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How do I know when my young child's/toddler's/infant's behavior is problematic or normal? Where do I go for help?
This is a complicated question because child development and behavior is a large category. In broadest terms of child development, most healthcare providers (HCPs) will evaluate your child at regular "checkup" visits for five different categories of development: communication, gross motor, fine motor, problem solving, and personal social. There are many standardized tools that HCPs can use to evaluate a child development in each of these categories, and there are ranges to what is considered normal development. Children who were born prematurely or have other medical conditions are also evaluated a bit differently. With regular visits to your child's HCP, your child should get regular assessments of their development and behavior. If an HCP notices any deficits, they will let you know and come up with a plan for continued monitoring or intervention. However, as a parent, you are the person who spends the most time with a child and often you will notice subtle things that your HCP can help evaluate. If you are worried that your child's development is lagging behind what you might expect, you should discuss it with your HCP. If needed your HCP can send your child to a specialist for further evaluation or treatment. There are many behaviors that children exhibit as they grow up that can be considered normal for some ages and to some extremes like temper tantrums, sticking things in their mouths, and drooling to name a few. If you are concerned about a particular behavior, it is a good idea to discuss with your HCP. It might be a normal developmental phase, but if it is not, your HCP can recommend strategies or interventions to address the issue.
