how do you find out if a toddler has As or else

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One word of caution: Pediatricians vary a lot in their knowledge of autism/AS. Some know next to nothing. My son's diagnosis came much later than it needed to because our pediatrician didn't believe us when we told her that there was something very different about our son. Even after we moved to a new city the new pediatrician was just as clueless. My son started lying face down on the floor in her office examining the pattern of lines on the floor while repeating lines from a TV show over and over again. I pointed this out to her and said "behaviors like these lead me to think he might have autism". She looked very confused and said "What behaviors?"

It's very difficult to diagnose AS in very young children but there are usually a few unusual traits that start to show up. Was your son late with some motor control milestones? Is he clumsy for his age?

Another common difference: Typical two year olds are usually VERY imitative. Does your son try to imitate things you say and do? My AS son very rarely imitated anything until he was about 5 years old but my (presumably NT) two year old imitates everything and delights in doing so.

My suggestion would be to get an evaluation, but make sure that it is with someone that has specialized training and experience with autism. A psychologist is usually a much better bet than a pediatrician (unless, of course, the pediatrician has relevant specialized training).

It would be worth getting an assessment done. Children with ASD can be picked up very early if you have someone knowledgeable doing the assessment for you. Just recently we gave a diagnosis to a family that have a 18 month old son. For some children the features are very pronounced early on. The tricky thing is that it is not always what they are doing that are indicators it can often be what the child is not doing or the quality of what they are doing.
There is no harm done in getting an assessment - and if it is not clear the child can be monitored over time for change and progress.

thank you. I am going to check that for both my children.

ghouna, I agree that you have grounds for concern with both your children.

If you seek evaluation, I would suggest you start by finding out what is 'normal'. You will find that there are particular behaviors that are looked for in normal development, for instance infants should make eye-contact when fed and should 'babble' (pre-verbal communication), toddlers should enjoy 'peek a boo' (hiding and revealing eyes) games, and demonstrate 'receptive posture' when a familiar adult attempts to pick them up (they should put their arms up toward the adult).

There are lots of behaviors that are developmentally expected. A clear cluster of developmental abnormalities obviously correlated to 'atypicalities' associated with autistic development, would probably be a helpful start. Pay attention to possible apparent 'advances' (such as apparent advancement in the development of concentration span which can be an early sign of fixation/'perserverance)' as well as apparent deficits.

In addition, it might be helpful to expound on the atypical traits that are problematic for your children (for instance your concerns that the elder child will not be ready to attend school, discomfort and interference in development in caused by avoidance of disliked stimuli, etc) to demonstrate that there is a need to address the issues.

By concentrating first on normal development expectations, highlighting how your children do not match these expectations, and then showing how this is already negatively impacting them (and so needs to be attended rather than a 'wait and see' approach), you should be able to present the facts clearly (so you are not assumed to be a panicky parent) and demonstrate any need for immediate intervention if there is such.

Best of luck to you and your children.

Thank you! i appreciate your advices.


(btw, i am home educating my children, so i am not too concern about school)

My three old dd sounds a little like this. Her other puzzling behaviors are cheing on paper, tearing it up and putting things in her mouth still (very tactil?) And she usually doesn't mind new clothes, but it is an all out battle to get her to wear new shoes and once she likes them then those are her most favorite shoes.

We are pottytraining and she fusses about that. Another thing is always wrapping herself up in blankets or sheets so I refuse to have her sleep with one for concern that she will get caught somehow during the night. Any help???

Other then those she is delightful, bright and a real gogetter so I don't see any delays in learning.

For children that like to chew on things see if there is a common type of texture/feel in the objects that she is mouthing - offer her a safe acceptable alternative( like a chewy tube http://www.chewytubes.com ), so that she gets the proprioceptive input she needs but is not at risk of choking. If a chewy tube is not her thing there are a lot of alterntives around that you can try/find.

As for sleeping it sounds like she is the kind of child that really likes to be snug and feel the pressure of the blankets around her. Some options - a sleeping bag or weighted quilt may help, again there are a lot of these things around online. http://www.onestopsensoryshop.com/ could be a good place to start, depending on where you are.

Thnx. So how young should should I start looking for more symptoms and if I need to be concerned about her seeing anyone else other then her wonderful peditrician?

Just keep a little eye on her and if you have any worries ask your Dr for a referral to the appropriate place.