MIL says no. what do YOU think?

[Yorkshabird21x]

Me and my dp play a game with dd, 16 weeks, we hold her hands and pull her up to a sitting postition, then pull her into a standing position. she loves this and gives us loads of giggles when it happens.
the thing is, mil has said that she is NOT to stand up at this age.
is it ok for dd to be standing, she is only standing for about 30secs, and she absolutely loves in, infact she crys some times when she isnt on her feet.
what do you think about this?

My dd2 (21 weeks) loves a bit of standing too and has done for a while now. according to What To Expect, if they are enjoying it and are clearly able to support themselves, then carry on

If she's strong enough then let her but I wouldn't pull her up by her arms i would support her trunk.

my two used to stand against the sofa unaided from about 26wks....and was standing being held with hand to hand, or our hands under their armpits from MUCH earlier than that!! if she's enjoying it then why not- if anything it will boost the strength in her legs!!! my two used to like bouncing themselves on their legs while being held up as you describe with you LO!!!

Hi - seems to be a theme with the older generation who tell you not to do this. My parents were the same and in fact my Dad said I would be damaging her feet and she might have trouble walking

Like Goingfor3 says, make sure you support her under her shoulders or round her middle so that she's not supporting too much of her own weight. If she likes being on her feet, she might enjoy one of those doorway bouncers...

My DD who did this was fine btw (now 3) - in fact she was pulling herself up to stand on the furniture at 5 and a half months which certainly put to rest my Dad's "helpful" comments

It's fine

It's an old wives tale that they shouldn't wupport their weight because it will give them bowed-out legs

I have a picture of ds1 aged 15 weeks, supporting himself by holding onto my knees. He did it at every opportunity adn is not bow legged at all.

If you pull by the arms you can cause something called nursemaids elbow.

It's when the arm is extended and you pull the forearm it separates slightly from the humerus and a ligament can slip into this joint. The bones come back together and trap the ligament and this causes long term pain, known as nursemaid's elbow.

So I'd suggest holding your baby round the middle, not pulling by the arms.

thank you for all your comments. mil did mention something about bow-legged. so much for her 'not going to interfer' speech ha

I would be wary of pulling her up by her arms. My DD had her bone pulled out of its socket when pulled up by her arm.

oh god...bow legs......
it's part of the MIL job description, along with "when are you goeen to get heees 'air caht?"
sorry....just slipped out

oh bow legs i got that tooid hold her by her waist unless she is supporting most of her own weight

I had this.

Asked the HV.

HV said, succinctly, "that's bollocks".

Have you had the one about not letting them look up and back at you (ie you are behind them, looking down). My mother went loopy about that one, although even she couldn't explain why!

agree, its to do with the bow legged bull.
my mum and mil told me this too.

Apparently it's really good for their balance and development to hold them around their hips while they do their early standing.