Hey there caretakers! Why are we stressing out about our babies 24/7? Why do we think that every single thing they do is an indication of an illness/disorder? I know as parents we will always be worried about our kids on some level. But, this stress and anxiety can not be good for us.
Let’s change our mindsets on that, shall we?
I’m a first time mom, and I have been STRESSING about hitting those milestones with my son. Yet, he hits them when he wants to. I used to get upset seeing posts in my online group with babies the same age, boasting about their babies rolling, crawling, sitting, etc. and my son is just a happy clam on his back playing in his gym.
I would drive myself nuts just thinking about all the things I have to do to help him. I would work on tummy time and he’d cry. I would get toys to encourage rolling and he would ignore them. I felt like I was doing everything wrong.
He’s 4 months old!! Why isn’t he sitting?! My mama friend told me to relax and let him do his thing… so I did what she said. And what do you think happened? He did it. He did all the things. It almost happened simultaneously. I was constantly pressuring him to work on the milestones that he must have felt the stress and didn’t want to even try. When I backed off and watched him figure out the motions on his own, I noticed him actively trying to roll on his own. I was dumbfounded. A few months later down the road he showed me he could climb off the couch on his own without me even showing him how.
As he progressed in his growth, I’ve let him do his own thing. Especially with the standing and walking. I have been letting him down on his feet instead of his bum, but he tends to want to be on his feet more anyway. He likes to walk while holding my hands or my pant leg, so I let him. I know he’s close to standing on his own, but while he needs my support, I’ll continue to be there. I’m so proud of his growth over the past year. He’s done more than I expected a one year old to be able to do. His fine motor skills are excellent and he’s saying a few words (that really surprised me).
My new mantra: “Breathe. It’ll come. He’ll do it.”
If you’re still worried here’s a great resource:
The CDC has a milestone app you can download that helps you keep track of milestones that they’re supposed to be hitting by a certain age. I liked using that app because it helped me see that most of the babies I was seeing doing the rolling, crawling, and sitting were hitting those milestones early. I also didn’t take into consideration that my son was born three weeks early. So he was actually hitting each milestone at the correct time for him.
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