My own little Public Service Announcement

I have a good friend that has a 22 month old son who has been diagnosed with Autism. She and I used to talk about his development back when he was 16 months old and she was always concerned that he wasn't reaching his milestones. It became very apparent that Mitchell wasn't meeting the developmental milestones when Lynzy would excel in something or do something that Mitchell could not. Lynzy is 4 months younger than Mitchell and seems to be right on track developmentally. My friend is a very dilligent, resourceful mom and she is persistent that with the right early intervention, Mitchell will be mainstream and ready for school by 5. I applaud her because the amount of work and appointments she has to go to is extremely time consuming and she has a 3 year old daughter to raise as well. She currently has her entire family on a wheat/gluten/dairy free diet, Mitchell has occupational therapy 4+ times a week and he sees an holisitic medical practioner for supplements and detoxification. She has halted the "bundled" immunization shots and elects to have single dose immunizations. She believes that it isn't because of the preservatives in the shots that are causing the autism but that Mitchell's body is unable to process and detoxify the immunizations quickly and properly like other children. She says that most autistic children have a yeast overgrowth and have allergies to wheat/gluten and possibly dairy.

Since Nancy has made the commitment to doing everything possible to assist Mitchell's development, I have noticed a DRAMATIC difference in his development. He waves and interacts with others, his motor skills are improving and he is playing with toys appropriately.

So here's my Public Service Announcement. When I first had Brock, I had no clue what to look for if there were any problems. I think that sometimes as a mom you don't know that something is off until you are around other kids the same age or have another child. I didn't realize that Brock's speech was behind until I heard other 3 year olds speak a lot clearer. Anyway, I have lots of friends and family with young babies and since autism is so prevalent I thought would write this blog as an informational note for others and maybe to be passed on. I found these developmental milestones from the Autism Speaks website (www.autismspeaks.org) and they are meant to be used as a guide for discussion with a pediatrician and does not mean that a child has autism if they aren't meeting the milestone right at the X month mark. I hope this is just a blog entry that no one needs or sees anyone that fits the spectrum but if by chance you do, I do believe that early intervention is the key.

Does Your Baby…

At 4 Months:
Follow and react to bright colors, movement, and objects?
Turn toward sounds?
Show interest in watching people's faces?
Smile back when you smile?

At 6 Months:
Relate to you with real joy?
Smile often while playing with you?
Coo or babble when happy?
Cry when unhappy?

At 9 Months:
Smile and laugh while looking at you?
Exchange back-and-forth smiles, loving faces, and other expressions with you?
Exchange back-and-forth sounds with you?
Exchange back-and-forth gestures with you, such as giving, taking, and reaching?

At 12 Months:
Use a few gestures, one after another, to get needs met, like giving, showing, reaching, waving, and pointing?
Play peek-a-boo, patty cake, or other social games?
Make sounds, like “ma,” “ba,” “na,” “da,” and “ga”?
Turn to the person speaking when his/her name is called?

At 15 Months:
Exchange with you many back-and-forth smiles, sounds, and gestures in a row?
Use pointing or other “showing” gestures to draw attention to something of interest?
Use different sounds to get needs met and draw attention to something of interest?
Use and understand at least three words, such as “mama,” “dada,” “bottle,” or “bye-bye”?

At 18 Months:
Use lots of gestures with words to get needs met, like pointing or taking you by the hand and saying, “want juice”?
Use at least four different consonants in babbling or words, such as m, n, p, b, t, and d?
Use and understand at least 10 words?
Show that he or she knows the names of familiar people or body parts by pointing to or looking at them when they are named?
Do simple pretend play, like feeding a doll or stuffed animal, and attracting your attention by looking up at you?

At 24 Months:
Do pretend play with you with more than one action, like feeding the doll and then putting the doll to sleep?
Use and understand at least 50 words?
Use at least two words together (without imitating or repeating) and in a way that makes sense, like “want juice”?
Enjoy being next to children of the same age and show interest in playing with them, perhaps giving a toy to another child?
Look for familiar objects out of sight when asked?

At 36 Months:
Enjoy pretending to play different characters with you or talking "for" dolls or action figures?
Enjoy playing with children of the same age, perhaps showing and telling another child about a favorite toy?
Use thoughts and actions together in speech and in play in a way that makes sense, like “sleepy, go take nap” and “baby hungry, feed bottle”?
Answer “what,” “where,” and “who” questions easily?
Talk about interests and feelings about the past and the future?