Baby doesn't roll over or move

[Anonymous]

I don't understand the focus on tummy time. My first son rolled from his back to his stomach at 4 months, but my second son (who's 5 months old now) has no interest in rolling either from his back or his stomach. He wiggles and tries to sit up a lot. My ped is not concerned. Each baby is different, and not all necessarily reach all milestones (e.g., my neice walked without ever crawling - she went straight from sitting to pulling herself up to walking; not a bit of crawling).

So OP don't worry if your ped is not worried.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:my DS, who is 6 months, has still not learned to roll over. He only can do about 2 minutes of tummy time without completely freaking out. He can, however, sit up for short periods on his own (if he's in the right mood), and his ped says he seems like a healthy, normal baby. All of his "playmates" can roll over and either crawl, scoot, or move in some way. My DS is stuck in one spot, and won't make the least effort to move to get a toy - he'll just cry and cry and cry until we bring what he wants to him. Any suggestions on what we can do to encourage him? DH wants to put him on his stomach and just let him cry until he figures out how to roll, or put all of his toys out of reach and let him cry until he figures out how to get them, but I'm not going to agree to that.

Hi OP, if your ped is not concerned about a physical issue then it's not something to be overly concerned about as far as development. I would think about personality, though, and encouraging your son to learn that he can and should get things for himself. I know he's a little baby and yes they need tons of love, help, support, etc.--but unless you want him to be a helpless/demanding twirp one day, perhaps a little frustration on his part is in order for him to learn to reach for things on his own and go after them. No need to put a toy across the room but at 6 months if a toy is nearby enough that he can do some maneuvering for it, I wouldn't be giving him the toy constantly. Frustration is part of the impetus for development.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:my DS, who is 6 months, has still not learned to roll over. He only can do about 2 minutes of tummy time without completely freaking out. He can, however, sit up for short periods on his own (if he's in the right mood), and his ped says he seems like a healthy, normal baby. All of his "playmates" can roll over and either crawl, scoot, or move in some way. My DS is stuck in one spot, and won't make the least effort to move to get a toy - he'll just cry and cry and cry until we bring what he wants to him. Any suggestions on what we can do to encourage him? DH wants to put him on his stomach and just let him cry until he figures out how to roll, or put all of his toys out of reach and let him cry until he figures out how to get them, but I'm not going to agree to that.

Hi OP, if your ped is not concerned about a physical issue then it's not something to be overly concerned about as far as development. I would think about personality, though, and encouraging your son to learn that he can and should get things for himself. I know he's a little baby and yes they need tons of love, help, support, etc.--but unless you want him to be a helpless/demanding twirp one day, perhaps a little frustration on his part is in order for him to learn to reach for things on his own and go after them. No need to put a toy across the room but at 6 months if a toy is nearby enough that he can do some maneuvering for it, I wouldn't be giving him the toy constantly. Frustration is part of the impetus for development.

I agree with you in theory, but did you miss the part right before the part you bolded? Where OP says the baby "cries and cries and cries" before they give him what they want? How is "cry and cry and cry" not qualify as "a little frustration"?

[Anonymous]

OP here - The good news is that my husband stayed home from work and worked with DS on his rolling based on some of the suggestions above, and now he can sort of roll from his tummy onto his back sometimes. The bad news is that he sat there and cried for 15 minutes because a book was literally less than 1/2 an inch out of his reach before we gave up and handed it to him.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here - The good news is that my husband stayed home from work and worked with DS on his rolling based on some of the suggestions above, and now he can sort of roll from his tummy onto his back sometimes. The bad news is that he sat there and cried for 15 minutes because a book was literally less than 1/2 an inch out of his reach before we gave up and handed it to him.

if you keep doing it he'll keep crying.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here - The good news is that my husband stayed home from work and worked with DS on his rolling based on some of the suggestions above, and now he can sort of roll from his tummy onto his back sometimes. The bad news is that he sat there and cried for 15 minutes because a book was literally less than 1/2 an inch out of his reach before we gave up and handed it to him.

if you keep doing it he'll keep crying.

oh good god -- are we crying it out with playtime, too?

OP, my son is 6 months three weeks and doesn't like rolling over or tummy time either. He can sit up and is now pulling himself into a seated position. He scoots a bit as well. He was doing NONE of this at 6 months. Reaching for an object and expressing frustration that something is out of reach is, itself, a milestone. If you're concerned, perhaps nudge your baby toward the object rather than hand it to him, but I don't think it's some sort of grand learning experience to let a 6 month old sit and freak out because some random poster thinks it's good for his independence. LOL. As for my son, I have no concerns at all about his development just because he doesn't roll over frequently.

OP, have a feeling your kid is just fine!!!

[Anonymous]

I’m not a fan of the “crying it out” school either. But generally babies can roll from back to tummy at around 6 months of age. Pathways Awareness has developed a great growth chart for you to check out when baby should be achieving milestones: http://bit.ly/6NUpfi. Since it sounds like he hasn’t yet mastered Tummy Time, keep offering it in small spurts throughout the day, as he tolerates it, and make sure you’re down there with him. You can also try some “tummy-down” holds, and a lap soothe – tummy down on your lap, to get your LO used to the position. Pathways also has tips to make TT easier: http://bit.ly/8IhuuF. With more TT, he should be on his way to mastering crawling in no time.

[Anjelica]

Anonymous wrote:my DS, who is 6 months, has still not learned to roll over. He only can do about 2 minutes of tummy time without completely freaking out. He can, however, sit up for short periods on his own (if he's in the right mood), and his ped says he seems like a healthy, normal baby. All of his "playmates" can roll over and either crawl, scoot, or move in some way. My DS is stuck in one spot, and won't make the least effort to move to get a toy - he'll just cry and cry and cry until we bring what he wants to him. Any suggestions on what we can do to encourage him? DH wants to put him on his stomach and just let him cry until he figures out how to roll, or put all of his toys out of reach and let him cry until he figures out how to get them, but I'm not going to agree to that.

smart baby, OP!

I agree with your husband. Make the baby work for his "pay."

Think of it this way: If you could sit in bed all day and watch TV while your husband brings you food and drinks each time you ask, would you bother to get up?

[Anonymous]

I think that sometimes there are physical/developmental issues that can be interpreted through a manipulative lense, especially things like low tone.

OP if you have insurance I would find a covered PT and make an appointment for an evaluation. Much more productive to have actual answers, no? Check your providers and you could post a few names in another thread to see if anyone has experience with them.

Many peds are clueless when it comes to development. If he does have lagging skills you can learn to work on it productively. If his skills are in the normal range you can get ideas on how to help him more along in a way that is playful and fun for all, plus you will have peace of mind. All anyone is doing here is guessing and if it was my 6 month old I'd want to know.

[Anonymous]

oops, that should be "MOVE along"

Good luck, OP. Lots of great PTs in the area, see what they think of your actual baby.