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Signs & concerns
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Signs & concerns
When should I worry about overstuffing the mouth in my child?
Stuffing the mouth with food is very common in 1-to-4-year-olds and usually reflects still-developing oral awareness, excitement or hunger. Seek a feeding or developmental check if it comes with choking or frequent gagging, no sense of fullness, doesn't ease with age, or travels with chewing, speech or sensory differences. These are reasons to look early — not a diagnosis — because gentle support works well at this age.
Read the answer AnswerWhen should I worry about picky eating in my child?
Picky eating is very common between 18 months and 5 years, when appetite slows and children assert independence, and it usually settles with patient, low-pressure mealtimes. Seek a developmental check if your child loses weight or stops growing, eats only a tiny fixed set of foods, gags or refuses whole textures, mealtimes cause real distress, or fussiness comes with delays in talking, play or social connection. This is a reason to assess early — not a diagnosis.
Read the answer AnswerWhen should I worry about echolalia in my child?
Echolalia — repeating words or phrases — is a normal and useful stage of language learning, especially around 2 to 3 years, and often helps children practise talking. Seek a developmental check if, by around age 3, repeating is your child's main way of communicating with little flexible language of their own, or if it travels with delays in talking, social connection or play. This is a reason to look early, not a diagnosis, because support at this age works best.
Read the answer AnswerWhen should I worry about my child running off in public?
Running off in public is common and usually typical between 18 months and 5 years, when children are impulsive and don't yet grasp danger. Seek a developmental check if the running is frequent, shows no safety awareness, is very hard to redirect, or comes with not responding to their name, few words, little eye contact, or not checking back to you. These are reasons to assess early — not a diagnosis — because impulse, communication and safety-awareness grow well with early support.
Read the answer AnswerWhen Should I Worry About Screen-Time Meltdowns?
Meltdowns when screen time ends are very common in children aged 2–7, because switching off a fast-rewarding screen is hard for a developing brain. Worry — and seek a gentle developmental check — when meltdowns are very severe or long, happen many times a day, won't settle without a screen, involve aggression or self-injury, or come with delays in talking, play or connecting. This is a reason to assess calmly, not a diagnosis.
Read the answer AnswerWhen should I worry about seeking spinning movement in my child?
Seeking spinning movement — twirling, loving swings, spinning toys or themselves — is very common and usually typical between 18 months and 6 years, as a child's balance system seeks healthy sensory input. Seek a developmental check if the spinning crowds out play, learning or connection, causes falls or injury, is very hard to redirect, shows no dizziness over long spells, or travels with delays in talking, social connection or coordination. These are reasons to assess early, not a diagnosis — early support works best.
Read the answer AnswerWhen should I worry about separation anxiety in my child?
Separation anxiety is a normal stage — it appears around 8 months, peaks between 10 and 18 months, and usually eases through the toddler and preschool years. Seek a gentle check when distress is severe, persists far beyond the expected age, worsens over time, or stops your child sleeping, eating, playing or attending nursery. This is a reason to assess calmly, not a diagnosis, because early reassurance and support work beautifully.
Read the answer AnswerWhen should I worry about stool withholding in my child?
Stool withholding — clenching, leg-crossing, hiding or refusing to poo — is common between 2 and 6 years and usually starts after one painful motion. It is about fear, not defiance, and responds well to early gentle support. Worry and see your doctor when it lasts beyond a week or two, or comes with hard or painful stools, soiling, tummy pain, blood, poor appetite or weight loss.
Read the answer AnswerWhen should I worry about stuttering in my child?
Most stuttering between ages 2 and 5 is normal developmental disfluency that comes and goes and often clears on its own. Seek a speech check if it lasts beyond 6 months, starts after age 3½, runs in the family, comes with visible struggle or tension, or your child starts to fear or avoid talking. This is a reason to assess early — not a diagnosis — because early, gentle support works best and most children recover.
Read the answer AnswerWhen should I worry about my child's tantrums?
Tantrums in children aged about 1–4 years are a normal part of learning to handle big feelings before words keep up, peaking around age 2–3. Seek a developmental check if tantrums are very frequent or long, involve hurting self or others, can't be soothed, continue intensely past about age 5, or come with delays in talking, connecting or playing. This is a reason to assess early — not a diagnosis — because early support works best.
Read the answer AnswerWhen should I worry about throwing objects in my child?
Throwing objects is normal toddler exploration between 12 and 48 months — a way of learning cause-and-effect and testing limits. Seek a gentle developmental check if throwing is frequent, hard to redirect, aimed to hurt or causing injury, or comes alongside delays in talking, understanding or connecting with people. This is a reason to assess early, not a diagnosis, because early support works best.
Read the answer AnswerWhen Should I Worry About Toe-Walking?
Occasional toe-walking is very common and usually harmless under age two. Seek a developmental check if toe-walking persists most of the time after two, is on one side only, comes with tight calf muscles, frequent falls, or delays in talking, play or other motor skills. This is a reason to assess early — not a diagnosis — because early support works best.
