He’s only 2; as he is more and more verbal, the whining is that thing that gets on anyone’s last nerve.
Lots of gentle parenting, lots of online research happening. But in trying to consider the big picture, I recall taking care of him and noticing the light/sound sensitivities and wonder if some of the whining is just a low level discomfort. Some days, it is whining all day. If he is uncomfortable in his own body those days? If so, then it will behoove us to help him find the tools to learn how to deal and what to expect of his body.
I recall when he was a baby living an isolated very quiet Covid life, when he finally visited, the barking of our dogs shocked and startled him, dramatically. At the time, I thought, “Wow, look what Covid did; kid’s never been exposed to anything” After a few days with dogs, it no longer bothered him. Is it weirdness from Covid lack of exposure to the world and he is getting used to things, but just happens to be a more sensitive soul? Might there be a neurodivergent diagnosis coming?
People are all going to have different levels of sensitivity to different things- light, sound, some get seasick, some don’t; some are more sensitive to foods, some hate tags and itchy clothes and are not truly diagnosable, but still need to learn how to deal with a sensitive body. Hard to tell when he is so young. There are not stereotypical Autism characteristics in that he is social, chatty, has good verbal skills, makes eye contact etc.