Early detection of autism is crucial for effective intervention strategies. Signs of autism include lack of imaginative play, playing alone, lack of eye contact, delayed language development, and behavioral issues such as rocking back and forth. It is important to seek professional help if these signs are noticed.
Autism is one of the most debilitating conditions a child can be diagnosed with. Often, the signs of autism can go unnoticed for a year or more, leading to the loss of valuable time and intervention strategies that can reduce the severity of the condition. While there are always things that can be done, noticing the early signs of autism is one of the best ways to help those who may be afflicted.
The good news is that the signs of autism are usually very easy to spot. However, the bad news is that even if the signs are easily apparent, it may take a while for a parent or guardian to associate those signs with autism. Fortunately, as increased awareness about autism is emphasized, the signs of autism are being linked to the condition at increasingly early stages in many cases.
Since autism is a condition that affects both development, behavior and communication, signs of autism often appear in all domains. Developmental signs may be easier to spot in some younger children, especially since normal communication development occurs over a wide range of ages. Despite this, communication difficulties should not be discounted.
Developmental signs of autism include a lack of imaginative play and a preference for playing alone. Children are generally very social and enjoy being around other people, especially those their own age. Thus, those who constantly play by themselves and even refuse to acknowledge others could be candidates for an autism spectrum disorder.
Communicative signs of autism include a lack of eye contact with other individuals and delayed or nonexistent language development. Many might mistake these two signs as a hearing problem. In fact, many suspicions that lead to an autism diagnosis begin as a hearing concern. Autistic individuals usually cannot maintain eye contact for all but a second or two and will likely not develop speech as rapidly as other children.
Speech development is a very unusual feature of autism in that speech can develop normally over a period of time. However, around the age of 2, a child will suddenly lose almost all verbal language. No one is quite sure why this happens, but if it does, it’s almost always one of the surest signs of autism.
The behavioral signs of autism are varied and may or may not be exhibited by all children, depending on the level of severity of the autism. These signs include rocking back and forth constantly, walking on tiptoes, emotional outbursts, and laughing for seemingly no reason. By themselves, these may not mean much, but if a child is displaying more than one consistently, this could be grounds for seeking a professional opinion.
It should be noted that the term autism covers a broad spectrum of disorders. Therefore, those affected by the condition may not show all the signs. Also, the signs of autism that are exhibited can be in varying degrees. If a parent or guardian suspects they are seeing signs of autism, it is imperative that the child be checked by a doctor to rule out physical causes and a mental health professional.
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