Hello- My son is 2. At 15-18 months we just thought he was a slow learner with everything. He was a slow crawler, walker and so...we thought slow talker. However, I was/am always a nervous kind of person so always inquired whether someone thought he was off w/ his mildstones. Even the pediatrician said once they hit 2, they just explode with new words etc.... Well- 2 came and went and not much improvements. Autism was the last thing on my mind however still lingering. Went up on websites, researched and found the "red flags". How could I be so blind and not see this? BUT.... again, he is only 2 and this could be him just being a slow learner ( i was told). Behaviors progressed to tantrums, aggressive behaviors began- biting, hitting- all related to him not being able to communicate his needs/wants. He just screamed or grunted. Very minimal speech-

So, I had a program run by the state of CT called Birth to 3. I'm not sure what state you're in but i'm sure they will have a similar program. It's pretty much free- state funds. They will come out and do an evaluation.

I will say 15 months is young and i had a problem with them even dx him at this age, but it makes sense. He stims (repetitive stimulation of anything) he rubs his thumb and middle finger together, arches back when throwing tantrums, cannot say i want, help me...it's all mostly one word things he can say. He looks at you but almost like he's looking past you. Not a real eye contact. Gets stuck on turning truck wheels over and over.... doesn't come when called his name or turn around until after the 4-5 th time. Walks on tippy toes (sometimes not all-big indicator-) however- your little one is only 15 months and they can do that up until 2-3 they say. Doesn't play in groups, very territorial. I have started that diet recently and his behavior from lastnight to today is much improved.... less crying/screaming. He was dx w/ autism level one and services are in place. ST , OT, and ABA (Behavioral Analysis), etc. We just started him so the team is new to him. The earlier you have her screened and diagnosed or not diagnosed the better her "recovery" will be. Im looking into Pivitol Response Training (PRT) by Khol .....something i can't remember her name at the moment but please look into this. It sounds like you already have a good handle on behavior and what you're looking for. If you have any more questions I'm here daily.

Thanks

It's been a long time since my kid was 1-2, so forgive me. Playing with an infant, remember they have a very short attention span anyway. Can she stack blocks? Knock them down? (that's the fun part). Does she crawl/walk to objects she likes? Does she like peekaboo games? Something comes to my mind....sometimes parents have to copy their child and join their interests, before the child pays attention to them. Enter her world, then she will enter yours.

@A MyAutismTeam Member What I am saying in the video is different version of peekaboo (Different cultures have different sounds for that, I guess) Since we were playing with her with that sound, so she knows what it is, and she was enjoying it. thank you for the compliment by the way :), well to communicate with her I was imitating her sound so she can feel comfortable. So, I wasn't expecting her to say it, more like I was expecting her to enjoy it :), We are trying to give her some joy, hoping that it will help her out. Let's see how it will turn out. Thank you for the suggestion, I will definitely check it out.

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A MyAutis...

@A MyAutismTeam Member, I think James MacDonald of Communicating Partners would say "do what she can do". He has a yahoo group, you can join and communicate with him or the group directly. I think in the video that she (she's adorable, by the way) was trying to get you to say AAAAA (which is very easy for a baby), but you were trying to get her to say something that she can't wrap her head around yet. Play with the sounds she can do, keep the circles of communication open. Keep having fun together. It's a beautiful thing to see.

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A MyAutis...

When my son was diagnosed, Stanford told us to explore Floortime and RDI. Another resource I discovered and still use is Communicating Partners (CP). You can still find some info online and in books:

Floortime - http://www.stanleygreenspan.com/.
RDI - http://www.rdiconnect.com/
CP - http://jamesdmacdonald.org/Articles/MacDonaldSt...

The idea is that children with autism are developing slower and need extra support to get through the milestones. Their development is spotty, sometimes, so we have to fill in the gaps by setting up playful scenarios to guide them through developmental stages.

There's some info that helps me. But see a professional for a your child's own benefit.