How can I get my autistic son to communicate?

My son is two and I’m pretty sure he’s stage one autistic. He doesn’t say much words so he communicates by whining and screaming. Any tips on how to get him to stop screaming and whining so much to communicate.? I’ve tried words games on a tablet. I talk to him like a human being. Like he sometimes screams on the top of his lungs. This is my first so I don’t know if that normal for a 2 yr old doing all the time or what but I have another kid on the way and wanna get this somewhat under control before the new baby comes.

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Talk to your pediatrician to get him evaluated by a speech language pathologist. Most states have Early Intervention Services that will provide an evaluation and therapy. In NY it is free. I am not sure about other states. It certainly sounds like he is frustrated and needs a way to communicate. Good luck. You are taking the right steps in asking questions!

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Just because he doesn’t talk doesn’t necessarily mean he’s autistic. My daughter is 3, she’ll be 4 in August, she’s not autistic, but she just started talking in January. She had done online speech therapy through the hospital, and it did nothing for her. I enrolled her in free speech therapy services through the school district, and she’s thriving now. She still has a long way to go, but she’s doing so well, and she’s now singing, making complete sentences, just talking up a storm. Talk to his doctor

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All of the comments here are great. In addition to talking to your pediatrician about services he might need I would also suggest looking into baby sign language. If he isn’t ready to speak some simple signs to be able to communicate things like hunger, thirst etc. may help. Wishing you and your kiddo the best of luck :heart:

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I went through this with my son in speech therapy. We started with signing for things. I couldn’t give into anything unless he signed for it. I also spoke the word I was signing. Then he had to speak the word. I would buy all kinds of microphone type toys as well to make talking fun. We went through a lot of fits and I had a lot of things thrown at my head :laughing: but my son talks all the time. Sings songs anything.

Edit: my son did start speaking as “normal” initially. Then he just stopped one day.

I would maybe take him to speech therapist.

What does the pediatrician say?

Well he’s 2yo. It could be a plethora of reasons so start with your pediatrician. Maybe get a speech therapist referral. Some kids just yell. Totally normal and doesn’t necc. mean autism.

If your child does have autism it’s not something you can just randomly get under control. What other things are you noticing that makes you think your child is neurodivergent?

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He’s two, some children don’t speak at two. Babies, small children communicate how they know to communicate, crying, screaming etc. I’ve known kids that didn’t speak until 4-5 years old. They’re perfectly fine adults now. Autism isn’t something you can “get under control”
If you truly feel something is wrong, stop asking strangers with no doctor education and take the child to their Doctor. It may be as simple as needing speech therapy, my cousin had to have their tongue clipped to talk… That does NOT mean the child is autistic. Kids don’t get under control, especially when a new baby comes, sometimes their actions and behaviors get worse.

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He may never speak. Have you tried learning a few signs? My son is 25, and described as limited speech. I use non conversational. He has a vocabulary of sound approximations and you can understand him if you know him but hell never be able to carry on a conversation. Get him into some speech therapy. Have you also had his hearing tested? Remember hes communicating his way. I assure you, I know it’s not always easy.

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Talk to him…al the time! Everything you touch or see name it. The more they hear and see the better able to learn to repeat (which is what talking is after all) like when coloring say the color and what hes doing like line or circle and keep saying it, open a door say open, turn on a light say on…at our house we laminated pictures of his favorite things and put them on the fridge so when he wanted something he could go get a picture of it. Schedules help tremendously. Sign language works well. If hes got a few words then you know he can say things when he screams for a drink say we dont scream and then show him the cup say cup and what’s in it, give choices if possible and say each one. When hes throwing a fit we have a carpet in the kitchen (small door soft carpet) I sit him on it and day when your done screaming you can get up been doing this since he was about 1 and a half and it only took less then a week for him to understand (it’s cute now that hes almost 3 if seriously angry he will go put himself on the carpet, loose his mind then get up without me saying anything) being consistent is absolutely key, if something isnt ok it’s never ok, dont say no unless you mean it, if he can scream loud and ling enough for you to give in then you didnt mean it! I would also talk to your dr, most states have early intervention and they would be able to better direct you to services. Good luck momma wether neurotypical or neuro divergent 2 year olds are tough! Everything I wrote above is for either :slight_smile:

