Toddler age is typically 12 to 24 months. This is when the first symptoms of autism are most frequently noticed.

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When he was a toddler, my child did not grip when I held him as my first two did. He was dead weight. From the time he very small,as young as four months, he did not like switching from long sleeves to short. He avoided eye contact from the time he was born. Typical children seek eye contact. We felt that he did not need us in any emotional way like our first two did. He was very content with himself except to be fed and changed. He hummed himself to sleep from the time he was a few months old. He never seemed to take information in by observing. Everything we taught him had to be hand over hand.

Response

Someone with autism can be highly functional and write about autism, or he or she can be severely disabled and need total care. And everywhere in between. Some early symptoms can be early speech, then not a word thereafter. Other symptoms include lack of eye contact, lack of affection (hugging them is actually "painful",) "flipping or flapping" their hands or objects, crying and being self abusive, obsessed with certain objects or activities, repetitive behaviors, not meeting "normal" milestones, odd eating rituals (will eat only 3-4 food items) and many other behaviors. There is no magic cure. Do some research, love your child and work to have them achieve what "professionals" say they will never do.

Response

Ok I am not an expert but I do have a child that was diagnosed on the spectrum and is almost fully recovered. I feel that the above answer is very misleading. There are degrees of autism from mild or high functioning to severe. And yes there is no "magical Cure" but a child can recover. Children with autism do not make eye contact, but some of them do show emotion and some do develop language.

My personal belief is the some children with autism have been injured by a variety of factors in their environment. For example, with my child it was partly genetics, he was born with a compromised immune system, then he had RSV Virus as an infant, he was given too many antibiotics as a baby for various ear infection to the point where he bled out of his colon and the vaccines were the final attack on his system. Basically, like a computer, he crashed and his systems (primarily his brain function and nervous system) just couldn't take any more.

My baby was saying some words at 6 months , he was making eye contact and pointing at objects. At 18 months however, the language disappeared as did the eye contact, he was ritualistic and repetitive For instance, he loved anything that spun and could sit and spin objects for hours. Ceiling fans fascinated him.

His twin brother was right on target and so I became frantic when in my heart I knew what was going on. I was devastated when I got the diagnosis but determined not to let him stay this way. First he began intense therapy of about 30 hours a week of ABA (Applied Behavioral Analysis - this is a miracle worker), Speech and Occupational Therapy. I started to research and read everything I could and found out about special diets such as the gluten free / caesin free diet. This did not work for my son (it doesn't work for every child and it is a miracle with some children). I learned about vitamins, probiotics and supplements. I started him on supplements as soon as I could and this was the turning point for my son. Amongst the supplements that I gave him, I purchased this really expensive juice called Mon Avie which has antioxidants and phytonutrients (the original formula) and saw subtle improvement. Then I started him on DMG and Acidophilus and saw some pretty significant change. I am going to try a vitamin supplement now called Super Nuthera from Kirkman Labs (they will happily guide you and answer questions). I also want to start methyl B12 vitamin strips. One thing at a time.

Today he is a happy vibrant 3 year old who attends a typical nursery school with some support which we hope will not be needed soon. He talks and has an amazing personality. He loves to be hugged and kissed and thank God because I just can't get enough. He even has a best friend and loves to play with the children at school. I thank God every day because without God and his guidance he wouldn't be where he is today.

My suggestion to you is to pray for guidance and then read the 2 Jenny McCarthy books "Louder than Words" and "Mother Warriors". They were a big help and gave me a starting point. Contact a Rescue Angel on generationrescue.org and log on to defeatautismnow.com. Do a google.com search for autism recovery and it will provide you much valuable information. Please keep the faith and God will guide you...AUTISM IS REVERSABLE...RECOVERY IS ATTAINABLE...Good luck and God speed!

I don't agree with the response above where the person said "Children with autism do not make eye contact". That is VERY misleading. People should get their facts straight before they type something that is FALSE! Yes, it is true that some children with autism don't make any/little eye contact, but there are plenty of children with autism that do make eye contact. Same with smiling and laughing - some children with ASD don't smile and laugh, but some do. Autism is hard to diagnose which is why a child is usually over 18 months before they get suspected of having autism. For one thing, every baby develop at different rates - some are fast and some are slow. I think everyone is getting freaked out over autism. A baby who doesn't smile does not equal autism. A baby that doesn't have good eye contact doesn't equal autism. A baby that doesn't start talking til almost 3 doesn't equal autism. A combination of these may equal autism. I know that there are red flags from as young as maybe 6 months, but just because there are red flags doesn't mean your child has autism. I personally believe that unless a child has severe autism, you can't know if they have it til they are around 2. A child that is severely autistic I think will show so many symptoms such as lack of eye contact, not interested in people, obsessing over certain objects, wants to be alone all the time, and acts deaf. If a baby under 1 shows most/all of the symptoms above, then be worried and concerned.

I have a 6.5 month old son who doesn't have the best eye contact. I took him to see a ped neurologist when he was 3 months old because he never looked at anyone or anything - he only looked at the lights. I took him to an eye dr prior to this to rule out any eye problems (he didn't have any problems with his eyes). When the neurologist saw him when he was 3 months old, she seemed concerned, and I asked her if it was maybe autism. She said that it was the first thing that entered her head. However, she did also say that the only thing to do was wait and see, so we agreed to meet again when my baby boy turns 5.5 months. When we went back to see her when he was 5.5 months, she was surprised! Even though he has problems maintaining eye contact, he still does make eye contact and would smile. I told her that even though he will look at people and smile, there are times when he would totally ignore them because he would rather look around the room and see the environment. She told me as long as he smiles at people sometimes, not to worry too much because it means he has some interest in people - he is showing social behavior. We are going to see her again when he turns10 months to see how he is like then.

He is currently 6.5 months and is showing improvement with eye contact. There are still times when he would rather not look at you, but when he does he would babble smile and laugh. He still has problems maintaining eye contact, but has shown sooo much improvement in the past couple of months, so I'm going to try not to worry about him possibly having autism.
one of them is when you call their name alot of the times they will not respond....depending on how old they are

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