Baby Doesn't Coo or Babble

S.,

yes mny son was that way. He didnt talk until 3. very happy. He was preimee and because of that. we had him evaluated very 6 months. Now he is 6 he has. Speech delay,autory processing delay,poor fine motor skills,ADD,sensory intergartion. You can talk to your doctor about it. Have your child evaluated iwth the doctor. Your doctor will tell you waht to do or where to go. The sooner you get in teh better it will be. some thing with my son have been corrected. Now it the time. He needs help. they will send you Austim doctor first to see if it is that. then referr you out. Hope you can read this. Im having a hard time typing I have bunch of kids with me.

good Luck

Hi S., It might be nothing, but that does sound like my son at that age, and he was diagnosed w/ autism. I don't want to scare you, because it is just as likely that your son DOESN'T have autism, but one of my biggest pet peeves is when people tell a mom "I'm sure it's nothing, he will develop at his own pace", etc. because it might be nothing but it might NOT be nothing. I knew from very early on that something was "off" with my son, and my instincts also were pooh-poohed. I know people just don't want moms to worry unnecessarily, and that's great, but if there is something going on developmentally w/ your baby, the most important thing for his future is to catch the delays EARLY, the earlier the better. To me, it is worth the risk of worrying and getting it checked out, and being wrong (everything being fine w/ the baby), than to just think "oh, he's fine" and miss out on valuable early intervention. I think that your instinct should be respected, and get him evaluated by a developmental pediatrician. Autism can be diagnosed at 12 months, but many places have a months-long waiting list, so would not be out of the question to get on a waiting list for an evaluation now. If you have Kaiser, they have developmental pediatricians in their autism clinic. Also, your regional center can do assessments and interventions, and they have various professionals they can refer you to for hearing tests, developmental tests, speech evaluations, etc. I am a HUGE believer in getting on top of things as soon as you even think there MIGHT be an issue, even at the risk of worrying about what turns out to be nothing. Hopefully, your son is just fine, and no harm will have been done by getting him evaluated "just in case", but if there is as issue, you will kick yourself if you take the "wait and see" approach that so many people including some pediatricians seem to advocate. Better to get him extra help and then turn out to be wrong (you can laugh about it later with him), than to assume everything is fine and be wrong (and miss out on valuable early intervention). Best wishes to you and your son...I hope that everything turns out to be fine with him. Until you are able to definitively rule out an autism spectrum issue, I would also urge you to hold off on any more vaccinations, because if he does have autism, the vaccines may make him worse (you can always catch up on the shots later, if you rule out autism in a few months).
Best wishes,
A.

Hi S.--

I had a baby that sounds just like yours. I agree with evaluation of hearing now, and that its probably too early to worry about other stuff, but thought I would tell you my story to make you feel better. My son is now almost 2 1/2. At 7 months, he was much the same. Barely made any noises, avoided eye contact. When I would take him to the houses of friends of mine with similarly aged children, I would get so worried, because their children were much more interactive than mine, and of course autism was on my mind ALL the time as well. We checked his hearing, which was fine, Well now, he is 2 1/2 and totally normal. He vocalized more around 10 months, though he didn't start really "talking" (making words) until about 14 months, but now has a much better vocabulary than other children his age and is very normal (clearly NOT autistic).

Hope that makes you feel a little better.

Hi S.,

I litterally worried about autism for the 1st year of my daughters life- almost to the point of not being able to relax. There is so much information out there about it - but many things that point to possible autism can also be completely typical child behavior. It is the combination of things that people should be looking for. My daughter never held her bottle or looked at me when I gave it to her and she didn't say that much at 7 months. She was always looking around at the world around her. Every little thing she did I would analyze - because I was so worried if I didn't catch it - it would be a catastrophy. Everytime I went to the Dr I always asked about it and they would ask me what she was doing that concerned me - every time they would observe and say she was right on track. She is going to be 2 next month - and does not have autism. she talks up a storm is very smart, super social, smiley, blah blah blah. I definately agree that being aware is a great thing - but don't get obsessed to the point where you are not enjoying your little one.

Take him to be evaluated and put your mind at ease one way or the other.

YES!

