Late Walker Advice?

My son was not walking at 16 mos also. The ped also recommended PT. I had the time, we took the regional center referral, and it has been great. The staff has all been very helpful.

My son is now 30 mos old, he no longer receives PT, but he gets speech therapy (late at speech articulation too).

I was of the opinion that early intervention would be best. He is now very active, running, jumping, swimming, etc. I'm hoping for the same results with speech.

I'd say, if you have the time, go for it.

Don't worry about it - babies all do things at their own pace - my daughter was 17 months before she showed any interest in walking - why walk when she could get to anything she needed or wanted by crawling, scooting, or rolling? Here's what finally made her decide to walk, and I really believe it was a DECISION. Christmas at grandma's house in mid December - there were probably 15 other kids there, and they all walked and ran - she couldn't keep up with them and was very frustrated. A few weeks later, she began walking. She finally had a reason -to keep up with the others and not be left behind. (And no one can tell that she was a late walker, so what difference does it make? She's almost 26 years old now!)

DOn't worry, my daughter didn't walk until she was 18 months old. She had no interest in it. Her dostor wanted to send her to PT also but I never took her. She is now 2 1/2 and doing fine running around everywhere.

We started taking walks around the block with her in her little car, she would get out and try to push it, but it gave her something to hold onto while she was trying to walk. She would not do this inside but always wanted to try and wlak outside. See if changing his enviroment works, take him out and let him try and walk on grass or sand.

Don't worry about it. My son was born 2 weeks late and still didn't crawl until he was 10 months old, and walk until he was 19 months old! There was nothing physically wrong with him, what so ever. My pediatrician said he was just a late physical developer and and early intellectual developer (speach, words, etc.). My second son is now 10 months old and hasn't even begun to crawl. Sure I worry, but I can tell there is absolutely nothing wrong with him. So, it will happen on his time.

They day your son starts to walk will be such a momentus occassion for you! Just be ready with the video camera because he will be super proud of himself!
Best wishes to you.

M.,

My twins were born at 35 weeks and didn't start walking until they were 15 months old. However, they 'cruised' our furniture like crazy...so, I knew that they were interested in walking.

Strangely, we took them to Stride Rite (and I'm not usually one to drop names) to get them a good pair of walking shoes. We tried the shoes on, and both of them began walking...in the store! Perhaps it is just a matter of a good walking shoe if your son is showing interest in walking.

I also don't see the harm in PT, but a good walking shoe couldn't hurt. Best of luck!!

~ L.

My first child walked at 16 mos, my second at 18 mos and my third child at 14 mos. All three were delivered at 38 weeks. I think it depends on their personality. My second child was content to crawl everywhere and did not see a need to walk. Having said that, you may want to seek medical care if your dr. recommends it. My dr. watched my child #2 and saw he was making appropriate large motor development even without walking and did not recommend pt at 16 mos.

You need to have your child refered to your local Regional Center.. they will asses and will send free therapist to your home to show you exercises if needed!!!

Love, G.. :0)
http://stemcellforautism.blogspot.com/

Don't be afraid of pt. They play games and have fun with your little one and give you activities to do with him. I do know that some children just don't walk until later, but all of the pt that I have know about have been really good with the children.

My preemie had PT and those people were extremely helpful. I really recommend it, at least once. Once you see what they do, you can do it with him. Be up front with them about your plan and they will probably give you lots of helpful info. I can't really put it all in writing. It would be like having a written ski lesson or swim lesson.

One thing not to do is use a walker or exersaucer. A push walker is fine, but not one that supports his crotch.

I have two daughters now aged 11yrs and almost 14yrs. My oldest didn't walk until 16 months and my younger not until one week before 18 months. My brother's kids were early walkers and our other relatives thought there was something 'wrong' with my girls, but my ped said he never worries until 18 months as long as they are reaching other milestones. Some kids just do one thing at a time. Both of my girls are doing well now and great at sports/dance/cheer. Although I see no harm in PT, since at this age it will seem like fun and games to your little guy, I just wanted to encourage you that late walkers can turn out just fine in the end!

PT at 16 months without a diagnosis concerning his physical abilities is - unheard of. My daughter, who tests completely OUT of the normal academic and intelligence range for her age, did not walk until she was 16 months old. In fact, I am beyond surprised your ped would suggest PT - it is still within the "normal" range for a child (especially an only child with no siblings at home to have to keep up with) no not walk until the are 18 months old. Its usually only at 18+ months and still with no walking for a pediatrician to suggest not PT but a physical evaluation to see if there are actually any developmental issues that are causing him not to be able to walk.
If he is typical and normally developing in every other way, I would not worry about his walking just yet. Stop carrying him around and making him move himself from place to place - he does not need you carting him around in your arms all the time, though IM sure he would prefer it. Get him a little kids grocery cart (NOT a walker, those are silly at his age) and some pretend food and go "grocery shopping" around the house to encourage him to move himself via his own two feet. He will surprise you one of these days soon, and just stand up and walk - my now very normal 2 1/2 year old waited until she was 16 months to walk too, and one day, she just stood up and walked like she had been doing it for years. No falling or stumbling, just stood up and walked from that day forward.
SO, give it a few more months before you start looking for intervention.

