Hi there,
What do you do when you see a friend's child developmentally behind, and other friends, family members and their daycare can see the problems, but the parents just say "Oh, his dad was slow to talk", "Boys take a bit longer" "He's just copying his baby sister" "He is fine when we are at home" etc? I have a friend whose 3 year old barely talks, wont walk unless in the pram with his baby sister, has difficulty playing with other children, is getting pushed around at daycare and has limited eating habits and lines up objects like cars? He also has his hands in fists a lot and makes weird tongue facial expressions. Also has toilet training difficultys and repetive behaviors. She has taken him to a speech therapist, and daycare has mentionioned he is regressing but they keep making excuses and us as friends are extremely concerned but don't want to upset our friend. But what if this little boy could be reciving therapy and funding so he could communicate his needs better and have a better quality of life? I mentioned something to his dad at the start of the year about him possibly having autism and hhis dad said "theres nothing wrong with him", to which I replied, no theres not, he may just require a little extra help. Is there anything we can do or do we just stand by and watch a child slip through the cracks? Its getting extremely awkward when we have children around the same age or younger starting to overtake him developmentally.
TIA Mumma's
Friends denying son is delayed
Friends denying son is delayed
Posted in:
Aspergers & Autism
3 Replies
all you can do is be there for the parents if they decide to seek professional advice. personally my son displayed everything you are talking about and the only thing 'wrong' with him is mild anxiety. so what you are seeing isn't always something like autism. though the fact you are concerned show what a good friend you are.
Unfortunately all you can do is watch. I work in early intervention and see the aftermath of parents refusing to acknowledge what is going on (child finally gets a diagnosis around school age and misses out on vital early intervention, and misses appropriate school placement) so I totally understand the frustration.
Unfortunately, There's probably not a whole lot you can do. I really feel for this little boy - It's quite clear from what you've described his having troubles. Some parents, just can't face the reality of it. They see it as "something is wrong with my child" and they don't want to admit that to themselves, and also, they would probably reflect it straight back onto themselves as it being their fault. When in fact, it's not their fault, and there really isnt anything "wrong" as such. Just different. It could be a really overwhelming feeling for them to try and accept it. But I would continue to stick by their side.. incase this changes.