I started seeing signs at 5 months. She got ill the day after a vaccine. At 6 months she was still ill from the same (infection?), and not sitting up till 7 months. She didn't try to hold her bottle, and when she did finally try, she would just knock it out of her mouth.(looking back i can see that her central nervous system was affected). She didn't babble. Had ear infections from 5-8 months old. As she grew, didn't really like to be held, wouldn't pay attention to a story but instead would climb down, didn't aknowledge being sung to or talked to like a normal child would. Didn't cruise furniture, or use a walker toy. Eventually pulled self to a standing position and walked from there, but walked a little late. at 18 months to 2 yrs, didn't attempt to put more than 2 words together, or speak multi syllable words. Refused to try to speak multi syllable words till 4. Up until about 4, still didnt like to be read to. Still hard to keep her focus and attention when i was speaking to her. back and forth normal conversation and interaction didn't happen, and consequently, it was hard to bond with her. I would say something to her and she would reply with something totally off topic or not reply/aknowledge at all. Unfortunately, When she was a baby, I had a lot of people telling me she was fine,But i had already had two other babies and something seemed "off" with her.But even my husband said she was fine. The doctor said she was fine because she answered "S." when he asked her her name at 11 months old. Her hearing was tested at 5 yrs old and said to be in the normal range, even though she did show some hearing loss in the right ear they said it was under the threshold of being a problem.

A compliant, well mannered baby (unless she was ill)..She became an angry, fustrated child around 3 yrs old because she was often misunderstood .She had a hard time communicating what she needed,consequently her and hubby butted heads a lot. Hubby couldn't figure it out- she would start to get angry, it became a meltdown for her...and then he felt she was manipulating him and he would get angry at her. Whew!

There are people online who claim they have cured autism.

Do research and never stop looking for answers.

Dont give vaccines- ESPECIALLY if the child was born with any ilnesses like thrush, ect, or the child in not in perfect health. Even if the child is healthy vaccines are not good because they suppress the immune system, but if the child is already unwell and the immune system in taxed, it can cause toxic overload.

http://www.healthy.net/scr/article.asp?ID=539
http://www.nutrimedical.com/news.jhtml?method=view&ne...
Gail

Hello S.: I want to tell you that I am the mother of 5, a Grandmother of several and have been a foster parent.
I have seen several children that react the same way as yours.
I have a little grandchild that is perfectly fine and doesn't bother with looking at anyone BUT her mother which makes daddy crazy. She hates her bottle and just wants to be done with it and get to moving around again. She is just a happy baby and mom is all she needs. I have had children that are just so distracted becasue of the stimulation that is going on around them they don't have time to pay attention.
I have 4 who were great at paying full attention and I think could sing the Star Spangled Banner at 7 months, I also have one that never learned to talk, respond with more than a noise or smile untl he was over 3. He was partly deaf, due to ear infections, and yes we found that he has Aspberger's Syndrome. But don't borrow trouble if you don't have to.
If your child, had down's syndrome, or anything like it I am sure that the doctors would have picked it up. So you can do some simple testing yourself.
1. make noise and see the responce. Have shows on the TV and see if the child responds-- mostly things musical work the best at that age. That means he may just be distracted and secure with you. You say that he does make typical baby sounds and noise at other times. So again, it sould just be that feeding time is just not the time the baby chooses to have one on one time that way.
2. Work on one sound several days and see if you get any type of responce.
You are a parent that is just making sure you are getting all the information you need to take the best care you can of the child. Parenthood is like an adventure ride. It has many twists and turns along the way, that is like no other theme park ride. It will be the greatest adventure of your life. You are just at the starting gate. Good Luck, Nana G

Is he working on fine or large motor skills? Perfecting a roll, crawl, picking up o's or anything? If they are working on the motor skills their verbal skills will fall to the waste side.
As far as drinking a bottle and eye contact goes. What is he doing? Is he checking out the room, zoning out on a picture? My friends daughter would never make eye contact while eating because she was too busy checking everything out.
Try not to worry before it's time to worry.
Best of luck,
C.

Hi S.,
Try to stay calm. it may be nothing, but it's worth checking out.

