15 Early Warning Signs of Autism
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What is autism
Autism spectrum disorders are a group of complex brain development disorders.
The umbrella term covers conditions such as autism and Asperger’s syndrome.
Such disorders are characterized by difficulties in social interaction and communication, as well as a limited and repetitive range of interests and activities.
what causes autism
Causes of autism:
Children develop autism as a result of genetic disorders.
The birth of the child weighs less than normal.
Exposure to viral infections.
A child may develop autism as a result of genetic factors that cause genetic disorder such as fragile x syndrome and Rhett syndrome.
Complications during a mother’s pregnancy that cause the child to develop autism.
The presence of a genetic factor and the incidence of autism by a family member before.
Muscular dystrophy, a genetic disease that causes autism.
Lack of oxygen during childbirth affects the child, causing autism.
Signs of early childhood autism
There are a certain number of signs of autism that adults around the child need to pay attention to.
Social problems
Avoiding eye contact
A normotypical child always looks into the eyes when talking to him.
A child with autism either does not look at the source of the sound, or looks at other parts of the body: nose, bridge of the nose, lips, etc.
Negative reaction to touch
The desire for tactile contact is inherent in every child, very often at the first opportunity an ordinary child jumps into the hands of an adult, children on the autistic spectrum do not have such a need.
“Coldness” or excessive attachment to the mother
An autistic child very often reacts inadequately to his parents: either there is no attachment to the mother at all, i.e. he can stay with any other people for a long time, not notice the arrival and departure of his parents, or have excessive attachment – even when the parent leaves for another room – to throw a strong tantrum.
Preference for loneliness
An autistic child often plays alone, he does not pay attention to the children playing nearby.
Does not show interest in the surrounding people and objects.
Does not copy the behavior of an adult.
Fear of intense stimuli.
A child with autism may be uncomfortable with a bright light, a loud sound.
The reaction to such stimuli is characterized by the fact that the child reacts violently through the chur, he screams, cries, closes his ears with his hands or, on the contrary, laughs.
Use unusual material for games
Often such children play not with toys, but with pieces of furniture or clothing.
Communication difficulties:
Delayed speech development or regression of key skills.
There are two options for the development of these symptoms.
The first is when everything begins from the moment of birth – the child has no babble, words do not appear.
The second is when the child develops normally, he forms speech, and then suddenly begins the regression of already developed speech skills, communication.
Delay of the “age of questions”
For some reason, the child does not ask the questions that all normotypical children ask.
Lack of a reciprocal smile.
Lack of language of mimics and gestures.
Lack of dialogue.
There is no adequate response to requests.
Sometimes it may seem that the child does not hear the requests, he is “busy with his own business.” Often parents think that the child is harmful, does not want to perform their instructions.
No desire to participate in collective games
There is no desire for friendship.
No requests.
The presence in speech of neologisms or echolalia.
In the speech of an autistic child, invented, non-existent words are very often found, or the child repeats only that the words heard are in a mechanical order, without thinking about the meaning.
Often, a child with autism may answer a question with a question.
Long-term use of a second and third party to identify yourself
That is, the child does not say “I” about himself, more often calls himself by name.
Stereotypical behavior
Repeating the same movements
The child can spin for no cause, clap his hands, strangely turn his hands, shake his head, etc.
Impossibility of distraction from monotonous, repetitive actions.
The difficulty of adapting to new conditions and environment.
Rigid attachment to the daily routine.
Selectivity in food
It is almost impossible for parents to understand this problem alone.
All the actions of an autistic child are perceived as some oddities that the child must outgrow.
Therefore, it is very difficult to diagnose autism early.
Moreover, surprisingly, when a child does not grow a tooth on time or underweight, the parents run around all the doctors.
But when a child does not look and respond to his mother, it means that he is so harmful.
If your child has something similar to the above, this does not mean that you need to make a diagnosis yourself to panic.
The first thing to do is to consult with a specialist, namely: a pediatrician, a neurologist, a psychiatrist.
At what age can autism be detected
Early childhood autism can be determined up to 3 years of age, but specialists from the age of 3 months can say that the risk of this diagnosis is quite high.
Symptoms of autism
Signs of autism in children younger than 1 year.
At this age, it is necessary to pay attention, corresponds to the development of the child to the main stages. Here are a few things to worry about:
Does not show interest in persons.
Does not look into the eyes, does not smile, and it may seem that the baby is looking directly through you.
Doesn’t always respond to sounds.
Doesn’t respond to his name, doesn’t turn around to see where the sound is coming from, or shows no activity when he hears a loud noise. In other situations, his hearing may seem fine.
He doesn’t like to be hugged or touched.
Does not show interest in typical children’s games.
Does not babble and does not show other early signs of conversation.
Does not use gestures as a way of communication.
Signs of autism in babies under 2 years of age
Among the most common:
Does not use gestures.
Doesn’t shake his head, yes or no.
Doesn’t indicate what he wants.
Does not specify objects to show interest in the world around them. By 14-16 months, most healthy babies will draw your attention to something they are interested in, such as a puppy or a new toy.