Read the answer AnswerWhen should I worry about toilet-training resistance?
Toilet-training resistance between 2 and 5 years is very common and usually resolves once a child feels ready and unpressured. Worry — and seek a check — if it comes with constipation, painful or withheld stools, no dryness by around 3½–4 years, sudden regression after being trained, or alongside delays in talking, following instructions or daily-living skills. These are reasons for a calm, early look, not a diagnosis, because the cause is usually simple and very treatable.
Read the answer AnswerWhen should I worry about very early rising in my child?
Between one and six years, very early rising is usually a normal sleep-timing pattern — many children are simply morning larks. Seek a check if early waking is sudden and persistent, comes with snoring or breathing pauses, leaves your child exhausted and irritable by day, or travels alongside delays in talking, play or learning. This is about understanding your child's rhythm, not a diagnosis — small routine adjustments often help, and a calm clinician's look brings reassurance.
Read the answer AnswerWhen should I worry that my 12–18 month old might have ADHD?
At 12–18 months ADHD cannot be diagnosed, and high energy or short attention is normal toddler behaviour. Rather than ADHD signs, watch milestones — connection, communication, play and movement. A general developmental check, not ADHD screening, is the right next step, and only a clinician can assess.
Read the answer AnswerWhen to Worry About Attachment Difficulties at 12–18 Months
At 12–18 months, attachment is still forming, so clinginess, separation upset and stranger wariness are healthy signs — not worries. A gentle check makes sense only if a toddler persistently fails to seek comfort, seems consistently withdrawn, or is strikingly over-friendly with strangers, especially after disrupted early care. These are patterns to observe, never a diagnosis — only a Pinnacle clinician can assess.
Read the answer AnswerWhen should I worry about Auditory Processing Difficulties at 12–18 months?
Auditory Processing Difficulties cannot be diagnosed at 12–18 months — this label is only meaningful from around age 7, once hearing is confirmed normal and a child can do listening tasks. At this age, watch hearing and early communication instead: does your toddler respond to sound, to their name, and begin babbling and gestures? If not, the first step is a prompt hearing check, never a processing assessment.
Read the answer AnswerWhen should I worry about autism at 12-18 months?
Autism can sometimes be detected by 18 months or younger. Loss of skills or persistent communication concerns warrant pediatric assessment. Autism screening is recommended at 18 and 24 months and when concerns arise; screening is not diagnosis.
Read the answer AnswerWhen should I worry about Cerebral Palsy at 12–18 months?
Worry between 12 and 18 months is reasonable, but worry is not a diagnosis. Persistent stiffness or floppiness, very early hand preference, fisted hands, or not sitting/standing on time are patterns worth checking. Early therapy works beautifully with the infant brain — only a Pinnacle clinician can confirm anything.
Read the answer AnswerAnxiety in a 12–18-Month-Old
At 12–18 months, clinginess, crying at separation and stranger wariness are normal, healthy signs of secure attachment — not Childhood Anxiety, which is not a meaningful diagnosis at this age. There is no frightening signs list to fear. Offer steady, predictable, warm care, and seek a general developmental check if distress never settles with a familiar carer, skills are lost, or sleep and feeding are severely disrupted. Only a Pinnacle clinician can assess; never an online form.
Read the answer AnswerWhen to Worry About Apraxia of Speech at 12–18 Months
At 12–18 months, Childhood Apraxia of Speech cannot be reliably identified — a child needs to be attempting words before its tell-tale inconsistency shows, usually from age 2–3. The right focus now is the foundations: babbling, gestures, understanding and social connection. Absent babbling, no gestures, no response to name, or lost skills deserve a general developmental check. Only a Pinnacle clinician can assess, never an online form.
Read the answer AnswerWhen should I worry about epilepsy in my 12–18 month old?
Epilepsy in a 12-to-18-month-old is a medical question first, not a therapy one. Any seizure or repeated unusual episode — stiffening, clustered jerks, blank unreachable stares, going limp or blue — deserves a prompt paediatric or neurology review, not home-watching. A single episode is not a diagnosis, but it warrants a same-week medical opinion; call emergency services for any seizure over 5 minutes or breathing trouble. Only a clinician can assess; AbilityScore® is never a substitute for urgent medical care.
Read the answer AnswerWhen should I worry about my 12–18-month-old's sleep?
Frequent night waking and bedtime resistance at 12–18 months are common and usually typical, not a disorder. Most toddlers sleep 11–14 hours and may still wake once or twice. Seek review when problems persist for weeks, exhaust the family, or come with snoring, breathing pauses, or a slip in daytime alertness or skills.
Read the answer AnswerWhen to worry about Conduct-Dissocial Disorder at 12–18 months
Conduct-Dissocial Disorder (ICD-11 6C91) cannot be diagnosed in a 12-to-18-month-old — it describes a persistent pattern judged only in older children who understand rules and others' feelings. At this age, tantrums, hitting and biting are normal communication from an immature brain, not warning signs. The right focus now is watching the building blocks of communication and connection, and a general developmental check if anything feels persistently off.
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