My husband thinks that I am worrying too much, and he is probably right. I just wanted to hear your opinions. My son is 5 1/2 months old. He is social in that he smiles, giggles ALOT, makes eye contact quite a bit, does high pitched squeals when excited, hums (i.e., he does a lot of mmmmmm sounds), etc. He also reaches out for toys and tracks objects with his eyes. Physically, he is close to sitting independently, can put his weight on his feet when supported and seems to be on track with regards to other physical milestones. Here are my concerns:

1) He does not babble yet. No real consonants. I thought I heard him say da a couple of times, but I am not sure.

2) He does not respond verbally when I speak to him. When I speak to him in a soft voice and then pause, he usually smiles a big smile and then turns away as if he is shy. Sometimes he will make "airy" noises like he is trying tp say something, but no real sound comes out. He watches me intently, but 90% of the time no sound! 

3) He does not usually respond to his name

So, of course, I get on the internet and it freaks me out. There is just so much about early diagnosis of autism at 6 months and hearing loss. He did have an ear infection a few weeks ago and the doctors said that his eardrum might  have burst. But, if it did, the doctor said that it healed up fast. My pediatrician does not check for residual fluid, and I am not sure why. Did any of you experience this with your babies? Please let me know what you think. I feel like I spend half of my life worrying about my little guy and I want to just enjoy our time together.


Edited by klmccart - 11 February 2008 at 11:58am

First, let me say I am glad to know that there is another mother as neurotic as myself , lol!!!  I try to joke about it, but I have the same problem and think that I may be overly anxious about all areas of child rearing!  A couple of things:  over researching makes things WAY worse.  I have found that most things that they say may be a "red flag" for early diagnosis of autism, can also be found as totally normal behaviors. For instance-- toys.  Children with autism may play with non-toys, or wheels and gears.  However, healthy children are said to love pots and pans, measuring cups, paper, etc.  Autistic children may walk on their tip toes.  Healthy toddlers are also known to do this when learning to walk.  Autistic children may do "arm flapping."  Average children obviously do this when they see things that excite them!!  Autistic children may not respond to their name, but normally developing children are sometimes easily distracted.  Autistic children may have GI issues, excema etc, but so do normally developing children.  Of course these are just a few things, but I know how easy it is to obsess over little things.  I also think that if I saw another child doing any of the above things, I wouldn't have ever thought anything was strange. I think it's because it's our OWN child and every little thing causes us to worry.  A word of advice...I love Jenny McCarthy's bood "Louder than Words" but DO NOT read it if you are prone to worrying!!!! 

It is so easy to compare and then worry like crazy if your child isn't doing everything at the "perfect" time.  Responding to their name is a 9 month skill (from what I remember) so I wouldn't stress about that one too much.  He already sounds much happier (laughing, cooing, smiling) than Sarah ever was at that age and she is now an incredibly happy toddler!  I'm sure he'll be JUST fine!  Just keep being a fantastic mommy!

You all are so right! I actually read things on the internet that said name recognition by 3 months and babbling by 6 months. If those things do not happen talk to your doctor. The internet is a dangerous thing! No more diagnosing my son on my own anymore. Thanks for your feedback. You confirmed what I wanted to hear- that I am just crazy!

You're certainly not crazy!  I think all parents go through that.  I certainly did- and not only for the kids, but for myself too.  I've learned not to diagnose myself of anyone in the family based on symptoms from the internet.