Signs of Autism

I've been asked a number of times what early signs of autism may look like. There are a wide range of characteristics and different families will have different experiences. I'll post a link for a short video I watched, which I feel is very incomplete, and then I'll post quotes from parents who replied to the video on an autism FB group I'm in called "Autism Mothers". I'll continue to add to this post as well.

Question of the Week - Recognising autism signs

Okay, this video has a LOT more information. This is the DSM-IV scale, which was recently changed. I'm not sure if the DSM-IV is still being used to diagnose kids or if DSM-V is being used already. I think the primary difference between the IV and V scales are that kids need more characteristics to be diagnosed on the spectrum.
What is autism? Do you know the signs?

"I knew. I cared & fought & it took me 11 years to get the diagnosis & to get it confirmed. My Sun was already diagnosed with other challenging conditions & I knew he was autistic around about 4 but had acknowledged signs earlier."

"No early signs after my sons 1 yr shots he changed, had a horrible horrible rash his whole body, he screamed all the time for over a week, I took him to every hosp around here n doctor and none could tell me anything other than vaccine reaction....when 2 came around we knew this was a life long thing now... Before those shots he did everything "normal for age I had 3 girls before him, they were all ok but before he was born I was made to take 2 rubella shots I believe affected him!"

"My son was 9months old when I first asked the pedi about my concerns...he dismissed them for the next 6 months until he lost the only 4 words that he had...and my son was diagnosed at 17mos (he has sense been diagnosed again by other hospitals in Boston)"

"I knew something was wrong right away too many things he wasn't doing ....he was over two when he got diagnosed had early intervention by six months ...alot of signs"

"I knew there was something from day 1 but didn't know it was autism - until he was diagnosed at 4 - I was told he was behind because he was a "boy" I fought but didn't get anywhere. He had early intervention when he was 15 mos old and still not talking at all. Looking back makes me frustrated and upset because people got upset with him - makes me have many tears ;("

"Loss of words around 18m"

"I noticed when he was 1. He didn't give eye contact and wouldn't follow simple instructions. At first I thought it was his hearing but he passed his audiological test. The family kept saying I was over exaggerating but in my heart/gut, I wanted to keep trying to find out. Even his doctor told me he was just having a hard time adapting to my other newborn at the time. I disagreed and demanded that my son be evaluated. I took him and he was diagnosed at age 1. He will be 3 soon. He's making progress and is involved in various therapies. He's not yet completely verbal but he is very vocal."

"I knew something was different around 6 months. He had very little eye contact. He wasn't interested in anything going on around him. He was baby #4 so knew something was wrong."

"From the age of around 2- 4 i noticed that my son was a bit different than other kids in his age group. At first i thought i thought he had adhd or was just a product of my failed parenting skills. But when he got kicked out of school in Kindergarten we were advised to bring him to be put on adhd meds, the doctor we saw mentioned that he showed signs of autism, i had no idea what " autism" was. After extensive research on autism i realized that the only characteristic he did not exhibit was non speech, he was delayed speaking and he never crawled. From there we went to tulane in new Orleans and were blessed to find a last year resident in the behavior health dept. She was such a blessing.. we got his diagnosis and things started getting easier, we were able to figure out what interventions were best for my son and carry them over to his IEP at school. The first few years were tough, getting things in line for him, and myself coming to terms that my child was not normal. I am very strong minded and i have fought tooth and nail against the school board to get him the interventions he needed. He is 9 years old now and we have moved to an area with a better school with a better program for autistic children. Since we moved here in October 2011, he has progressed so much, he can sound out words and is doing well in math also. I am so proud of the achievements he has made, i never thought he would be able to function independently in the world as an adult, at this point, it may take him 5- 10 years loner than "the normal child" but i have the utmost confidence that he will be able to be an independent adult one day, and that is a great feeling. Even if i have to build him an apartment in my back yard, just in case he has trouble some days. I am so appreciative for this new public school he attends. They have 8 different classes for all different levels of impaired kids. At the other school he was stuck on Kindergarten material, now he is almost doing 2nd grade work.. it may seem like small potatoes for a 9 year old to most people, but every time i hear him sounding out a word, i am overjoyed. PEOPLE DONT GIVE UP ON YOUR KIDS, KEEP PUSHING THESE SCHOOLS TO PROVIDE THE INTERVENTIONS YOUR KID NEEDS. Sometimes it may not work, but at least you know you gave all you could to help them excel."

"I closed my eyes to it at first but my health nurse saw things before he was 12 months. Then once the word was said as a maybe by the paed I still refused to consider the possibility. Until I researched and researched and researched and realised each child I read about was doing the exact same things as my son. The spinning, the not listening, the not talking except his own jargon, the hand flapping etc. I had to gather my evidence and went through two years and three paediatricians before getting the diagnosis we needed!!! I now look back to when he was just a very small baby and realise he was very sensory even back then, with the sucking on my face and pushing his whole body into my face, and just needing to put his whole body into you or on you, or the constant need to be upside down or look upside down. I remember at 10 months he was making himself go cross eyed on purpose!! Also my son has started a new thing just recently where he pulls his fingers in so they are bent at the first knuckle then like clicks his hands. The OT said that's a need for joint compression perhaps. Just wanted to share because it's new in case anyone else sees this and he is 4 and 1/2 now :) "

"Taking him to the playground. While other children were running and playing with each other Kaleb would grab handfuls of pebbles and just watch them fall out of his hand. Over and over again. But children with autism aren't loving they said. They don't even notice when their mother leaves or returns to get them they said. The funniest came from the schools diagnosticians is that they hate crunchy foods! So my son couldn't be autistic because he loved carrots and his mommy. I wanted to believe them so bad. But in my heart I knew. A mother knows."


"Rilee was 14 months when he woke in the middle of the night terrified and wouldn't stay in his room. Over the next few months I kept taking him to his Ped because he was changing losing words, all day tantrums, banging his head, wouldn't eat. He failed a routine Autism screen at 18 months and was officially diagnosed at 20 months he was diagnosed with Moderate to Severe Autism. He is now 4 and his Diagnosis has changed to High Functioning Autism. Most of the time people just think he is a Hyper little Brat"