could it be autism

should I have concerns. anyone opinions I appreciate.. it is about my 18th moneht old DS

I have a DS who is 18mnths old .I am concerned re this speech even though we saw the MCHN and she said that he is in the range for a 18mnth old, being 5-10words.

he does say mama dada (though not always directly at us) duck, dogs name, more, go, chook , moo,, row row, nana (banana) and occasionally will say ear & nose. but all these words are not clear , but my DH and I can make them out.. other then that, he does a lot of baby jargon- I guess that is what it is called.

Can be a very fussy eater, and just loves to throw his food, which annoys me to the max !!!!

Anyhow, my concerns are the following.. he will flap his arms around when he is excited. he is so clingy at home, he always needs one of us to play with him. all attention needs to be on him. if either of us are on the computer or reading a book/mag, he will crack it, until we start playing with him, it amazes me that someone can be so clingy. he goes to child care twice a week, and loves it, and doesn?t have a problem when I drop him off, in fact he waved goodbye to me.
he cracks it over nothing sometimes, and if he cant do anything,he will crack it, and just throw his blocks etc..

he loves to play with things, and does pretend playing, he will answer to his name- well most of the time, if he is concentrating he wont though.. he can point to about 6 body parts. gives kisses and cuddles, and sleeps great, all night, with a lunch time sleep of 2-3 hrs. ,. he will look at us in the eye- no problem with that..

What I am thinking of due to his lack of speech, and arm flapping, could it be autism, I know my MCHN was not concerned at all. he does like to play with other kids, and loves people.. always smiling etc. its just the arm flapping, not as verbal as other kids, and he has to be with us when we are at home all the time.

Oh and he wont stay still, will only look at a TV for like 30seconds then he is off, will be up, down, up down, on the counch. wont sit still, and I am sure on borderline of hyperactive.

yesterday he kept playing with his ears, covering them for no reason- there was no noise, but poss he may have had an ear ache

he has been walking since about14 mnths, but now doesn?t walk , just runs..

Is this all sound normal, or should I be a little concerned. or am I just being a paranoid mother. - as usual

It sounds within the realms of normal to me - my DS has just in the past week or two taken off with his words, but until then he had about the same number as your DS. I've noticed you've had a few posts checking what is normal for his age ('cause my DS is very close in age to yours) and I think perhaps you need to see someone for your peace of mind - not sure who maybe a GP that specialises in kids. There's nothing wrong with being concerned though - it means you love him and you want the best for him.:grouphug:

HI December

Go to your GP and get it checked out, for your own piece of mind and because if it is autism wonderful things can be done through early intervention.
The quickker you get onto it the better.

I've worked with autistic kids for 10 yrs+, when you mentioned hand flapping it was a bit of a flag for me, as it is fairly common in people with autism.
Does he walk on his tip toes at all?
Obsessive about certain things, repetative in tasks?

I am no medical expert and I obviously haven't seen your son, but I am a big believer in mums knowing when something is just not quite right with their kids.
If you don't think something is right then go to your GP and seek their advice, if your not satisified with them then go to another GP or get a referral to a pead.

There are many varying degrees of autism spectrum disorder and no two people are absolutely alike.
I've met many wonderful children and adults who happen to have autism and they are great people, they just have a few more challenges than the rest of us.

Best of Luck
any other questions I'll do my best to answer as best I can.

..Laura