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I wish the lady up our road would read this. Her son our grandson (not sure) just screams and screams… sometimes he sounds hurt. It’s awful to listen to

My son is non verbal autistic and when he first start school he speech teacher recommended an app if you have an iPad or iPhone it’s call Proloquo2Go it helps them communicate and works great

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My friend has a nonverbal autistic son and he is in speech therapy and has a one on one tutor for school to help him communicate and it has done wonders for the yelling and meltdowns she said (he just turned 6)

He should be evaluated by a pediatric neurologist and early intervention therapist to determine if he is autistic and then your school district is responsible for education when he turns three. He should also be able to receive therapy before he turns three

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Ms. Rachel/songs for Littles on youtube. My kids love it and have learned so much. She teaches some basic sign language as well which has helped my kiddos communicate. I’ve seen alot of parents in tiktok in the same situation that say she has helped. Might be worth a shot. ABA programs as well

Sign language and books, can help children communicate. Every child is different, when it comes to milestones. I would definitely talk to the pediatrician, if you haven’t already.

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Don’t forget to check his hearing. Speech will always be an issue if hearing is an issue.
If he isn’t at daycare already then I could also suggest to send him even just 1/2 days a week. My boy was barely talking at 2y, my mum suggested going to daycare as we hadn’t yet. Within 3 months of daycare his speech had caught up and suddenly he wouldn’t stop talking -_- lol

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Contact your pediatrician to see if you can get referred to a speech therapists and almost early intervention autism specialist, that is if you haven’t already .

Talk to his doctor. They can refer for speech/occupational therapy, etc. Theyll have other resources for you, as a parent too. Sometimes, two year olds just verbalize that way as well as theyre still learning their feelings and such too.

My daughter is 2 and a half and she has to scream and cry a lot because she couldn’t talk, she only started taking about a month after she turned 2! She turned 2 in November last year and she started to say a few works just before she started nursery in January. She never use to communicate until she was able to speak more. She was obviously listening when I thought she wasn’t because she came out with word after word after work and to say she’s only bene speaking since January she can count to 20, knows her colours, animals, sounds animals make, alphabet etc etc!.

I asked if I could get her referred to speech and language before she could talk but they said no because she’s still only young, if she didn’t speak by a certain age then they would but she started talking

Sign language, flash cards with pictures of all the favorite things… encourage verbal words but don’t discourage other forms of communication.

Sign language helps alot with the frustration of communication

Sign language. Or print out pictures of his favorite things so he can tell you what he wants.

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Picture boards he can point to

Maybe try a communication device

Have him to be evaluate by his pediatrician, he can refer him to get evaluate for speech therapy, early intervention services and such things, the earliest the better , try to teach him some simple sign language words to help him communicate, and also a hearing test should be done .

My best friend son acted the same way at the same age, he was evaluated and started receiving speech therapy, they evaluated his hearing and he had hearing issues ( he got a surgery )
And his hearing improved, with the surgery and therapies he had got a lot better , he talks so much more and can communicate effectively.
Wish you the best of luck mama

Leave out the tablet… point to things all day long and name them…Tell him ever6youre doing when you’re doing it…like Mummy’s going yo put her dippers on, Mummys going yo make a cup if tea. Please don’t give him a label…boys do take longer to talk…

Read to him, sing songs, narrate your whole day…everything.
Speech therapy
Communicate through pictures

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Sign language would definitely be beneficial for you and him to learn.

You can’t assume your child is autistic no matter what stage. Delayed speech is not always a sign of autism. Get him into speech therapy.

Check to make sure he is not tongue-tied.

Prayers in Jesus mighty name Amene

My 6yo has a speech delay NOT autism…don’t always assume

Check out Mukbang King Ste’ce FatheringAutism Lauren Brazee Vlogs Autistic Interpretations Finding Cooper’s Voice I love all of them !!!

Try an assistive communication device and please join the group Autism Inclusivity to ask questions and hear directly from Autistics themselves! It’s a great resource.

A lot of 2yr olds don’t have much of a vocabulary- 2yr olds also scream. Don’t jump to conclusions and don’t diagnose. Give him time to grow and learn