any other parents here with more than one autistic child?

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Hi , i am mother to two beautiful boys , eldest age 4 diagnosed ASD and youngest age 2 on the road to diagnosis. Is it common to have multiple children with ASD in the same family? I suspect that i am also on the spectrum for various reasons, and i think this is just how my babies come! Because of this my husband and i have decided not to have any more children as we know our boys will need all the attention we can givegive. Am i alone?

Hi there, you're definitely not alone. I have at least 2 autie kids and iirc there are a few others on this forum in similar situations.

We have two. My brother-in-law also has two. Because I am also on the spectrum, my brother-in-law always laughs at people describing autism as "growing." He says: "But they are already the majority!" It is true, when our two families get together, we are 5 mutants against 3 typicals. We win.

I, too, have two! Twin boys who are now four years old. And they are the joys of my life! I'm pretty squarely NT with lots of "autistic genes" - I think most of the 1st degree male members of my family are probably on the spectrum, but they're all happy and successful (except for one) and have spouses who love them, and whom they love, etc. So, autism as a name by itself is not scary for us, admittedly perhaps because our only experiences are with the high functioning "quirky" kinds of kids/adults. None of my family members received any sort of intervention, but my children do. However, my family as a rule has a high tolerance for the unusual, and we love each other more than we judge each other.

I have 2 kids at various points on the spectrum. I have one foot on the spectrum myself. I do not think it is uncommon at all. My sister doesn't have any diagnosed kids, but 2 of hers are at least notably quirky, but may be mildly spectrummy. My family tree is full of people who may have qualified for dx if they were born during a different time, and many alive today show traits.

2 daughters on the spectrum here. I think it's pretty common because in many cases it is genetic.