S., first of all, congratulations on having the strength and courage to get out of what sounds like it could have been a very bad (dangerous) relationship. Your son will be better for it in the long run. Given his age, I doubt he's mirroring any behaviors he saw from his dad. Yes, the behavior *could* be earlu indications of autism or some sort of cognitive issue, but it may be a little early to jump to that conclusion. Definitely talk about it with your pediatrician. Meanwhile, I can tell you my son only exhibits taht sort of behavior when he is extremely frustrated and cannot communicate it in another way. Start to pay attention to when these things occur and what may be going on around him. It could be as simple as learning to recognize when it might be coming and then re-directing him into an activity. It may also be that the origin of the behvior is sensory. Talk w/your ped about that, too. My son is a "sensory-seeker" and needs really strong input that he gets from kicking, clapping, hitting his head, biting (only on things, ot on people!).
Don't panic about any of it. ALL kids go through bad behavior stages and they are usually some attempt at either getting our attention or to express something they don't have any other way to do.
Best of luck to you.
