playing that he will tense/straighten his legs as if to display his excitement and happiness. It lasts a second or two.

My anxiety has been raised as reading online it all points to an early sign of Autism. I know it’s not CP as I obtained a professional opinion on this.

I have no other concerns with his development… he is making eye contact, smiling and coo-ing.

Has anyone experienced this and there LO gone on to be neurotypical?

I've had two tense back-arching babies. Lots of people told me it was reflux or something gastric but I doubt this. I too worried about ASD but no concerns now. I know how wretched PNA is so sending a hand hold. The tensing of limbs found in ASD is totally different and relates to stimming in children (not tense grumpy babies!)

Thanks so much for your kind words Forever baffled it’s a very lonesome road PNA as it steals the early weeks/ months which should be joyful!

It is reassuring your two babies displayed the same things as my son. Can I just ask was it mainly when they was crying and how often? This is my sons form of communication every time he cries.

At what age did you start to see a decrease in this?

Yes always when crying and particularly bad around the 2-4 month mark but calmed down a lot after that. Seemed to improve when they developed better head control generally so wonder if that was part of it. Both my sons also used to back arch when held up under their arms (whether crying or not) which can be a red flag for cerebral palsy but both are fine in that regard too. My second son was actually under neurology for a bit and the Neuro said his back arching was just a developmental thing.

Bumped