Late Walker

[YellaC]

Hi,
This is my first post

My beautiful boy is now 20 months, and is still not walking. I would like to see if anyone else can offer support/advice please? Or if anyone is in a similar situation and would like to chat or meet up?
Freddie is a very active, lively little boy who can crawl at an amazing pace, he happily cruises around the furniture and pulls to stand on anything & everything (struggles to stand unaided it’s like he is scared? 😔) He spends an awful lot of time standing (clinging on to a piece of furniture with one hand or sometimes just his fingers). He has taken one or two small steps with great encouragement but always collapses to the floor or grabs out to me. He is fully weight bearing and has been since 6-7mths. He doesn't bottom shuffle or stand on his toes, and he can get up the stairs no problem. He sat unaided at about 7 months and crawled at 11 months (army crawling - proper crawling 15mths) nothing massively late? What is so frustrating is that he appears completely normal in every way, except he just cannot walk. I’m getting upset & it’s driving me mad with worry & concern, everyone tells me he will walk when he is ready, I’ve been hearing this since he was 13mths 😭 I have always encouraged Freddie so much but I am questioning if I have done enough to help him, I am forever blaming myself 😔I pull him up and make him walk (rather than carry him) as much as I can around the house, even when we are out recently.. he can & will walk holding my hands and seems to enjoy it and we do this lots, as soon as I let go he is back to crawling or cruising.
He has been under physio since 13 months as he used to extend his knees too straight & stiffen them, this stopped around 16-17mths, on his last PT appointment (end of May) I was told he’s now too bendy? & needs a paediatric review - appointment is the 16th so I’m sure we will find out more then, I just keep googling stuff and my anxiety is going through the roof 😭

I’ve been meaning to put a post on for a while but always stop myself in fear of sounding “crazy”, I really do need to discuss my sons walking delay with other mums who might be experiencing the same or know anyone?
Help please?!

Does he have hypermobility syndrome? Some babies stiffen up to brace themselves and provide more stability (is this what you meant by stiffening his legs? Or did he do it at other times too?) which might be causing the walking delay. If so don't worry. It's good he's under PT.

Is he meeting all other milestones okay?

@Foreverbaffled

Does he have hypermobility syndrome? Some babies stiffen up to brace themselves and provide more stability (is this what you meant by stiffening his legs? Or did he do it at other times too?) which might be causing the walking delay. If so don't worry. It's good he's under PT.

Is he meeting all other milestones okay?

Not that we have been told by his physio, he has been checked over numerous of times & had his bloods done which came back normal, no high or low tone or hypermobility been diagnosed yet? He used to stand so straight like no give in his knees, since having physio he has loosened up and will squat & bend his knees, I just think he is so scared to take the leap & do it ie take steps. He used to have a lot of words which have all of a sudden stopped? Still says mama & dada not always in context and just a lot of babble?

It does sound like he might have hypermobile joints if he's gone from stiffening to now being considered too bendy. If that's the case then with the right help he'll get there eventually. My DS is hypermobile and tenses his legs (but at other times too like when he's lying down and cross) so he's under neurology. It's good your little one has no muscle tone issues though

(My DS is only six months old though!)