There is a lot of confusion about autism and its symptoms.  Parents aren’t sure what to look for as indicators and educators aren’t generally trained to know the different signs at different levels of the spectrum.  There is a saying within the autism community:  “When you know one child with autism, you know one child with autism.”

Following is one description, that may not seem typical, that describes symptoms that my 3 year-old has displayed:

• “A general lack of fear or fearlessness may be evident, and children with autism may talk openly with strangers, hug strangers, invade people’s personal space, bump into peers in lines, touch or climb people inappropriately, or have excessive or a complete lack of separation anxiety from parents or caregivers (Mayes, 2008).”
  • My daughter has shown a complete lack of separation anxiety, has shown inappropriate fearlessness (making my heart pound at playgrounds), and has been inappropriately open with strangers.  Other signs that match my daughter and teen son, but don’t seem obvious, include:

• An extreme perfectionism or “having to finish” what they have started, to the point of tantrums, may be evident especially during unexpected or unwanted transitions (Mayes, 2008).
• They may have problems falling asleep, or staying asleep.
• Children who are overly reactive to crowds and commotion may appear uncomfortable or avoidant of cafeterias, malls, gymnasiums, parties, family gatherings or even theaters (Mayes, 2008)
• Communication may not appear to be delayed, but comprehension, social language requiring give and take may be lacking, an unusual tone or quality, rote or repetitive speech may present.
• Blurting out, excessively asking the same question over and over, echoing or mimicking, large vocabulary, or difficulty listening to another and understanding another perspective can be apparent.
• Some people with high functioning autism or Asperger’s Syndrome demonstrate extreme abilities in remembering facts, numbers, phone numbers, maps, words, birth dates, or other factual information.
  • I’ve seen this in both my kids.  The other day, my 3 year-old commented on a boy she saw at my son’s school as being his friend after only briefly seeing him with my son the previous day, surrounded by many children.
• They may appear very rigid in their point of view, and unable to accept or understand another’s perspective. They may appear to never be able to “let it go,” or tend towards appearing argumentative or “splitting hairs.” A conversation can lead to tantrums, emotional meltdowns, or withdrawal with seemingly little provocation (Fattig, 2007).
  • This describes some interactions with my 14 year-old son diagnosed with Aspergers, who can be very argumentative and “split hairs.”  My 3 year-old can have a melt-down at the slightest suggestion of things possibly not going her way or how she expected.   Many times she is wrong – she doesn’t know that for instance, I am in the process of getting the remote to turn on her show…
• Motor clumsiness or fine motor difficulties may be present, and intuitive physics may be higher than intuitive psycho/social abilities (Baron-Cohen, 2000), p. 16). A child may be able to dismantle and recreate elaborate lego designs, set a clock, reprogram a VCR, match shapes, or display, artistic or musical talents (Mayes, 2008, p. 2). ” Fathers of children with autism, as well as grandfathers, are over-represented in occupations such as engineering, whilst being under-represented in occupations such as social work.  Engineering is a clear example of an occupation that requires good folk (intuitive) physics,” (Baron-Cohen, 2000, p. 16).
  • Both of my children have struggled with clumsiness.  It was considered it may be due to their height – both 90-100%.  My son broke his arm when he was 2 after climbing a chair to switch lights on and off (a symptom, which I didn’t know then) and slipped, falling wrong on his arm.  He would fall while standing in line.  More recently, he has had concussions from soccer.  My daughter has regular band-aids after falls from walking and not looking where she is walking.
  • My teen son wants to be an engineer.  My father was an engineer.
• Children with high functioning autism or Asperger’s Syndrome are “limited in brain areas that enable people to understand subtle cues,” (Hoover, 2006, p. 1), and often misunderstandings, literal interpretation, and/or sensory over stimulation can lead to overreactions, irritability, a low frustration tolerance, tantrums, aggressiveness, appearing to have an explosive (or bipolar) temperament, self stimulation, anxiety, depression, or self injury (Mayes, 2008, p. 2). Children with high functioning autism or Asperger’s Syndrome develop a tendency of distrust towards others, because of social failures and negative social experiences over time, which can lead to self-isolation and social phobia. This behavioral reaction can be viewed as “rude” by others, and often people on the spectrum struggle to understand why they are not liked or frequently feel rejected (Hoover, 2006, p. 1).