HI all, I was just wondering if my dd's foray into the wonderful world of loud noises is part of her pdd-nos, or something else, or even just normal 3 year old behavior. She has what can only be described as a maniacal fake laugh and also a maniacal fake cry that she will break into for no apparant reason and/or also when she is upset or happy (but not necessarily cry when sad or laugh when happy but the other way around!)
She also has this fake cough that I posted on before when I was first worried about her that someone suggested might be a symptom of tourette's because that is sometimes confused for autism. I took her to the doctor for it when it was happening before and she thought it might be behavioral but it sorta went away (I ignore it). Well, now it's back but it's worse. It's a fake cough (you can tell because it's all in her throat and goes on and on and on; it's VERY grating) and I think she just likes the sound of it but she will also do in instead of answering a question or when she's distressed. Last night she also started making loud noises (can't really describe it, not coughing, not laughing, but not words, not even nonsense words). It was prolonged, loud and repetitive and she seemed to be enjoying it immensely. Does this sound familiar?
I read somewhere that with pdd kids (or all kids really) you should ignore the negative behavior and reinforce the positive. So, I've been ignoring the noises, but wondering if I should be trying to stop her or redirect her. Does this sound like a perservative behavior? A stim? A phase? She also has a nervous laugh she uses as a response to questions or even greetings. I'm not sure if I should be happy she's making a verbal response at all or push for words. Any insights/advice would be appreciated. Thanks!
My son has some vocal stims. He makes the oddest noises that are repetative in nature. And they will sometimes change. Sometimes he can go for long periods without doing it also. I usually treat it like any other form of stimming. I don't mention it at all and if it lasts for prolonged periods and interfere's with learning then I redirect him. I don't stop him persay...because there really is no way to physically stop things that are vocal...I redirect him to something interesting to learn or play with and most of the time he just stops on his own when redirected in this way. Don't know if this helps..Take care,
karrie
It could be both, an age appropriate thing that has gone to far because of her pdd-nos.Hi,
My son has all way been quite the actor, he is now 13 & still acting. If he scratches his leg or really wants something that I've said no to, he could win the academy awards. When he was around, 7 I started doing it with him and he would laugh and stop. He would say things like please oh please let me have a cookie (being very real dramatic and loud). I would look at him and say please oh please stop crying sometimes we would repeat it then head laugh and say your silly. I'd say still pretending to cry like him with my hand on his shoulder I'll stop if you stop. He'd say OKAY MOMMY. Then I would offer an apple and he was fine. I try not to say no to his request and offer something different. He learned most of his acting through Disney Cartoons. Now he draws complete comic books(people walking by and slipping on a banana peel). My husband says he has my sense of humor. If I was you, I would keep a diary of strange behaviors, check with your doctors and have a good sense of humor.
Delores
Ds does repetitive and very strange oral sounds also. He does fake crying and laughing. He makes the most unattractive faces while doing it too lol. I have filmed him doing this as it really is comical. He does just high pitched noises over and over and over until sometimes I just want to scream. He also makes a repetitive sound when he's tantruming most times. I just let him do it unless it's really inappropriate as far as the place we're in or if it's driving me crazy I then try to redirect him. Otherwise I pretty much just let Aiden be Aiden, it doesn't hurt anything.
Amber
Andy is bad about vocal stimming, too. He can repeat the same phrase over and over, or mutter to himself. I can usually get him to stop if I interrupt the behavior. He's 14 so I have his age and coping skills to decrease the impact of this behavior.
Kim
jonah makes high pitched screeching noises constantly. Sometimes he is so loud he truly hurts my ears. Anyway, it is very annoying. The worst is when we are out in public. He LOVES doing it at the mall, probably because it is so big and it echoes, but talk about drawing attention!Yes...high pitched hurts my ears too. If Aiden gets too excited he squeals over and over and people stare at us...like in the pet store haha.
Amber