Autism in babies

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A friend of mine has a baby who is just over a month old, but she said that the baby has not cried at all since she was born, only made a few noises (so she does have vocal chords) but not really communicated by crying at all, and she is not exaggerating either. She and her husband are happy about it and thinks she's a ''really good girl'' because she doesn't cry - not even in the night. I was just wondering if it is normal that some babies don't cry, and that it couldn't be a warning sign of something like Autism, although I don't like to say that to her. There are a lot of people in her family who have not Autism but other things like ADHD and dyspraxia, and I think my friend's older sister has a few AS traits.

Also in photos the baby always has a blank look and she hasn't learnt to smile yet, although maybe she is still too young to smile or have expressions? Can more severe cases of Autism be noticeable in a tiny baby or not so?

I´d say, there´s a good reason to keep an eye on that babygirl. Babies are supposed to express their needs vividly.
Could be autism or it could be some either mental or physical inability to express her needs.
Very young babies often look a bit blank, but be observant.

Hang on a bit, the wee thing hasn't been in the world very long. May just be a very contented baby.

Signs of things wrong tend to appear around the second to third year, and then at points where the demands made on the person (Nursery, school, secondary school etc) exceed the person's capacity to cope.

Probably doesn't cry because the wee lassie is getting fed when she needs it, kept not to warm and not to cold, getting backside etc cleaned before getting discomfort.

Yeah - she might be a quiet, content girl - but, keeping an eye on her doesn´t hurt anyone.

Keeping an eye is cool....but worrying at one month of age, I believe, is sort of counterproductive.

I've heard from my mother that I barely ever cried when I was a baby, and I have mild Asperger's. So I'd say chances are she does have an ASD. As has already been said, keeping an eye on her isn't a bad idea, but considering that she's still a baby, it might just be a false alarm.

My mother once told me that both my brother and I slept peacefully through the night even as newborns. But I'd be worried about an infant that's too quiet and passive.

I'm pretty sure that like kids and adults, autistic babies are all different and do not fit the stereotype.

Parents want reassurance that their kid is "normal." They don't want a "abnormal" child. This is something I have to remember when they ask if this is normal and if there is anything wrong with their kid. But sometimes I forget because I get stuck on the question they are asking so I think they want an honest answer. I got downvoted as hell on Reddit when I told a parent she should take her 3 year old to the pediatrician because it could be ODD. I was dumbfounded when everyone thought it was normal three year old behavior when in fact the mom had called her kid a monster to random strangers online and saying how nothing works and how the kid reacts to discipline. Really? If this was all normal, why even call her kid a monster you know and say how aggressive the kid gets when they don't get their way and having bad tantrums when they are punished. Also go to the doctor or to a therapist if you don't know what to do with your child. But no I guess the parent wanted reassurance so I got downvoted for not reassuring her. I don't remember my brothers acting that way at that age. Yes we cried but that was it. We never resorted to aggression. I did though but only when I was mad and upset because it was how I expressed my emotions even though I knew how to cry.


But sometimes parents really do want to know what is wrong with their child, they don't want to be told this is all normal when they know it's not. They want advice, want to be told what could be going on with their child, not have it be trivialized. I am sure parents of special needs kids face this a lot. Especially if the parent knows their kid has something.

I guess my son got lucky too and he did have some problems but he went through evaluation and put in early intervention. I would also be dumbfounded if anyone tried to tell me what my kid did was normal because I would then ask "Then why aren't all three year olds on an IEP?" "Why did other three year olds act better than my child at that age?" But of course he didn't act the way the parent described her three year old in a post. Hers sounded a lot worse. Plus I knew another parent who had problems with her own three year old and he didn't respond to any consequences or punishments and he was diagnosed with ODD. But yet when she posted on Facebook about her son asking for advice and saying she has tried this and that and everything, her friends started to suggest things like maybe he has SPD so he is a sensory seeker. Other people suggested getting a doctor or a family therapist. I think in that case the mother really did want answers and was open to any suggestions including disorders because she didn't take offense. That was before her kid was diagnosed with anything. I remember she had like social workers involved. I would wonder how many parents have social workers involved with a normal three year old if this was all normal. But some people just don't want to hear it. They also don't want to hear about needing to take their kid to a doctor to talk to the pediatrician about their kid's behavior if it's really that bad. Instead they just want reassurance but to me it can be damaging because then the problem gets ignored and the kid doesn't get help sooner. If the parent mentioned she also had called social services for help, I probably would have been even more dumbfounded if other parents still called it normal behavior for a three year old.

Sometimes it's not ODD and it could be the environment like change in jobs or school or new sibling or moving to a new house, is the parent consistent with their rules, does the parent set limits. But the parent said there has been no change in the environment if I remember correctly. That is what doctors also look for before making a diagnoses.

It seems to be okay to mention if a kid could have a disorder when a parent asks for an opinion and asking if this is normal and then not okay to mention it even if they are asking but my question is just when does it become okay?