Baby Milestone Delays

Google Arizona Early Intervention Program (AzEIP). They provide free in-home physical and occupational therapy. You can self-refer. It is a federally mandated program and not income-based. The earlier he receives services the more quickly he'll get caught up.
I also recommend a Developmental Pediatrician since they will do a more in-depth developmental evaluation than a regular pediatrician.

My son's motor skill development was delayed. We had him evaluated by our local Early Intervention agency and he began receiving physical therapy when he was about 7 months old. He had been sick and we think trying to recover from the infection (he lost a lot of weight - it was scary) caused the initial motor skill delay. Part of the issue was also his temperament. He was, and still is, a very calm, good-natured, easy going kid. He wasn't in a big hurry to be independent - still isn't in many ways. The physical therapy (which he still gets) is helpful and occupational therapy has helped with his fine motor skills.

I also have a friend with a little girl who's motor skills were delayed as a baby and once she started physical therapy, she caught up very, very quickly. Whatever the case with your child, I highly recommend contacting early intervention for an evaluation (your pediatrician should have information on what is available in your area). Whatever the issue, the earlier you can begin to help your child, the better.

I would say take him to a developmental peditrician. Here is a link to a Dr here in the valley. http://melmedcenter.com. Dr Melmed is wonderful. He is located near Shea and Tatum. It is always best to catch things early so if you have to you can start therapy early. I am pretty sure you don't need a referal form your peditrician. I would start here regardless!. Call you childs practitionar and make them aware of your concerns and see what they advise but I would still take him to Dr. Melmed. You can see who they recommend adn decide from there. I do however sing the praises of Dr Melmed.

good luck and best wishes.

Definitely get him in some kind of therapy. If your doc does not refer you, (and you need a referral) push for one. Don't leave, or call the office EVERYDAY until you get one. The sooner delays are dealt with, the less of an impact it will have. I have seen wonderful things with early intervention.
Get in touch with your school district ASAP, even though your baby is still a baby. I don't know what help they'll give you with school budget cuts and such, but generally they have some resources since it helps the school to nip problems in the bud than have them arrive at school needing more intensive special education services.

Hugs to you from another momma of a child that I had to jump through hoops for in diagnosing and getting services for. It's a headache, to be sure, but who better than you to be your child's advocate?

You don't mention if he can sit up at all? Also was he a full term baby? If not then that can have an effect on each milestone , my 3rd child was 6 wks early and she was around 2 months behind with each milestone , for example she was not able to sit up until 8 months , she didn't pull to standing until 13 months , crawling she was 14 months , and then eventually walked at almost 18 months. So if he was early keep this in mind , but yes def talk to the ped about it , there are early intervention specialists that can give you exercises to do with him to strengthen arms/legs/torso etc.

I am surprised your doctor has not said anything already. Did he go to a 9 month check up? If so the Dr. should have mentioned an evaluation if he is not sitting up or making an effort to start moving around. Definatly bring it up to your doctor and if he does not give you a referral for a developmental evaluation I would find a new Dr. All states have Developmental assessments for free for children under 3. Your doctor should be able to point you in the right direction. Good luck!

Hi:
In California we have something called Regional centers. They are state run clinics that 'test' infants through 3years in the areas of speech and Occupational Therapy. If a child is found to be weak in one or two areas, they qualify for therapy free regardless of income. My son qualified for two hours of speech and two hours of OT a week.

At three the children are sent to the school district to continue therapy. The school district and the regional center coordinates the transition together with your involvement.

Please go to your school district and find out how to get to a regional center. If you have your child evaluated you will be better off either way. The sooner a child receives therapy the better the prognosis. My son started at 2 years 4 months. I wished I had be more assertive earlier. Where would we be now?

Your pediatrician should also be able to direct you to these regional centers. However, my peditrician kept on saying my child was fine and I so wanted to believe him that I did not do anything earlier. (My son attends a regular school and is above grade level in reading and math. But he still needs both therapies. He can't ride a bike, feels very insecure about using a swing, and is years behind in sports.)

If you live close to an university, they may have speech and OT programs where they train future therapists. They need kids to work with and I have also found these programs to be high quality.

Good luck!

I am not sure I have advice on that particular one, but just wanted to send you a hug and love from another momma who has a daughter with autism. I know how it feels when things are not all in sync..Just try and keep positive and if there might be something wrong, that you can turn to friends and family...And there is a good change nothing is wrong :)

What did your Pediatrician say at the last appt.? Sounds like he will need some sort of physical/occupational therapy. Is speech delayed too?

Was your son born premature or spend any time in the NICU at birth? Those two events alone can delay development, even if there were no major health issues. Talk to your doctor, use an exersaucer a lot to help your son strenthen his core muscles, make sure he has LOTS of floor time with toys out of his reach, when he is being held have him in a sitting position, not snuggled against your shoulder so he can strenthen muscles and get used to the position and make sure he's not being held often. Beyond that, your pediatrician will probably recommend some extra help to get your son back on the right developmental track. Every child develops at different rates, but a one year old who isn't sitting by himself or crawling needs a little extra help. What about other development, like eating solids, self-feeding, babbling? Talk to your doctor not just about physical developmental milestones, but also total development for a one year old. Good luck!

I was an early interventionist for about 10 years...if you feel you want to bounce some ideas, thoughts around with me I can be there for you. Sometimes the docs are not helpful and sometimes they can freak a parent out when not necessary.
I am curious what has been said up to this point....
yes, all children develop at different stages....my one year old just started crawling at 12 months ( some people think that is crazy) but he took his time, however we could see that he was continually doing new things so it is important as a mom to be aware of all things:)
Do not feel guilty....better to realize now ....there are things you can do to help him. He may be a kiddo that needs some assistance to motivate.
Keep me posted if you would like.
D.

I encourage you to have him evaluated by a developmental pediatrician. Your doctor may recommend that at his appointment but if he doesn't I urge you to push for it.

My grandson is now 7 and in a special ed class because of speech delays and behavioral issues. Just this year, my daughter found a developmental pediatrician and is getting a much more thorough diagnosis with additional therapies. The school district does a good job of evaluating and treating, as suggested by Chantal A. I would also start with them. Your description sounds like there is a possibility that he has multiple issues and the more thorough the diagnosis and the therapy the better chance he has of substantial improvement.

We wish we had known about and taken my grandson to a developmental pediatrician at the start. He wasn't saying more than a half dozen or so words at 2 1/2 and his pediatrician also suggested he was just late developing the ability to talk. However, she did give his mother the phone number of the school district and he did get started on speech and occupational therapy. He has now just this year, been diagnosed with ADHD and autism. Now we are doing tests to determine where on the spectrum scale he is and how to best help him. Yes, he has a speech disorder and behavior difficulties. However,instead of a more simple behavior disorder, he more likely has a more serious difficulty related to his nervous system make up.