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What are the symptoms of ADD in teens?

Why would my son have some autistic symptoms but not all and is it possible for a 16 mo to show signs of ADD?

  • My son is showing some signs of autism.. he doesn't respond to his name when he is doing something and he only says mama and baba.. he is 16 months old.. it seems like he is very focused on things when he is doing them.. he is hard to teach because it seems as if he has a short attention span.. but those are really the only symptoms of autism he has.. the speech delay and doesn't respond to his name.. but he has had many ear problems and just had tubes placed last month.. the tubes has made major difference in his speech because before them he never even babbled.. but I know he can hear now and he still won't respond to his name but it's pretty much only when he is interested in something... he doesn't have the other symptoms like lining things up, head banging, he is very loving, laughs and smiles all the time, likes other kids, doesn't walk on his tippy toes, has eye contact etc I am really worried he might have a mild autism though.. I am the worrier so I can't stop thinking about it.. he doesn't attach himself to any toys except he loves to press buttons.. remote, computer, etc. He is very advanced on his motor skills and runs jumps climbs dances does ring around the rosey's claps his hands he is good at figuring out toys loves the throw and kick the ball.. Is it possible for him to have autism with very few symptoms? And is it possible for him to have ADD or a short attention span and be very focused at 16 months? My husband has ADD and it just seems like when he is interested in something he just puts all of his focus on it.. he doesn't focus on only one part of an object either and usually doesn't play with one thing for a long time is it possible that he is just ignoring me? I don't think that that is it because he does this EVERYTIME he is interested in something.. he has a speech therapist come every Monday and she hasn't mentioned anything about autism yet which I'm assuming if she thought he had it she would have mentioned it by now she has seen him about 6 times.. an hr each time.. could it be autism or something else? Is it possible that he is just very focused? I do blame part of his speech delay on his ear infections and not being able to hear up until a month ago.. any advice is appreciated..

  • Answer:

    autism is a spectrum--a person can have a variety of symtpoms form a few to all there are many causes if language delays--and ear probloems is one of them-- all language delays are not autism he may be experience a receptive language delay also and just doesn't yet undertand what he is supposed to do when you call his name. yes it is possible for a toddler to have ADHD.. but based on his history--but is too soon to really consider that diagnosis... it is quitepossible that all his issues are just because of his ear problems and will resolve themsleves in the next couple years. Edit: at this age he would not be in school, but would be reeiving services through early intervention. school services generally start at age 3--although a few states will start shortly before that...but never before 2... and once he reaches school--the school classifiation would be Preschool diabled--not developmental delay...that is--if he still has the dealy at 3 Early Intervention does not give a diagnosis--only an assessment of teh level of delay in each developmental area.. What you described seems more typicalof teh language of a 12 month old--which is a 25% delay...any delay over 25% is significant....2 areas of delay over 25% are concerning as is 1 area over 33%...... if you have teh resources--go ahead and make an appointment with a devleopmental pediatrician--it can take 3-6 months to get an appointmnet--hopefully by that time it will be easier to assess if its just related to his ear problem

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My son, 21 y.o. is also autistic and I had the same issue with him. Autism is a developmental disorder and has certain behaviors related to it. it does not mean that every kid should have all the symptoms described at the DCM-IV. The important think is to be aware of the good behaviors and the "misbehavior" in order to work on it and give him a better and a more functional life. Diagnosis does not serve just for the name of what we see, but for looking social and educational structure for the kid, The sooner, the better. Ask for a conductual psychologist. He or she will help you a lot as the helped us. Blessings and all the best.

sicopedagoga

At this age the correct school diagnosis would be Developmental Delay - if he is evaluated. And that's where I would start. If the Speech person is attached to a public school - ask what the next step would be. Children develop differently - single words at 16 months is not a huge deficit at this point. Follow up with the Speech Therapist and mover forward - hard to not be hyper-vigilant BUT kids are all different and kids with disabilities are all different - only time will tell if your child's difference is moderate or insignificant.

mcc

I am a special education teacher. Let me tell you something very true and unfortunate. Some chidren are diagnosed as autistic because parents are so worried and upset that their child is not "normal" or developing like other children. Schools are pressured by worried parents. we often tell parents their child is normal, but they never listen and the schools are afraid of law suits so they go with the parents. Your child is only 16 months, their cognitive development widely ranges. Think of it this way: you plant three roses at the same time, will all three roses bloom the exact same day? The answer is no. This is the same with children.

Lora

Most autism cases start as ear or deafness problems. To be certain, track down and locate a Developmental Pediatrician. This is not your ordinary Pediatrician. It is a very specific specialty and the only one that has the proper training to diagnose autism in children. There are very few of these doctors so setting up an appointment would take weeks at least. Wait and hang on until then. Do not substitute for another kind of doctor or therapist. The Dev.Ped. has to be the one at the top coordinating what your child will need for intervention and therapy.

keerok

It sounds to me like you could be over-worried. I have a 16 mo, and your son's behavior seems quite normal to me, especially since he had hearing problems. On the other hand, I also have a 30 mo who has been diagnosed with Smith Magenis Syndrome, which has many similarities to autism (but not ALL the same symptoms). I knew something was wrong with her from 2 mos, but the dr blew it off as nothing, and continued to until she was a year old. If you are so concerned, you really need to listen to yourself & do something! I regret not standing firm when I knew something was wrong. Please bring this up to your speech therapist & see what their ideas are. Then, bring him to a doctor, or two. Don't stop until you feel you've got a good answer! Good luck!

car_e123

If he's had a ton of ear problems and only had tubes for a month, he may only have been hearing even somewhat clearly for a month. You said it made a huge difference! A friend of mine has a couple of kids with hearing loss. They figured that out around this age, and had hearing aids fitted for the kids. Made a big difference, of course, because now the kid could hear more than just the high sounds or just the low sounds. Just something else to think about.

K

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