Mumsnet Talk

DS1 started crawling and cruising at 7 months. He was really good on his feet while holding on to something or someone, but as soon as he let go would crawl. He started walking at 16 months. How are you supposed to make them walk?

10 months is really young! (Well, it is to me, my 5 ranged from 13 - 21 months.)

DS walked at 9 months and was running by 10 months. I had people telling me to stop him to prevent bow legs.

You can't win.

Silly people, he'll walk when he's ready, he's got another 80 or so years to be on his feet.

He is a big baby but the people who have mentioned it all know his age they just seem to assume that because he can crawl he should be moving on to walking he can do a funny sort of run with a push along toy so they say if he does that he should walk but it's not that he physically can't walk it's that he's not ready to let go he's not found that confidance yet and no wonder he's still so little

That is exactly my DD's problem OP.

She very obviously doesn't feel confident to let go and walk without support. She can walk perfectly well just holding one of my fingers without me even supporting her weight.

She has even walked across the room when watching TV to get closer to it and then stopped as soon as she realises what she is doing. She seems to panic and then freeze before deciding whether to get down and crawl or call for me to pick her up. I didn't even know babies had this kind of fear of walking unaided till she started behaving this way.

The last couple of days she just seems to have forgotten her fears and walks -very slowly- around the living room.

I think it's quite common LDN people are telling me to just let him go or he will never walk on his own but he's obviously scared so i just let him lead me i don't want to make it worse by pulling his support away!

My daughter walked on her knees until 20 months, she would only walk on her feet if we held her hand. At 20 months she let go but it took until about 22 before she was really comfortable. She's now 30 months and is giving me heart-attacks as she's become a bolter - they all find their own pace.

10 months is quite young to walk isn't it? Lots of babies walk young but it's not so much the norm that not walking at that age is eyebrow raising is it?

I don't know how you bite your tongue OP. He's 10 months old not 10 years old. I'm sure he'll walk soon enough,when he's ready

Ten months is still little to walk unaided, what sort of people are saying this to you? I'd have thought most people that had had babies would have more knowledge, these people sound like they know next to nothing about babies, therefore their opinion has no value.

LDN 7 months?

I have never heard of a baby walking that early!

Both you and your DH? That is unusual

10 months!

My dd didn't walk until a month before she turned two years old.

She was a bum shuffler and didn't crawl.

So much pressure on babies these days.

Powerpants, are you me? DD is 15mth this week and not walking either.

Walking and crawling are the most visible steps in a baby's development and therefore the ones people always comment on when they want to have baby talk. Nobody ever asks if it isn't about time baby learned to smack two blocks together, or learn the pinch grasp, yet these are also important steps in their physical development.

When I get queries about what my kids can and can't do, I normally say I let them learn at their own pace, but if they still can't talk/walk/use the potty at 18 years, I'll make a GP's appointment. That normally ends the conversation.

Dd was 26 months (will probably out myself with that statement as she seemed to be so late ) She has shown no long term problems for being lazy (as that is what she was according to the physiotherapist)

it's family and people at the mother and toddlers group i think it's because he's been crawling for ages it seems like he should be walking but they forget that early crawling doesn't mean early anything else.

I have pointed out to the few who have said he's physically able i should let him go that they are physically able to jump out a plane but it doesn't mean they will do it. It's driving me mad it's almost like sympathy telling me he will get there in the end when he's only at the start of the average timescale for walking.

They are just trying to engage you in polite conversation. Find something else to talk about if it bugs you.

DS2 is 10 months and has only just started bum shuffling (though my god he's fast). He can't pull himself up yet (my excuse is he is too fat to hold up his own weight).

DS1 just went round in circles on his tummy until 10.5 months and didn't walk confidently til 15 months. I would have thought 10 months for walking was v early.

TEN MONTHS?! Its rare that babies walk that young isn't it?! Normal age is anything between 12 and 18 months ime.

Mine were 15 and 16 months before they walked. By 14 months there were a few people asking them when they would walk but only because DS took his first steps at 12 months walking between DH and I but then just never bothered again, and DD was quick to do everything else but didn't want to walk at all.

We get this all of the time with DS and his speech. He's 2.9 and says a handful of words. Maybe I should feel more concerned but I just don't. All kids go at their own rates. Einstein didn't talk til he was four! Ds has a tshirt saying Einstein was a late talker lol.

Ten months is really young though.. I don't really understand that. Just smile and ignore. Everyone likes to have an opinion but that is all it is- an opinion, nothing in the grand scheme of things.

Tell them you've asked him to wait until his first birthday (you can scream FIRST as loud as you like of course, to make the point)

Oh, this is soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo tiresoome!

DS didn't walk until he was 19 months. Complete strangers would ask me why he wasn't walking. (i) I don't know; (ii) tactless question, what if there were some disability or developmental issue we were very worried over and didn't want to talk about; (iii) you don't really care, as you don't actually know any of us, so why are you asking?

DS had his walker wrenched off him in the park by a younger child who was walking. His mother was smugly apologetic and did the whole, 'Oh dear, he isn't walking?' routine. She stopped being smug when her DS wandered back within reach and my DS got him in a Vulcan Death grip. See, his legs were a bit slow but his upper body strength was a marvel.

Ds2 is 14 months and no where near walking.

Both mine crawled around 6 months and walked around 14 1/2 months. Most of their friends started walking at the same time - I think walking before 12 months is not as common as people think!

I have similar but with talking/social interaction because DS is big and confident on his feet people assume he is older. He's 18months but not really talking yet, communicates by noises and gestures but few distinct words.

People assume he is 2+ and try and talk to him. He generally smiles, waves or looks puzzled and says "quack quack".

My 18 month ds is still not walking by himself.He walks around the furniture just wont venture on his own yet.

Ignore them, they're daft.

DS2 never crawled, just pulled himself up and started lurching and wobbling walking. It was a nightmare and we couldn't leave him ever until he was steady, I then had some idiots saying ' well you do know that if they don't crawl it will impair their ability to learn to read!! wtf!

DS1 walked at 14 months after being a crawler.

Ignore them!