17 month old not walking or talking

[Mizg]

Hi everyone
My 17 month old is not walking independently, he is walking holding furniture, his walker etc. He can crawl incredibly fast can climb stairs. Just won't walk independently.

He babbles (baby talk) says dada, not mama. In general his a very happy smily baby likes to explore. Loves to suck his thumb. Just little worried as kids younger then him are walking talking. I get asked alot why is he not walking or talking yet

I don’t think it’s really late for either, definitely not for talking.

Give him something to hold in both hands when stood upright. He may take a few steps .

Talk to the health visitor. They can refer for physio if he still isn't walking at 18 months. Most areas won't do any referrals for speech and language until 2 at the earliest but the health visitor can give lots of activity ideas to bring on his speech. I wouldn't worry too much just yet, he's still very young but it's worth making professionals aware now as waiting lists can be ridiculously long.

Speak to the health visitor about your concerns ,it could something or nothing ,but 17 months is very young.

It's worth having a chat with your GP or health visitor, just in case they spot something they could act upon. Whilst 17 months isn't worryingly late, it's at the later end in my experience (as a parent, I am not a professional in any way).

My DD didn’t walk until about 19 months, also didn’t really speak until she was 2 - and she hasn’t shut up since!!!

My niece didn’t walk until 22 months. DS didn’t really talk (other than “car”) until he was 2. Both are 100% fine. I’m sure your DC is ok but talk to health visitor if you’re concerned.

Thank you everyone. Just worried, as I have a special needs child already. But he was born with alot of birth defeats. This little one was born normal. Im well aware of speech therapy physio etc and wouldn't like to go through that again. Everyone that I know just wants to tell me how quickly there child walked and talked. Feels like his being judged. Im so worried

Kids do everything at their own pace don't let people make you feel bad!
Your special needs child, do they walk or talk? Just asking because my best friends oldest is disabled, non verbal and a bum shuffler. Her 2 younger DC bum shuffled everywhere copying their big sister 😅 it was adorable to us but obviously their mam was worried they weren't walking!

OP it’s so difficult when people pass comment a lot. Our DD was the same, she didn’t crawl either though. I called the HV around every 6 weeks just to check in that she wasn’t walking still, because I wasn’t stressed about it & DD was content they weren’t bothered though. After she turned 2 an out of hours GP we saw for an ear infection couldn’t believe no one had intervened & wrote to our GP to refer her to physio & paediatrics. It turns out from 18m the HV’s should refer to physio if not walking. I appreciate you don’t want to take a deep dive when your DC may just do it themselves, but it might be worth highlighting just to get on the waitlist, and if they do it by themselves in the meantime you can always call & cancel the referral!

I get this I have severley autistic 15 year old whomis non verbal the thing is your child is on their own trajectory 17 months is very young to say if there are any issues
For your own sanity be guided by the health care professionals they can monitor and refer if necessary.

Baby walkers are not recommended

https://www.whittington.nhs.uk/document.ashx?id=15431

It's thought they can delay development.

Health visitor really won’t worry until they are 2. Which is a long way off.

As long as cruising i wouldnt worry about walking.
Talking, keep an eye and if your not happy to 2 speak to health visitor

His non verbal, he was born deaf and without balance nerve, so walked when he was 5 his 7 now. Big age gap between brothers. I had a baby girl in-between she pass away 7 weeks after birth. So iv been through alot, so it's very worrying when people make judgement.

My son didn’t walk until 20 months - turned out he had glue ear which they think may have affected his balance. I also come from a family of late walkers (myself and my siblings were 18 months +)

You’ve been through a lot - it’s understandable why you’re nervous. My oldest is autistic and youngest was also born with birth defects so I can relate to some of your story.

My 18 month old isn’t really talking yet. Says maybe 5 words. She’s walking but it probably took her about 3 months of cruising and walker to get there. Babies just develop at different rates and what you’ve described seems quite normal.

He could have hyper mobility which is why he will walk holding something but not when letting go

Given the additional information I think I’d suggest you do take up with the HV and/or Dr. hopefully that will give you peace of mind, but enable intervention if needed. Sorry OP, you really have had a very difficult time and I’m sorry for your loss.

My oldest, now 26, was the same. She crawled so quickly she got frustrated when she tried to walk because it was slower. She also babbled and only said a new word when she understood what it meant. My friends daughter who was nearly 6 months younger was a parrot repeating everything people said. When I had my son 8 years later.he was the complete opposite.
Try not to be too concerned.

Does he understand what you say and follow instructions?

Yh, he understood and follows. He likes to hold hands and walk. He can climb a mountain he loves to climb. Gets upset if we say no. Loves music, we have kids little piano which he plays with one finger. If I ask him to give me kiss he will kiss me. He can come down stairs on his belly. I see positive sign. But having a special needs child means im maybe overthinking everything. But everyone around me is not helping.

Weight bearing, walking holding furniture/a push walker, understanding what you are saying to them, all really good signs and I expect you’ve got nothing to worry about and they’ll be walking soon enough.

If your only worry is the lack of independent steps on the physical side, I think you’re just fine.

Speech wise, understanding and willingness to engage comes first. Do they communicate with you in other ways? E.g gestures, bringing you things, showing you things, choosing between two things?

He does some gestures. When out he started babbling and takes his hand out to show bird or cat. He doesn't bring me anything. And I never done the choosing between two things with him. But he will play with me.