My Daughter Showed Early Signs of Autism at Just 8 Months Old & I Have Videos That Prove It

@brandihogan2017/TikTok

For all of the distraction they provide, there are real upsides to having cellphones attached to our bodies as we’re raising children. The answer to any parenting question you may have is just a few keystrokes away. With the camera function, documenting everything from outfits of the day to milestone moments has never been easier.

For one mom, the videos she had of her 8-month-old daughter were even more impactful and helped her realize that her infant was on the autism spectrum.

Bella doesn't look at or respond to her mother calling her name.

In a video she’s since uploaded to TikTok, Brandi Green Hogan taps on the floor and calls her daughter’s name trying to get her attention, but it doesn’t work. Bella, who was 8 months old at the time, doesn’t respond to her name and doesn’t make eye contact with her mother. Hogan told Newsweek that when she initially recorded the video of her now 3-year-old daughter, she was trying to document Bella’s movements for her physical therapist.

In the video, Bella propels herself forward with one leg while keeping the other bent. “She was in early interventions, which was where we had physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech coming to the house,” the mom of three said.

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Initially, they thought something was wrong with Bella's hearing.

@brandihogan2017 Some early signs of autism we had weren't just not responding to her name, but she didn't respond at all. We actually had her hearing checked 3 different times and one of those tests she was put to sleep for. She had perfect hearing but didn't respond to us at all. She made zero eye contact at this age. We just kept thinking she will get it and eventually she did respond at times. She is 3 now and we work on this constantly. She has gotten much better about eye contact and responding to her name but that came with lots and lots of therapy. #autism #autismawareness #earlyautismsigns #autismbabies #babyautism #toddlerautism #nonverbal #eyecontact #signsofautism #babytok #toddlersoftiktok ♬ original sound - Brandi Hogan

Today, Hogan can look at the video and see that it’s also indicative of Bella’s autism diagnosis. “Some early signs of autism we had weren’t just not responding to her name, but she didn’t respond at all,” the mother wrote in the caption of the video.

The baby’s behavior left her parents wondering if there was something going on with her hearing, but she’d passed three hearing tests, including one where she was asleep. “This test showed that her brain was registering the sounds. It was after that test we knew something else was definitely going on,” Hogan said.

Hogan recommends 'lots and lots of therapy' for children like her daughter.

This past summer, Bella was diagnosed with nonverbal level 3 autism spectrum disorder. Now 3 years old, she does respond to her name sometimes and has gotten much better with eye contact. But Hogan wrote in the video caption that those milestones only came with “lots and lots of therapy.”

Bella is nonverbal and her parents plan on getting an (augmentative and alternative communication device to help her learn to communicate verbally. “Studies are showing this encourages them to start using their voices, so we’re hoping for her to say words eventually,” her mother said.

Bella's physical therapist first suggested she might be autistic.

For other parents who may be wondering about their child’s development, Hogan suggests they start therapy. It was actually Bella’s therapist who first suggested she may be on the spectrum, but she believed it was too early to know.

“It can’t hurt to use these services. If anything, they help your baby outgrow these symptoms and you don’t have to continue going. On the other hand, if your baby is truly autistic, then getting them in therapy early can help tremendously,” she explained.

Hogan said the signs are obvious now, looking back.

Hogan said she shared the video to potentially help other parents who may have questions about their own child’s development. “I’m not saying that every baby with these signs or symptoms is autistic. I didn’t see these signs when they were happening, but she’s my third baby, and as she gets older and I look back, the signs seem so obvious to me now,” she said.