For context , my partner has ADHD, his son has diagnosed autism (9), and I am also in the process of a diagnosis of tourettes syndrome (had since I was 7, am now 34!)
DD 4 exhibits the following behaviours:
- physically assaulting us when very tired/angry- scratching , hitting, kicking etc. Knows it's naughty but can't seem to help it
- obsessively sniffs my fingers, to the point where it's a proper comfort for her, has done this since she was a baby, but will grip my fingers tightly and grab them to sniff
- flaps arms and hands when stimulated (her brother also does this )
- jumping up and down on the spot in a gallop motion when excited (drawing something and then being excited by seeing it )
- asks the same question about 10 times despite knowing the answer and having it answered the same each time
- recently been obsessed with watching us eat our dinner and will desperately try to feed us things off of our plates
- extremely controlling , and likes things done a certain way. She screamed at a woman holding the gate open for us at the park the other day.
There are other things I'm sure. Nursery sort of dismissed my concerns and commented that she 'eccentric', but that's how she is. They have a boy who is non verbal in her class and I worry they compare them and think there's no way she can be. She starts school in September and I will raise my concerns.
Could this just be normal child behaviour? Does this sort of thing sound familiar to anyone ? My step sons autism presents so differently that obviously I can't compare. I wonder whether my DD just masks in nursery etc.
Thanks in advance.