You have gotten some good advice from parents who have been there...

Mostly I wanted to tell you this: *IF* it does turn out that he is autistic, don't lose hope---I have known an autistic kid for most of his life, and he is one of the most awesome kids I've ever known, a delight to all who meet him. He is so brave, kind, hard working, smart, funny, cheerful, loyal...I wish I could be more like him! I really mean that.
There is a wonderful book by Martha Beck regarding her son with Down Syndrome, called Expecting Adam. She was fearful and disappointed and angry about her son's diagnosis, but he ended up being one of the best things that ever happened in her life.

My nephew did not talk until he was 3 years old. He is a totally normal teen now. Just think positive and enjoy him...there may come a day you are wishing he would stop talking long enough for you to have a thought of your own.

Hey, I am deaf and have a deaf son (and extended family members as well). The "snap" test to see if your child can hear or not is NOT RELIABLE! Don't depend on that!

Reaons being:
Most deaf people can hear some in some frequencies, and not so much in others.
There are many other ways to "hear" that you aren't aware of. Shadows, air movement, scent, vibration, etc. Any of those could alert the child to turn his head and see what is going on. Helen Keller would sit on the porch and would turn when someone came out of the house, even though she could not see or hear a thing. (She felt the vibrations.)
There is also a type of hearing loss where it comes and goes (this is odd to me but I do know friends who have this) so sometimes they can hear, other times no.
There is also a condition where the child *can* hear normally - but the brain processes it incorrectly, so they dont understand what they hear. (I wouldn't worry about this in a 7mo child yet tho)

Bottom line, the more you interact with him, the less his odds are of having an autism-spectrum disorder. Early Intervention is key! A lot you can do yourself. Do however, contact your school district (I dont know if they work with younger than 18 months old babies though) and see if they can get you into their early intervention program and/or a EI teacher to come out - at the very least, get some resources and ideas of what therapy games you can play with him. Things like peek a boo are very good.

I have to agree that I would be mostly concerned about his hearing and I would go back to the peciatirician and push for a hearing evaluation. I have 5 chidlren and my fourth didn't babble. She also didn't startle or get upset very much from loud noises but she clearly heard some. Because it was obvious that she heard something even though I noticed problems at six months she did not get a hearing test until 15 months at which point some hearing loss was noted. The hearing problems were due to excessive wax production and wax adheared to the ear drum which was totally fixable and had been ignored by the pediatirician because she didn't complain about her ears. This child has a very high pain and discomfort tollerance. By 18 months her ears were completely cleared but she needed six months of speech therapy to help her catch up from the time she could not hear. This may not be the case with your son but a hearing evaluation is non-invasive and pain free so why not go ahead and do it. Also if he continues to act "a little off" I would ask to have him seen by a developmental pediatrician or an Occupational Therapist. Be calm an insistant with the doctor. Our fourth has multiple medical problems but whenever I brought one of her seemingly small issues up the doctor just told me how it could be normal for her and tried to make me feel better. We finally started discovering her problems as they became much worse and we switched doctors. If it feels wrong to you it could be but you would feel much better to have someone who "specializes" in those issues tell you it is or it isn't.

Amy W said exactly what I was going to say. I am in complete agreement.

Hi S.- I think you owe it to yourself to have him evaluated even if it seems early. It sounds like you are worrying a lot and just for the sake of putting your fears to rest why not have him checked out. Not sure if your insurance covers it but you can't put a price tag on peace of mind! Good luck!

Dear S.,
I know you are concerned, but I'm wondering if he only avoids eye contact when you hold or bottle feed him.
Does he make eye contact with you at other times like when he's in his high chair or laying flat on the floor while you change his diaper, etc?

