Autistic son and future chances of talking

[bodhi1982]

-An sharing of similar experiences would be much appreciated 😌
My son is 6 - he was diagnosed with autism 2 years ago based mainly on the lack of communication and talking , he has since come on a bit but nowhere close to his peers. He uses hundreds of singular words and some phrases such as ‘let me go’ ‘help me’ & ‘don’t eat me’ (great screamed at full volume when we’re out and about ! ) He understands affection and will reciprocate‘I love you’ with I love you mummy ! Amazing . Yesterday he used a sentence for the first time ever in context and non repeated , so I was leaning on him and he said ‘get off my feet’ ! Which we saw as a huge milestone in using his language to get across what he wanted .
Anyway I'm trying not to get my hopes up too much that this may be the start of him talking , every professional we've ever seen from nhs to private has never been able to answer me when I've asked - will he ever talk . I was actually told by one private professional that assessed him that he would need ongoing care indefinitely, with the possibility of one day living in a shared accommodation type scenario ( this broke me and took me days to stop crying ) the paediatric that diagnosed him said that actually it was really unprofessional and inappropriate for her to have made such a suggestion given that the only proven prognosis determining ongoing life long care is if a Child has/displays Zero communication by the age of 5 - which helped me stay open to taking each day as it comes . As a mum my biggest fear for him is the unknown - I think this is what I struggle with the most , I know my other son will get on just fine whatever he ends up doing , but for my youngest I just don't know what's going to happen - and it would seem actually no one can predict it , but it may give me some more encouragement to stay positive he will one day be able to effectively communicate hearing other peoples experiences of similar situations retrospectively. It's late 😅 I hope this all
Makes sense , he is my little sunshine and the main thing is that he's happy - which he is most of the time . Thanks x

My daughter is 12 now and I'd say she had very similar verbal communication to your son aged 6. I thought she'd never talk.

Well she never stops now. Her language really came on as she matured. She still has a slight stammer and asks the same questions over and over but that's due to her autism. She was diagnosed aged 5.

I know exactly how you feel and still worry about the future but life is so much easier than it was when she was little.

@Phoebesgift hey thanks for your reply - communication really is key to making life easier for him and then in turn the rest of us so I guess it's just a waiting game really and keep doing what we're doing x

He’s already verbal at six and his spontaneous speech is developing. It’s more likely than not that this will continue to improve but it’s likely to take time. You may also find that there’s an element of repetition, as PP said, or an unusual cadence or phrasing.

It sounds like he’s making good progress. Do you have any of the Hanen books - more than words or Talkability? You might find these useful to help with communication.

As for the worry about the future, all you can do is take it one day at a time. Mindfulness and meditation can help massively, as well as focussing on the progress that he’s already made