Are You Seeing any of these "Red Flags"???
Hopefully, you are familiar with the term developmental milestones and your doctor is asking you a series of questions at each well child visit. These checklists are designed to cover all aspects of child development including language, motor, cognitive, and social areas. The goal is to identify any areas of potential delay so that they can be addressed. But, there are a few areas that are particularly important because they are strongly linked to disorders that impact social communication (including autism). These are considered Red Flags, and, while they aren’t ever meant to say for sure that your child has a developmental disorder, they do point to the need to get a comprehensive evaluation to either rule in or rule this out. Sound scary? I know, as a mom myself, it is very scary to worry that something is wrong. But, the key message here is to move forward anyway because getting this information is vital to helping your child. And, regardless or whether there is a diagnosis of autism or some other disorder, there is a lot of hope. Quickly putting interventions and therapies in place is the best course of action to significantly improve a child’s social communication skills.
So you may be wondering what you should be looking for? What are red flags that may indicate your child isn’t progressing in meeting developmental milestones?
No big smiles or expressing happiness and excitement by 6 months
Does not go back and forth with you making sounds, smiles, or other facial expressions by 9 months
Doesn’t babble by 12 months
No gestures such as pointing, showing, reaching, or waving by 12 months
Doesn’t say 2 word phrases (that aren’t just repeating) by 24 months
Any loss of speech, babbling, or social skills that your child used to do but stopped doing
If any of these sound like your child, it doesn’t necessarily mean that your child has autism or a developmental disorder. But, they are reasons to be concerned and to seek further evaluation. Start with talking to your pediatrician and make sure to strongly request an evaluation. If you feel like you aren’t being taken seriously, consider changing doctors or look for a developmental pediatrician that specializes in this area.
Lastly, take a breath and know that you are doing everything you can to best help your child. You will figure this out and when you know what you are dealing with you will have the knowledge to put a plan into place. Take care of yourself and your own mental health….. This process comes with uncounted emotions. Just take it one day at a time. You got this!
If you could use someone to guide and walk you through this process, schedule a complimentary call with me today.