Does not use single words at the age of 16 months or two-word phrases at the age of 24 months.
Lost verbal or social skills. Used a few words for a conversation or showed interest in people, but now it does not.
Problems with walking.
Signs of ASD in children of 3 years of age
In some children, autism symptoms appear in the first few months of life. Others don’t show symptoms until two years of age. Mild signs are difficult to identify and can be mistaken for a shy temperament or character traits.
You may see some of the signs of autism in three-year-olds.
Communication skills:
Does not respond to the name.
avoids eye contact;
prefers to play alone;
dislikes or avoids physical contact with other people;
not interested or does not know how to make friends;
has difficulty expressing or talking about feelings, has difficulty understanding other people’s feelings.
Language and communication skills:
speech and language skills are delayed (lags behind peers);
conversation in the form of an echo – a repetition of the last few words of the conversation.
Behavioral skills:
performs repetitive movements;
toys or other objects are built in an organized way;
do not like changes in everyday life;
cyclical repetition of game movements;
frequent observation of fire, water and spinning wheels.
Other potential signs of autism include:
impulsivity;
aggressive behavior;
severe tantrums;
overkill in food;
no sense of fear.
Having any of these signs or symptoms may be normal, but having a few of them, especially with delayed speech, should be of additional concern.
What are the signs of autism in a 4-year-old?
Signs of autism in children become more apparent with age.
Your child may show some of the following signs of autism:
Communication skills:
does not respond to his name;
avoids eye contact;
prefers to play alone than play with others;
doesn’t tell a story;
is not interested in interacting or communicating with others;
dislikes or actively avoids physical contact;
grimaces;
hardly understands other people’s feelings and does not show his own.
Language and communication skills:
cannot create offers;
repeats words or phrases over and over again.
does not respond to questions appropriately or is guided by instructions;
does not understand the score or time;
changes pronouns (for example, says “you” instead of “I”);
rarely or never uses gestures or body language, such as waving.
Behavioral disorders:
performs repetitive movements;
builds toys or other objects in a certain sequence;
gets upset because of small changes in everyday life;
plays with toys the same way every time;
loves certain parts of objects (often wheels);
has obsessive interests;
repeats certain procedures cyclically.
Additional signs of autism in 4-year-olds:
hyperactivity or short attention time;
impulsivity;
aggression;
tantrums;
irregular reaction to sounds, smells, tastes, glances or textures;
inappropriate emotional reactions.
Signs of autism in children 5 years old
Red flags of social communications:
the child does not share observations or experiences with others;
as a rule, does not look directly at other people (sometimes called the lack of eye contact);
there may be a lack of speech or unusual speech patterns, such as repetition of words and phrases (echolalia), refusal to use “I”, replaces with “you” and “you”;
may not show a desire to be hugged, prefers to be in the circle of familiar people and may seem that he treats people as objects and a source of comfort;
avoids social situations, preferring to be alone;
there is a limited development of game activity, in particular, creative play;
increased tearfulness or unusual absence of crying.
Behavioral red flags:
frequent repetitive movements, such as trembling hands or clapping, prolonged rocking or rotation of objects;
the presence of an obsessive interest in some toys or objects, while ignoring other things;
extreme resistance to changes in procedures or their environment;
difficulty in nutrition – can not chew hard objects;
often there are difficulties with the training of walking on the potty;
sleep problems;
irritation or aggression while visiting crowded and noisy places.
Signs of autism at age 6
Signs of autism from 6 to 15 years are similar, and in the absence of a full correction, can worsen every year.
Social/Emotional Issues:
difficulties in creating and maintaining friendly relations;
Isolated or repetitive games
atypical interests compared to peers;
disobedicious or unaware of how his actions affect others;
expresses intense anxiety, depression, anger or fear.
Speech skills:
monotonous or unusually formal speech;
literal interpretation of phrases, does not understand sarcasm, jokes;
low/poor nonverbal communication skills;
may close and not respond to requests or questions.
Behavioral skills:
increased interest / hyperfocus on one particular topic, interest or object;
intense reaction to changes in household routine;
cyclic movements of the hands, swinging or other gestures in case of frustration or arousal;
excessive reactions to touch, textures, pain or sounds;
poor motor and coordination skills;
anxiety, depression, selective silence.
Psychosomatics of autism in children
Many psychiatrists believe that the causes of autism should be sought in early infancy (from 0 to 8 months).
Experts believe that in most cases the cause of the disease is psychosomatics.
Children close themselves off from the outside world and lose the skill of contacting on a subconscious level, for example, when they lose a sense of security and security, when they are often surrounded by swearing, shouting, complaining, etc.
In infancy, the psyche of children is very weak and vulnerable, and in order not to experience stress, there is a complete detachment from the external environment, from all irritable factors.
Psychotherapists notice that children in a calm and quiet environment begin to show a desire to communicate, they are comfortable.
So, the psychosomatics of autism in children is a kind of protective reaction to stress.
Important:
All information provided at Keygx.com is for INFORMATION only and is not a substitute for consultation, diagnosis or professional medical care.
If you have a health problem, contact a health care professional immediately.
