My 17 month old will sometimes cry in new settings when kids get to close to him. He cries mommy and wants me to hug him. He is fine after about 5 mins and plays with them and laughs and follows them. Again, I am always worrying about autism and want to know if any other moms have been through this with their toddler. He is at home with me most of the time and and has no siblings. Thanks so much for all of your a dive. It helps so much!!!! Also, he will spin a wHeel once and a while, but not for more than 15 seconds. Otherwise he is social, has a lot of words, points and follows points. I am just a worrier. Thanks!!
Oh its normal!
it is just a transition.
No biggie.
Both my kids were that way too.
Its good.
They go by THEIR cues.
And they are now very smart and wise, about people.
I always taught them, to go by their cues... and to listen to their instincts.
Get the book "What To Expect The Toddler Years."
Sounds normal to me.
We can trade... my daughter will talk to anyone who will listen :-)
Very normal!!! Especially since he is fine after 5 min. Mine isn't fine til about an hour.
That's totally normal! My son does the same thing in groups of toddlers. He's just a little shy in the beginning. He's a cautious kid and sees other toddlers as unpredictable, and he doesn't like falling, getting booboos etc... He's smart enough to know that other little toddlers are also unsteady on their feet and sometimes they might knock him off his balance. He prefers to stand back and watch awhile before joining in. I just follow his cues. When we arrive someplace we set up our little base by the wall and watch the other kids for awhile. I talk to him about what they're doing, and eventually he'll wave at the kids we know and start playing too. He still doesn't like other toddlers touching him very much. He'll come over and tell me with a look of concern if a friend even brushes his arm! But he'll let anybody 4 years old and up hug him, hold his hand and lead him all around the room. I think he just sees that older kids are steadier on their feet, and won't fall and take him down with them!
Ask your pediatrician to give you the autism screen at his 18 month visit, so you can put your worries to rest. We did it at 18 months, and it's just a quick checklist. I think you'll find that he's right on track!
i think its just overwhelming him at first. maybe start having small play days with your friends that have kids around his age. he may feel insecure about other kids. i think this will pass when he learns its ok to be social :).
i can tell you my 4 year old will play with any child that talks to her lol.
I'm pretty sure that's normal. I too worry all the time about autism, but I'm pretty sure that he wouldn't pay much attention to the new kids (or you) if autism were the issue...
My little guy is 20 months and just as clingy when he's not in his 'comfort zone.' I finally have him going to my cousins' twice a week to get a little out-of-the-house time. He does great when Daddy drops him off, but still cries if I do..
Good luck! I completely understand! Motherhood is a constant state of worry and guilt! Ha ha. ;)
It might be the 2nd separation anxiety, that occurs around 15-18mos. My son's was ridic, he practically wore me like pajamas, but then went back to his social self a few mos later. Around 2-1/2 he got more wary of strangers, I think its called 'stranger danger' stage, and even some family members who he didn't see often. That lasted just under 6mos and now he's telling everyone his full name, my full name, etc. :)
Normal. All three of mine went through that, and many toddlers do. Try to relax and assume the best!
Some kids have "slow to warm up" personalities. No big deal-- just their personality. Zero to Three, a non-profit child development organization, has a great deal of information on that (and other) child personalities:
http://www.zerotothree.org/child-development/challenging-...
Hope that helps. I have one of these kids, and he is totally fine, just need a few minutes in a new situation to get himself comfortable!
Sounds pretty normal to me. I wonder why you are worrying so much about autism? I have a brother who is profoundly autistic which caused me some worry when I had kids, and it turned out my daughter has a form of autism(diagnosed autistic at age 3), but she is high functioning, unlike my brother. She will most likely live a very normal life, so even if you have a child on the spectrum they can live pretty normal lives. she hopes to be a vet when she grows up and I have every confidence she will do that if she still wants to as she gets older. If you are questioning and not sure, you don't have a child who is profoundly autistic, with my brother there was no mistaking there was a very serious problem. He made no eye contact, couldn't communicate, and had so many tantrums he almost couldn't leave the house as a young child. You would know there was something very wrong if you had a profoundly autistic child. If you have a high functioning child on the spectrum the signs might be more subtle. But the things that would stand out to you would lack of interaction/communication with others. And obsessive behavior and inability to play. A child with autism probably would not want you to hug him(now all kids are different), but both my brother and daughter never wanted or sought out hugs or physical contact of any kind. By the time my brother was 13 he could be directed to give a hug and he would but he never initiated it. My daughter at age 5 now gives hugs with direction to do so, but she almost never initiates it, she does occasionally now initiated sitting on my lap but that is only about once a week or less. They would have difficulty following direction and would not play with others, both my brother and my daughter had very obsessive play habits. My brother much more pronounced than my daughter though. She would obsessively line up toys and as she got older would set everything up, but then leave, because she didn't know how to play, still has a lot of difficulty understanding the concept. She can now mimic play great, but she can't initiate it on her own. It sounds like you have a perfectly normal child, but if by some chance he is on the spectrum, it is likely no one other than you will ever know from observing him. And he will a live a very normal life. when my daughter was first diagnosed I was so worried she wouldn't live a normal life, but I only had experience with my brother who had it so severe. Now I know she will be able to have a very normal life, and looking at her behaviors, I am pretty sure my uncle has autism, he grew up to be a very successful engineer, married and had 3 kids. I think my great aunt had it too, she was known as the eccentric one of the family(could communicate with dogs), but they all were high functioning, just had difficulty with social interaction. Please try not to worry to much. Even a diagnosis of autism does not mean anything awful, and it really sounds like he has none of the warming signs.
