Randomly shouting out in supermarkets

[Autumnbutstillhot]

Dd, just turned 4…just wanted to check this and other behaviours are for want of a better word, normal.
She will just randomly shout out or fo some silly noises, she does them at home also and often repeats what she’s saying. She gets very excited and finds it v difficult to calm down. She’s v impatient and often shouts and gets upset. When I ask her why she just shouted out, out of nowhere, she says she doesn’t know why.
She loves music videos but wants to watch the same again and again and gets annoyed if we can’t. She’s so hyper at times and takes ages to get to sleep.
Love her so much but the way she acts is so difficult at times, Dh especially has no patience for the noises she makes etc and says she’s being silly, I’m worried in case it’s something else.

Children don’t choose to do tics, they just happen and they are just more predisposed to transient tics than adults. I used to be a teacher and I would say about 3 or 4 children in the average primary school
class would have tics. Usually motor tics like blinking and twitching more commonly than vocal ones like the ‘uh uh’ sound. Some of these kids have Tourette’s but more often the tics just pass after a while. But they aren’t choosing to do them any more than you choose to blink!

My son does all of these things. He's autistic and very likely has ADHD but is too young to be diagnosed with that yet. The biggest thing for us is how apparent his differences become when we see him in a group of children his own age. His differences when compared to his peers are becoming more and more apparent the older he gets.

For all those saying it takes years to get diagnosed, not always. My son was diagnosed in 6 months (time taken from referral to diagnosis letter).

It's also worth being aware that children don't always present the same way at home as they do at school and vice versa

@forevercooking Yes, I’ve always thought that also, that’s why I’m so confused if it’s just average behaviour for this age or not

@TescoCustomerService What age did he start? I saw nothing under three years old

@OhRiRi What do you see that’s different when he’s in his friendship group?

@OhRiRi If diagnosed, what can actually be done to help?

Sensory seeking?

Dysregulated and erm "silly" are sure warning signs of an imminent autistic meltdown for one of mine.

Understand it must be tough Mum. Agree do not SEN, go with it right now and for yourself grab a journal and start writing. This will/may help with your anxiety about what may or may not be. Your doing a fab job Mum, also try swimming.

Theoretically nothing, as any support required (ECHPs, DLA etc.) should be based on need not a diagnosis.

Have you just spoken to her teacher? It might be worth speaking to the school SENCo

@Captainmarvel0160 Sorry, what do you mean by don’t go sen, don’t have her assessed yet?

@BlackeyedSusan Can you explain a bit more please? Why would she need to do it, why would she suddenly not eat properly etc? Sorry, just new to all this. I’m just wondering why she’s like this today for example when hasn’t been for a few days. What would an autistic meltdown look like and what might prompt it?

Oh just get a bloody assessment.

She has enough signs to be worried enough to go to your GP for at least one neurodiversity.

Repetitive behaviour.
Sensory issues (betting the supermarket is distressing for her, I think they like to ask about supermarkets)
Echolalia/palilalia (never heard of the name for the second but seen it in action regularly)

Sit down write a list of behaviours
(ASD triad, plus ADHD possibly Tourettes or anything else posters mentioned

Google, because her behaviours are your normal and sometimes it is only when you look it up do you recognise it as a pointer to something. (Which is how I got assessed!)

Many teachers are not specialists, many miss the bloody obvious (dds's sendco was adamant she wasn't autistic, her assessor was not complimentary about the lack of knowledge and misunderstanding of warning signs)

Can only describe it as silly , slightly out of control, noisier, unresponsive to discipline is a key indicator for mine.

Inside it feels agitated, stressed, anxious, annoyed, irritable.

This is the point you need to step in and manage it to calm down.

For a child rocking in one direction, deep hugs, foot or hand massage, sensory toy, some screen time, quiet, separate the child and the offending stimulus. Don't talk, be physical (food, drink, deep pressure, )

Does she jump off stuff? Lean on stuff /you. (Sensory seeking)

Sensory seeking, poor impulse control, dysregulated and not fully in control of her emotions or behaviour...

Yes don't get her tested.
Lockdown has had an enormous impact on all of us no more so than our kids. Let her find her feet at school and if, that's a big if, there are any learning difficulties trust that the school will bring them to your attention.

@BlackeyedSusan She jumps on us and the sofa, but this is when her tummy hurts, the behaviour is usually then. She’ll act impulsively then too and be very shouty/crying etc. She just seems to have become so upset all the time/up and down the last few months

@Captainmarvel0160 I’m not sure what to do for the best

@BlackeyedSusan She gets quite overwhelmed too, loves being with friends and having lots of people around her but I often notice she can be worse after. Things are calmest when it’s just her and I at home. My parents are coming next week for a week to stay and I just know the way things will be…they’ll think it’s her being *Naughty though…I can see how this can be seen

And you are.
If she does indeed need a little help with her education her teachers will see this and they will talk and work with you. Please try not to worry, I know that's silly to say, but really it's all cool. She is exactly were she needs to be, navigating her little way through this journey called life and she's doing so dancing, singing and watching music videos plus doing gymnastics. She's cool Mum

@BlackeyedSusan Hahaha Hahahahaha at "just get an assessment"! The vast majority wait in excess of two years in most trusts. And private assessments for both combined can be almost £2000. Most people are at the whim of the NHS and can do nothing about it.

OP start the ball rolling, ask school for any questionnaires they have, make a gp appt to ask for a referral, do a bunch of the online screening questionnaires and print out the results to take with you. It will all help.

It sounds stressful. I hope you’re doing okay. As she “changed” about a year ago, have a read about the following auto-immune conditions PANS/PANDAS see what you think. These conditions are often misdiagnosed as adhd / autism / mental health issues. So just something to have on your radar really …

Just read a lot more of your posts and would also note that you mention, behaviour regression, food issues, episodal nature of the “issues” and constipation & tummy aches. You’ll find all of these in PANS/PANDAS.

@LostAtTheCrossRoad

(So sorry forgot to pretend to be NT as lifes been a bit shit here and I cba to mask)

Oh I know it's bloody ridiculous the wait. (Been there done that three times)

I think it is easy for those on the outside to see the obvious, that she needs an assessment to work out what is going on, and to get on with it as the wait is atrocious. Getting narked at posters dismissing a lot of clear signs of neurodiversity knowing that waiting a couple of years is only going to delay the inevitable and then you find the waiting list is three years now... And the school refuses to do anything without a diagnosis...etc etc etc..

it's understandable that op is in the explaining away phase (also been there) but if you suspect something you need to get shifted and get down to the GP.

@BlackeyedSusan I’m not trying to explain it away at all…I’m just really unsure as she showed no real signs of anything until around 3 onwards, when the stomach issues started too…it’s hard to separate the two. Her behaviour is much calmer and back the way she was when she’s not constipated

Bit of a late reply, but yes - my daughter was very similar at that age.

She's 19, and diagnosed with ADHD, Anxiety and ASD. To get help at school (not academically, but for her ability to cope) we needed a diagnosis.