The evaluation found something other than autism — what now?

Global developmental delay

“Global developmental delay” usually describes a young child — almost always under five — who’s noticeably behind in two or more areas of development at once, things like moving, talking, thinking, or everyday skills like feeding and dressing, without one identified cause yet. It describes where your child is right now, not a permanent verdict: some children catch up, some later get a more specific diagnosis, and some keep this description for years.

The doors are the ones this site already maps. Under three, Tennessee’s early-intervention eligibility rule — a 25% delay in two areas, or 40% in one — was practically written for this exact word. Three and up, “developmental delay” is itself one of the categories a Tennessee school team can use to open an IEP.

• Under 3: TEIS — refer yourself, no diagnosis required.
• 3 and up: request a school evaluation in writing.
• A fuller workup: developmental pediatricians in the directory.
• Common next therapies: speech, OT, and PT, depending on which areas are delayed.
• Funding: Katie Beckett looks at need, not a specific diagnosis.

ADHD

ADHD (attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder) is a common, brain-based difference in attention, impulse control, and activity level — not a discipline problem and not a parenting failure. It shows up alongside autism often enough that families and clinicians shorthand the combination “AuDHD,” and it’s diagnosed through the same kind of evaluation, just aimed at a different set of questions.

• Diagnosis or a fuller workup: the same kinds of specialists who evaluate autism — see developmental pediatricians and evaluation providers in the directory.
• At school: ADHD commonly supports a 504 plan or an IEP under the federal “Other Health Impairment” category — request the evaluation in writing the same way any family does.
• Support: play-based counselors and parent coaching in the directory both work with ADHD specifically, not just autism.
• More on the overlap: ADHD in our glossary.

Intellectual disability

An intellectual disability means significant, ongoing differences in both intellectual functioning — learning, reasoning, problem-solving — and everyday adaptive skills, starting before adulthood. Like autism, it covers an enormous range of how much day-to-day support any one person needs, and it’s one of the more common developmental disabilities overall.

• Under 3: TEIS. 3 and up: school eligibility — intellectual disability is one of Tennessee’s own special-education categories.
• The funding program built for exactly this: ECF CHOICES is TennCare’s long-term support program for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
• Also worth applying for: Katie Beckett and the DDA Family Support Program — both judge your child’s needs, not the word on the page.
• Directory: schools and evaluation providers.

Down syndrome

Down syndrome happens when a child is born with an extra copy of chromosome 21, which changes how their body and brain develop. Most children with Down syndrome have some degree of developmental delay or intellectual disability and often some degree of low muscle tone — alongside their own individual personality, strengths, and health needs.

• Early intervention: most families start TEIS in infancy — ask specifically, even if no one’s raised it yet.
• Therapy: PT, OT, speech, and feeding support are all commonly used from early on.
• Community that already knows this exact diagnosis: the Down Syndrome Association of Middle Tennessee and GiGi’s Playhouse Nashville are both in our support-groups listing.
• Funding: ECF CHOICES and Katie Beckett both apply.

Cerebral palsy

Cerebral palsy (CP) is a lifelong condition caused by a difference in brain development or an injury to the developing brain, usually around birth. It’s the most common motor disability of childhood, mainly affecting movement, muscle tone, balance, and posture. CP itself doesn’t get worse over time, though how it shows up can change as a child grows.

• Early intervention: TEIS, from infancy or diagnosis, whichever comes first.
• At school: the evaluation looks at how CP affects learning and access, not just the diagnosis itself — our IEP & 504 guide covers the request and the timeline.
• Therapy: physical therapy is usually central, often alongside OT, speech, and feeding support.
• Funding: Katie Beckett for significant or complex needs, and the DDA Family Support Program for equipment, ramps, and home modifications insurance won’t touch.

A learning disability like dyslexia

A learning disability is a brain-based difference in how a child reads, writes, does math, or handles similar tasks — it has nothing to do with effort or intelligence. Dyslexia, a specific and well-studied difficulty with accurate, fluent reading and spelling, is the most common one, and it often isn’t obvious until a child reaches the schoolwork that requires the affected skill — which is frequently later than an autism evaluation would have happened.

• At school: “specific learning disability” — which explicitly includes dyslexia — is one of the federal categories a school evaluation can use. Request the evaluation in writing and ask that reading and academic testing be included.
• Outside evaluation and tutoring: the directory’s literacy therapy and evaluations categories.
• Books your child can actually access while reading is still hard: our accessible-books guide.

A speech or language disorder

A speech disorder affects how a child physically produces sounds — articulation, fluency, voice. A language disorder affects understanding or using words and sentences to communicate. Either can happen with or without autism, and a developmental language disorder alone affects roughly 1 in 14 kindergartners on its own — it’s more common than most parents realize.

• Under 3: TEIS. 3 and up: “speech-language impairment” is its own Tennessee school eligibility category — request the evaluation in writing.
• Directory: speech therapy and evaluation providers.
• If talking is hard right now, not just eventually: our AAC guide applies well beyond autism.
• A specific, well-studied motor speech disorder: childhood apraxia of speech.