So glad to have found this forum!

We have just started on our autism parenting journey.. at first diagnosis, it became the darkest 6 months we've ever experienced. But we've since grown much stronger and resolved to help our son any way we can. We document our son's early below 1 year diagnosis below:

https://auroraautism.com/very-early-autism-...low-1-year-old/

Love to know if anyone shares the same experience!

It was 8 months ago when my son, our only child diagnosed with autism. We went on a roll searching high and low for solutions on how to help our child navigate through our world that appears so difficult for him to even bear.

8 months onwards, almost 3 year old, he is now aware who is mommy and daddy is, and despite still non-verbal, he shows his love by kissing us, giving us noserubs, and forehead knocks

Here is why our son is secretly our superhero:
https://auroraautism.com/6-reasons-why-our-...-our-superhero/

My son is almost 3 and demonstrated everything you listed and more since he was below 1. It's actually autism stim which we should not be stopping as it is merely a self regulatory behavior against the overwhelming sensory perceived in their surrrounding. I wrote a full list of early autism signs that my son demonstrated in link below: https://auroraautism.com/very-early-autism-...low-1-year-old/

Additionally, here's why we should not stop their repetitive movements if you're interested: https://auroraautism.com/the-autism-stim-is-real/

You may need to wait until 2 years old to really get your child properl diagnosed, but mean time, here's what you can do:

1. ban all screen time (any device at all, including TV)
2. expose your son to alot of outdoors sensory activities like seaside, sand, swimming, grass, etc
3. if you child's stool is frequently soft, see specialist to check whether there's a diet (leaky gut) issue which affects child's attention at that age. If so, gluten free/casein free diet may be recommended to you.

Hope these tips can help significantly reduce your child's symptoms in the coming 6 months or so! Be positive and take action - every second matters. Best of luck!