I have 16 month old twins who were born at 33 weeks. The boy has been walking for 3 months now,but the girl is still not walking. My pedi said that if my girl can pull herself up to stand not to worry, and, as someone else wrote, starting to walk as late as 18 months is still considered within the norm. My daughter has started showing in the last few weeks more signs of readiness to walk, like cruising, standing independently and balancing for a few seconds and attempting to take one step with help and lots of encouragement. I'm very relieved and feel hopeful that she will start walking in the next month. Everyone always commented to me that seeing her brother walk would encourage her to walk too, but, as someone else mentioned, she has been content to just sit and play most of the time. I think it's a personality thing. Encourage your son to practice standing alone and balancing and taking steps while you hold both his hands and walk backwards. I hope that both our toddlers will be walking soon! Good luck.

Both of my nieces walked at 18 months. One was full term and the other born at 30 weeks. So it seems to not be that tied to how early they were born. You probably don't need to worry, but if the doctor wants to refer you to PT, and you insurance covers it, you might as well go once or twice. It can't hurt, and it could be fun. (like free Gymboree classes!) I had PT recently for my back problems and they taught me a bunch of great exercises and it was a really positive experience. So don't write off the PT, it can't hurt. Good luck.

We used a push car and had her push it up and down the sidewalk outside. She loved to do this so it was easy for us. She could walk really well holding on to it. We did this to build up her strength and confidence. We also had her walk short distances back and forth between my husband and I.

Hi M., My daughter isnt walking yet either and she will be two in a week but she was also born at 23 weeks. She is the size of a one year old. She has gone to physical therapy and its really awesome because they could give you tips and different excercises you could do with your baby. They observed how she stood on her feet and how she pulls herself up on things. PT is not a bad thing at all and it actually made me feel good to know what I could do to help her start walking. She took her first two steps today so were really excited!

Hi M.,

I started walking at 16 months. From what I understand, I was content to just sit most of the time.

As far as the pt goes, I encourage you to schedule an appointment and go just to talk to the physical therapist. She/he should be able to evaluate your son and come up with a plan. It doesn't do any harm to have more information. She/he might even say "He'll walk when he's ready." I believe the physical therapists can actually know more than doctors sometimes. Here's my story why:

After my second child was born I lived with terrible back pain for close to a year. The doctor, who was unsure of the exact problem, recommended pt. I was not a believer that PT would help me at the time. My therapist was so knowledgeable and explained exactly what was going on to the level where I felt comfortable doing the stretching exercises she recommended. Within days, I felt less pain. After two months, I was pain free. (My abdomen stayed too stretched out and needed extra, targeted work, so it wasn't a back problem at all. Go figure!)

Good luck.

Both of my children were late walkers. My daughter at 16 months and pretty much had no interest in putting weight on her legs. She was not born early or anything - just content with crawling apparently. She is fine. The Pediatrician did mention that he would suggest PT if it went past 17 months, but that was because she didn't put any weight on her legs in his presence.

My son walked at 17 months!! Imagine our surprise because he was pulling himself up at 10 months (seriously). We discovered that my daughter was pretty much doing everything for him - he had no motivation. Once we managed to make it a game with our daughter to get him to walk, he figured it out because he maid was no longer doing everything for him (LOL).

I'm not sure I have much advice, but I can tell you some of the things we tried. One thing that worked for us was motivation, esp. with my daughter. I also had one of those riders that turned into something they could hold on to and walk assisted. That helped my son keep up. I just practiced a lot with my daughter.

If your son was born early and is already a late bloomer, then I think your instincts are probably correct. Ask yourself - is he cruising? Does he put weight on his legs? Could he walk, but is choosing not to? If yes to these, then you are probably right. However, a friend of mine had an early baby too and she has been in PT for the better part of a year and a half because she has some issues with walking. It has helped their daughter, so if it's something you can afford, perhaps it's not a bad thing. Good luck.

My daughter didn't walk on her own until 15 mos or so and our doctor didn't see a problem. Does he walk at all? ie: if hold his hands? If so, I got our daughter a little push cart thing and it worked great. It took a bit of getting used to but then she was cruising all over with it. If he's not walking even when you hold his hands, that may require some therapy.

Hi M.,

I suggest setting up your living room like an obstacle course for your son. Like put the couch and coffee tables close together etc. Practice holding onto him with his fingertips and encourage him to take steps towards the coffee table- or the couch. Is he cruising at all? Or does he have an interest in walking/standing? I would just try to make it a fun game for him. When mine didn't want to walk, I would put a favorite toy a little out of reach so that he would try to get it. As far as the P/T, I would guess that they would work on leg coordination and strength. Take care and good luck!

Molly