Symptoms and Concerns
Learn the symptoms and signs of Autism, Asperger’s, and Other Neurodevelopmental Disorders
We specialize in helping families understand and overcome a wide variety of developmental problems. To learn more about how we can help you, browse the list of needs we treat below. Click a heading to read more about each specific need and to learn about the signs and symptoms.
- Click here if you know or suspect your child has autism, Asperger’s, or PDD-NOS
- Picky eater
- Limited diet
- Feeding tube
- Refuses to eat
- Chokes or gags
- Stuffs food
- Difficulty chewing and/or swallowing
- Meals are stressful
- Sensitive – refuses certain textures, tastes, smells
- Resists changes to foods or food presentation
- Isn’t talking at all and has some social and/or behavior problems
- Doesn’t initiate communication
- Communicates with other people inappropriately
- Can’t communicate needs or wants verbally or nonverbally
- Echoes words and/or phrases repeatedly
- Doesn’t read nonverbal cues well
- Has been diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder
- Has been diagnosed with a social communication problem (also referred to as pragmatic language problems or semantic/pragmatic language disorder)
- Is difficult to understand (can’t articulate words clearly)
- Mumbles when s/he speaks
- Drools frequently
- Has an open mouth posture
- Has a limited vocabulary
- Uses grammar incorrectly when speaking/writing
- Has problems thinking of the words s/he wants to say
- Says words out of sequence
- Has trouble understanding others and/or following directions
- Has difficulty staying on the topic of conversation or appears to not be listening when being spoken to
- Has difficulty understanding what has been read to them or what they are reading
- Has difficulty sequencing the events of a daily routine
- Repeats words or phrases on a regular basis (stutters)
- Difficulty making friends
- Feels different or left out socially
- Rejected by peers
- Difficulty being independent
- Doesn’t understand social rules (sharing, taking turns, personal space, etc.)
- Misinterprets social cues
- Doesn’t understand social boundaries
- Doesn’t initiate contact with others
- Doesn’t play appropriately with others
- Can’t maintain social interaction
- Doesn’t understand feelings of others
- Resists change
- Engages in repetitive behaviors
- Aggressive and/or confrontational
- Easily frustrated
- Impulsive
- Narrow range of interests
- Limited attention span
- Unmotivated
- Controlling and/or defiant
- Overly sensitive to noise, lights, smells, textures, touch, and/or movement
- Under responsive to sensory stimulation
- Poor balance
- Afraid of trying new physical activities
- Overactive / hyper
- Underactive / slow moving
- Poor body awareness – crashes into things, bumps into people, etc.
- Delayed communication, motor skills, or academic learning
- Feeding problems
- Behavior is poorly organized
- Limited attention span
- Poor self-care skills
- Uncoordinated / clumsy
- Poor fine motor skills – writing, dressing (fasteners), self-feeding, cutting, etc.
- Poor gross motor skills – running, jumping, climbing, etc.
- Poor oral motor skills – chewing, sucking, blowing, making sounds, etc.
- Poor motor planning (knowing how to move body to accomplish things)
- Poor self-care skills
- Academic difficulties – reading, writing, math, etc.
- Cognitive impairment
- Difficulties with higher level / abstract thinking and problem solving
- Child can read words, but doesn’t understand (comprehension problems)
- Low frustration tolerance with learning new / challenging things
- Difficulty retaining information
- Unmotivated to learn
- Desire to learn more about how to help child
- Difficulty balancing needs of all family members
- Constant feeling of being in crisis
- Difficulty prioritizing needs of child
- Overwhelmed and/or frustrated
- Sibling issues – feeling left out, resentment, etc.
- Lack of structure at home (disorganization within schedule, home environment, etc.)
- Unsure how to deal with behaviors
- Stress from child’s disability is straining family relationships
- Don’t really understand child’s disability
- Feel inadequate as a parent
- Feeling hopeless about future for child and family