ADVICE NEEDED 17 month old Autism or Cerabal palsy symptoms?

[Irishmammy13]

Hi everyone this will be a long post so I appreciate any feedback or advice as I am completely overwhelmed and worried about my 17 month old son.

So my son was born via Emergency C section due to placenta abruption full term.
It was a very traumatic experience as his heart rate dropped and I was severely bleeding which resulted in blood transfusion for me.
As I was put under local anaesthetic and my husband didn't make the hospital on time I did not see my baby after birth fir a while bit the nurse reassured me everything was fine with my son and he did not need neonatal care.

Fast forward to his development check up at 10 months old the nurse was very concerned about his development and referred him to a doctor to assess him. The concerns we both had are :
Not sitting unsupported
Not crawling walking standing
Constant hand flapping all day
Poor head control
Feeding problems
Poor eye contact
No words only high pitched noises
Going from floppy to stiff
Not clapping or pointing
Does not have any interest in siblings or people
Suffering from constipation alot
Does not respond to name
Bends over in a upside down position while holding him

These are the main problems I am worried about so we had our first appointment with the pediatric doctor and he agreed with my concerns and diagnosed my son with hypermobility and referred him to Children's disability network team to avail of physiotherapy Occupational therapy speech and language and to be assessed for possible autism.
The pediatric doctor wants to see my son again next month at 18 months old to see if he has improved or if things have changed but they have not and I am so worried.

My son got accepted with the disability team to start all the therapy and assessment but they said I could be waiting 2 years for our first appointment as the are understaffed and the waiting lists are so long 😔

I have been doing so much research about my boys symptoms and Cerabal palsy has come up alot.
Has anyone got any advice or similar situations of what they think as I am just not getting answers or even getting appointments to get my boy the help he needs and answers to why he is so development and physically delayed.

Whether it is cerebral palsy, ASD or something else it is good you have a referral for further support. You could try to ask that the referral is made urgent. Has a referral to Portage been made? Also to a dietician? Has hearing been checked? Do you need a referral to wheelchair services or is DS OK in a standard buggy? Do you have a local special school that run a playgroup? These sometimes have professionals around.

Thank you so much for your reply.
I am grateful to have the referral but I feel so helpless and worried because I just want answers. He has had his eyes check and no problems but I rang up to see when he would be getting his hearing tested as he was referred and the lady said it would be a year and a half before he would be offered an appointment 😔 no referrals to anyone else only who I listed above unfortunately and I will definitely look into sn playgroups in the area.. thank you so much I really appreciate your advice

You should look at a referral to dietetics, portage and, if necessary, wheelchair services. In some areas, you can self refer to these. If you can’t ask the GP or HV.

Do you receive DLA?

No but I will talk to my gp.. no I don't receive anything because he has not been diagnosed yet

Apply for DLA. You don’t need a diagnosis, it is based on needs. Use the Cerebra guide to help you complete the form.

Hi I’m going through the exact same symptoms with my 12 month old little boy
we’ve just been referred to alder hey for an assessment on autism waiting on the appointment and also a neurological peadiatrician
never been so worried in all of my life!!
even started blaming myself because the doctor told me it was best o stayed on my anti depressants during pregnancy 😢
please keep us all posted as to the outcome
I’m new to this site and first time I’ve posted hope I manage to find it again lol
good luck lovely and take care 💞💞 xxxx

Hi
So a little updated we attended our appointment with pediatric doctor today and we got a diagnosis of Autism and global developmental delay for my boy.
I have so many emotions right now but in some way releived that we have answers.

Next steps are a formal diagnosis with Disability team and a blood test ? I have no idea why he will need a blood test but I was so overwhelmed I forgot to ask 🫣 so if anyone has any information about this it would be greatly appreciated

It isn’t unusual for bloods to be taken to rule out other causes of the symptoms and delays.