I did daycare and had a little boy that really worried me. He was one month older than my daughter and so very behind her in so many things. Not just her, but other babies too. He didn't "startle", couldn't hold his own bottle, he rarely made any noise other than crying, when you picked him up, he was just limp, he didn't try to hang on or anything. He had no interest in trying to stand well after my daughter was running all over the house.
I just kept working with him, playing with him, standing him up, reading and singing to him. Let me tell you something. Once that kid started walking and talking there was no stopping him and no shutting him up. It's as though he had just been observing and taking everything in. He's very intelligent, perfectly healthy and serving in the United States Navy right now.
Express your concerns to your pediatrician, but you might be surprised what happens in the next couple of months.
Oh, and the eye contact while nursing/bottle...I bought a rocking chair before my baby was born so I could rock and nurse her in it. I had a big picture with reds and burgundies and pinks greens in it hanging on the wall behind the chair. She was fascinated by it. When I held her up to burp her, she was examining that picture. I still have it and when she has a baby, I'm going to give it to her. It's the first thing she fell in love with looking at during nursing time. She could have cared less looking at me. But, she's perfectly normal.

Best wishes!

Call Alta California Regional Center and have him evaluated. They are a state agency for the Mentally Retarded. Don't freak out when you hear that term. It doesn't mean that he IS retarded or autistic, it is just a preemptive strike to make sure that he has been properly evaluated and that if he needs early intervention, that he gets it. They can hook you up with everything from phycological evaluations to speach therapy to play therapy as well as any other state/federal services out there that you and he may qualify for. Start now because if there IS a problem, early intervention is key. Good Luck. -T.-

P.S. If you need any support, let me know. I have a 19 yo disabled daughter who has been with alta since she was 18mo and a disabled brother who I also take care of who is almost 40. I have been through (and watch my mom go through) the system for 30 years and I know what to look for. I also remember all too clearly when I was sooooo worried about my daughter all those years ago. If there is a problem, there are solutions. Don't think you are all alone.

One of the VERY early signs that parents and professionals can look for in a child, is does he point to things and want you to look at what he is pointing at. This is one of the very first attempts at communication and shared attention. He is saying " I see something and I want you to see the same thing" An Airplane, a balloon, a toy out of reach etc. This can come WaY before a child has the ability to make any real intelligible sounds.
I do agree that you should pursue some sort of evaluation, with your pediatrician, or the Regional Center or Early Start Program maybe an audiologist to rule out hearing impairment. Parents Helping Parents is a great resource in the bay area www.php.com
Don't let the professionals be dismissive. I can't tell you how many people told me of kids not talking until they were 4 or that it was because he was a boy or because his sister was doing the talking for him. In my gut I knew something was different about him. The earlier you can get started on stuff the better and if you find out that there really is nothing to be concerned about then you can stop worrying.
Another cautionary note, if professionals start throwing around terms like PDD-NOS, sensory integration disorder, language delay, Developmental Delays etc, even though they are not talking about autism, those are reasons to pursue some early intervention.

Hi S.,

He's probably just fine, BUT.....if anything comes to my mind, for me it would be his hearing.

At 7 months, here is how to check... You must put him in a "saucer" or "walker" or even a high chair. When you do, and get the chance to disappear from the room, then walk quietly up behind him and SNAP your figures on 1 side of his head to attempt to check his hearing. He will turn his head trying to see what the noise is, but at 7 months, it won't be a "graceful" turn, and may even be delayed. The trick is to NOT let him SEE you. So it might take a few days to get a good result. Without goingto an Audiologist, and possibly having him sedated, this would be your "home hearing test" to know and get an idea.

NOW! DO NOT WORRY if he doesn't turn his head right away. He is only 7 months old and maybe hasn't mastered certain things yet. This is why even an Audiologist will sedate a 7 mo old to do a different kind of a hearing test (measuring brainwave responses). But, this will give you an "insight" that your son probably hears just fine :O)

I don't know too much about Autism, but I hink he would have eye contact even if he had it.

I believe at 7 months old, they are older now, and beginning to get busy in their minds....so they think alot and remember the FUN things from his day before You know, like maybe almost escaping up the stairs.... or something he's been trying to do for awhile :O) I believe right now he's just too busy to have eye contact :O)

I'm sure he's just fine, S.. I remember feeling something similar for my 2nd son. He's just fine. I worried for about 4-5 months for nothing....

~N. :O)

Hi S.,
I'm a Mom of 3 grown children. And an Aunt to a 7 month old right now. My nephew gets shy with me and smiles when he turns his head away. But he doesn't do this with his parents.
I suggest you get a second opinion.
Good luck.