Hi there. My almost 12 month old has been walking unassisted for about three weeks. By that I mean he will let go of whatever he's holding on to, and walk across the room, as long as there is something on the other side for him to grab onto. He CANT stop in the middle, and he cant stand unassisted for more than maybe 2 seconds. Is the fact that he cant balance while standing still something to be concerned about? He will constantly crawl or walk to me, grab my finger, and pull me around all over the place - its getting old since he constantly wants to walk but the fact that he cant stand still makes it very difficult to do it alone unless he has a specific goal to walk towards. Did any of your kids do this before walking full time?? How can I encourage him to stand independently?
Sounds like he has unlocked the key to the Law of Momentum! I think he's probably just fine and doing his own little thing--learning to walk in his own way, with his own technique and will probably stand still in his own time! Sounds like a smart little guy you got there--enjoy him!
My daughter did not walk until she was 18 months. I was so worried something was wrong. I had her checked out at the doctors and they said all was fine and she would walk when she was ready and sure enough, she finally did. My suggestion is to be patient. Just like everything else with children (as long as there is nothing medically wrong), they will do things when they are ready (i.e. walking, talking, potty training).
Hopefully this will ease your mind just a little.
This all sounds very normal - he's practicing, clever little man! And He'll do it all by himself one day soon!
If he's walking and not falling down his balance is fine .. he's in the 'cruising' stage. My youngest did not walk until well past her 13th month .. each child is different .. the guidelines and 'milestones' are a median/average. They are not set in stone, so relax and enjoy helping him as much as you can now .. because once he figures out he can do it 'all by himself' HE WILL! Then he won't want you to hold onto him AT ALL! lol
ag, i think if he seems to be normal overall, remember that all children do all things at their own pace. my one child skipped crawling and went straight to walking; my other one cruised everywhere and walked by the time she was 14 months; and yet my one step daughter tip-toed for almost 2 years before she walked normal. i would just keep an eye on his motor skills and if everything seems ok, just let him go. one day he will just start doing it and you will do a double take while realizing it. K.
It takes time for babies to get their balance. He's comes a long way in the past 12 months, and the fact that he can walk across the room shows that he is well on his way to fully walking. Allow him the room to move around the way he is doing now and his walking skills will continue to strengthen. Before long, you'll have trouble keeping up with your son!
Generally, kids will learn to stand before walking, but it's no set rule. It doesn't sound like he can't balance when standing, because it takes more ability to balance to walk. It sounds to me that he just doesn't feel safe standing alone. With walking, he knows if he walks across that room there's something on the other side to grab, so it's like a quick fun ride for him to do a quick walk across. But to just stand there with no security, it's not fun and probably a bit nerve wracking for him right now. It'll come in time. Just encourage him to continue walking, walk him him one finger and he'll stop to take a break while holding one finger, and this will be good practice. It'll come when he's ready.
K. B
mom to 5 including triplets
I would get his ears checked--there may be problems with his ears that are causing him to loose his balance.
