To encourage baby to sit up or not?

[misforme]

Hi all. Ds is just over 7months and can't sit up unaided yet. He rolls both sides and is trying to crawl, also leans forward in his high chair and sits up nicely straight whilst strapped in so I wasn't overly. However, my HV today suggested I should encourage ds to sit up on his own more, prop him with pillows etc. I have read somewhere that this is actually not good for them and that it can do more damage than good when they are not ready and that it will just happen when they are. Apparently bumbo chairs aren't great either as they are just lock the child in. What is everyone's opinion on this. Shall I sit him up or just continue with him playing on his back and tummy.
Many thanks.

Mine sat at about 7.5 months. I didn't bother too much with the propping etc, and one day he just did it! Ditto with crawling, and now he is quite close to walking (13.5 months) but tbh other than letting him have plenty of floor time I didn't really see the point in 'pushing' them. A few of my antenatal class have always seemed desperate to move their child onto the next thing but I think its just nice to enjoy each stage as it comes. Plus DS is sooo stubborn and only does what he wants, when he wants! My friend is a GP and said she'd check over a child that wasn't sitting unaided at 9 months but not before, if that makes you feel better about the HV 'advice'?

Typical children develop their gross motor skills such as sitting crawling and walking in their own time. There is research that shows allowing children to develop at their own pace can have a beneficial effect on them in terms of brain development and neural transmission. That said, I don't know of anything that says supporting a child to sit is intrinsically bad for them.

They do need to develop their muscles and coordination enough to do it, it's a much more complex skill than we think. I think that a few minutes of propping up and encouragement is not a bad thing, it would help muscles to develop and become stronger. But it really is nothing to worry about at 7 months.

My twins didn't sit until they were 8.5 months old. All my friends child were sitting much, much earlier.

However my two both started walking by 11 months old and several off the sitting children didn't walk until they were 18 months.

I think they do it when they are ready to be honest.

The mamaOT website has some great tips on motor development. Her philosophy is that floor time is the best way to learn to sit. Supported sitting doesn't actually help them sit, though it does free up their hands for learning other things. That said, if they're starting to sit but are a bit wobbly then providing a safe environment for them to practice can help - we used a cardboard box with a blanket inside but there are other tips on her website.