antisocial toddler

Hi everyone..my son is 13 months old. He does not respond to his name, he does not point to things or even pay attention to me when I'm talking to him. When we go on playdates, he doesn't play with other children or even bother to interact at all. He prefers to play by himself with his toys. At first I thought he may have a hearing problem, but when I turn on his favorite tv show..he can hear it from another room and comes running to where the tv is. He also responds to my parent's barking dog, the vaccuum, the doorbell and when I walk into his room to check on him..he hears the creaking of the wood floors.

Why does he refuse to respond to his name and other social behaviors?

any advice/experiences would be helpful. thanks.

Re: antisocial toddler

It sounds like you are concerned. If that is the case then I would seek an EI evaluation after consulting with my Ped.

Have you consulted with your ped. after your DS's behavior?

Re: antisocial toddler

Re: antisocial toddler

you can talk to your doc, but 13 months is still young. when DS was around 12 months, I thought something was up bc I kept calling his name and he never responded. He was looking straight ahead and cracked this huge smile, he was ignoring me!!! He never responds to his name to this day (18 months) unless he knows I'm giving him something he wants. he really just started playing with other kids, and it's more like, taking toys from other kids

Re: antisocial toddler

Re: antisocial toddler

This is my first child so I may be overly concerned. I didn't really worry about it until recently. I thought he was just a strong willed child and only paid attention when he wanted to...but I'm starting to think maybe it's something else.

I will call my Pedi and see what I need to do. Thanks.

Re: antisocial toddler

Re: antisocial toddler

I would speak to your ped. but I would personally call EI and get an evaluation.

ETA: I just re-read your post and he is only 13 mo. old. He is still young. While he should be responding to his name, he may also choose to ignore you...my DS did that to me and it caused me to worry.

Also at that age they play independently...you can't expect them to sit down and play a game with other kids, KWIM?

I would give it a a few more months. If by 15 mo. or so he is not pointing or still responding inconsistently to his name I would call EI.

Message edited 3/19/2010 12:54:59 PM.

Re: antisocial toddler

While he is still young - I would contact EI to relieve my fears. Does he engage in joint attention? Social smiling? Interaction with you?

Re: antisocial toddler

I think he is still young, and to me seems to be normal for his age and possibly its partly due to his personality maybe he is just a more reserved child.

My DS was similar until about 20 months. While he would acknowledge other kids, outside his cousins, he really didnt interact with them too much. Now he holds hands, talks to them, etc. I can also remember saying that DH would talk non stop with DH and I but was quiet as a mouse around others.

I think for us the key was exposing him to other kids more often. I joined a playgroup which was helpful and I also make a point to bring him to playgrounds without our playgroup to see how he plays with "strangers"...etc

Good Luck I would talk to your ped about it if you feel uncomfortable with his behavior.

Re: antisocial toddler

Aiden is 17 months old and rarely responds to his name. He tries to interact with other children but at this age parallel play is still the way small children play.

13 months is a little young I think --

does he smile when you play peekaboo with him? If he's interacting with you and your husband I wouldn't be concerned.

Re: antisocial toddler

1 year olds are, by nature, anti-social. Kids don't start interacting with one another, as far as playing goes until around age 3. Until then they do side-by-side play. Each doing there own thing. To be honest I would be concerned about him not responding to his name, but only if he rarely ever responds. Have you tried saying his name in different tones to see if he is just choosing to ignore you. Maybe whisper his name or sing his name and see if he responds then. Does he respond when other people call his name.

Re: antisocial toddler

Re: antisocial toddler

Thank you everyone for all of your advice/experiences.

He does smile when something is funny..he looks at me when we play and he loves when I read him books.

He is very young, but I feel that as a parent, you're always comparing your child to the developmental milestones of others. I think for now, I'm just gonna let my little guy be a toddler and keep a watch on his social behaviour.

In the next few months, if he hasn't improved, I am going to discuss it with my pedi.

I will keep you all posted. Many thanks :)))

Re: antisocial toddler

Go with your gut feeling. You know your child better than anyone. I'm a first tim mom too. My son had torticollis and his Ped said don't worry he will grow out of it...I waited a month, saw no change, I seeked out EI got physical therapy for him and he is fine now. I went with my gut feeling. Do bring it up to your ped on the next visit and see what she/he says and take it from there. Good Luck!

Re: antisocial toddler

I think your concerns are valid enough to give EI a call. you have nothing to lose by doing so!