Neurotic? Not sure when my daughter should be sitting up/rolling over

[Midge25]

Hi all. New to Mumsnet but hoping for some advice from the resident experts! Got back from baby clinic today with the fear, as my daughter is not yet able to sit alone/fully roll over (she can roll mostly onto her right side but that's it). When was at baby clinic lots of other wrigglers of a similar age seemed to be doing it and now am really worried! My daughter is 5 and 1/2 months and quite chubby. She really objects to 'tummy time' and I'm wondering if this is slowing her down?

no need to be worried at all. a lot of babies don't sit by that age (or roll for that matter)

can't remember what average age is, but I'd say she is still young to be doin git

Sorry but I had to rofl (unlike my 10 month old dd2 who is still reluctant to roll). HV was mildly surprised at 8 month check that she wasn't rolling. We were called back last week and dd2 rolled (once) from her front to back and then lay ther grinning as if to say "right, I've done it so you can take me home now!"

She has only rolled twice in her life - once at the above appt. My theory (and HV agrees) is that she can but chooses not to. Tbh she is a very happy smiley baby and just likes sitting and playing and "chatting"

Dd1 was similar - i.e. later than average with her "mobility" milestones. Neither of my dds sat up until way past 6 months.

Aw, don't worry, they really do this at quite different times. I think sitting up AT 6 months plus is about average, which means some will be later. Rolling there seems to be a greater spread of ages to start.

Far too early to worry. My ds also haed tummy time. In fact he hated anything that didn't involve him being walked around in my arms! He sat up around 6 months but not reliably, he would topple and fall until he was about 8 months old when he learned to pull himself up again into sitting position if he did wobble! Five and half months is very very early to be worrying about rolling and sitting. My friend's ds has oly just learned to sit at 10 months, yet he could crawl before my ds so it's all swings and roundabouts! Also, these things tend to happen in leaps and bounds. My ds went from sitting up from laying down position to pulling up on the furniture and toddling round all on the same day! He didn't crawl til over 9 months though do they are all different. What she can't do today, she may shock you with tomorrow!

Don't worry. Neither of mine ever saw much point in rolling, and as I understand it, 7 months-ish is fairly standard in terms of sitting.

Do keep trying with tummy time though - evven if its' just a few minutes a day!

We still don't enforce tummy time on our 10 month old. I believe that she will do it in her own time. As long as the child has been checked for possible physical problems then sometimes it is just a case of waiting.

Mine hated tummy time until about 8 months lots of them do. She tolerated it slightly better over my knee eg fastening the back of her t.shirt with her lying over my knee just to try and get her used to it without being upset.

DT2 hated tummy time til he went swimming. Now holds his head up beautifully since being whooshed around the pool on his belly.
So what if they don't reach the 'milestones' that HV say.

Message withdrawn

I think that the only possible "issue" is that the occasional child has a mild difficulty with their muscles or other similar physical problem. So it is useful for the HV to keep an eye on them. As mums (most of us with no medical training) it might be hard to spot a minor problem/disability that might benefit from prompt intervention.

However some HVs get hung up (imo) on the fact that the child is somehow "behind". In our case our very sensible HV recently retired so it is a less experienced nurse or even nursery nurse that does the checks, and as they are less experienced they go more ""by the book.

PMSL onepieceoflollipop My DS (19m) was visited by a speech and language therapist at home due to his lack of speech and promptly sang almost an entire rendition of 'The Hokey-Cokey' pefectly in front of her.

He hadn't done it before, and he hasn't done it since!

You forget, - babies do have a choice about what and when they perform. It doesn't mean they can't, - just perhaps that they'd rather concentrate on something else!

ChickenWoman rofl at your ds as well.

We have asked dd to roll again for us but she won't and she knows what we want her to do...she just smiles sweetly until we pick her up again.

She might choose not to move much, but she is fab at communicating. Tells her big sister off all the time - squawking like mad if she wants to make a point!

I would like to see the entry that the SAL therapist put on his notes.

Sit! Roll! At 5 1/2 months! Heavens. If it's any consolation, my son only learned to roll over 6 weeks ago and he's just turned one. But he's walking and has been crawling since 7 months. And he never once spent more than a minute on his tummy. I can't remember when he sat - I think it was probably early by his peers' standard but certainly at 5 months as we went on holiday then and he definitely wasn't.
I think it's very easy to compare but not very helpful - really hard not to, but I promise you most of them get there in the end...

Thank you all - silly neurotic mummy will stop worrying now. Swore I'd never compare babies, but was a bit taken aback by all these mobile wrigglers at the clinic and couldn't help but wonder...

My DD at 6 months is not very active either, doesn't roll, almost sits alone. Though I'm pretty thankful atm, cos I know once they start, that's it they're off. She's happy to sit (supported!) and watch. I'm trying not to compare, but its all these bloody GUIDELINES again!

There's a simple solution to this problem - stop going to baby clinic and comparing your child with others. She'll get there in her own time. DD crawled backwards for six sodding months and then cruised for many more. She didn't sit alone till 7 months and I reckon it's probably because she's a bit of a lazy twonk.

Now she's 20 months and running round, but because she spent a bit more time on the floor reading she has better hand/eye coordination and reading skills than her age group would suggest - so it does all even out in the end.

It's got nothing to do with being rotund btw, once they start legging it around the fat goes anyway.

DS at 6m3w is happy sitting but occasionally topples so has to be surrounded by soft things; hates being on his tummy for any length of time; and most of all loves to be standing (supported of course). He still doesn't roll, doesn't seem to see the need for it, but is quite wriggly and active in moving himself around and reaching for things.

I wouldn't worry about it and tbh, if your DD isn't rolling around, be grateful (as I am) because it makes life much easier!

my dd has only started sitting up in the last month, she is 9 months, she can not roll, stand pull her self up. she also only rolls over in the night. and is trying to crawl but onl getsone leg right then goes flat on her tummy again,

Although DD1 sat from about 7 months she was 9.5 months when she rolled over for the first time. She then pulled herself up on the furniture, crawled and then took her first steps in the next 3 weeks!

Chickenwoman - I am laughing out loud at your post. Ds1 has just been referred for salt and I now have this vision of him singing the hokey cokey when we get our appt

Anyway back to the OP,

DS1 was late sitting up, I now suspect its cos he is so tall and skinny that he just had no bum to balance on. He didn't roll over till about 8 months but was mobile from 6 months because he would arch his back, bend his legs, dig his heels in and work his way around the floor backwards lying down! Like a bloody caterpillar - he used to end up with his head jammed against the skirting board
Then,
DS2 however lay on his back completely immobile till about 10 months, no rolling, no tummy time. He crawled late, walked at 14m but his language is more advanced than his brother.

So they all do different stuff at different times.

Flibbertyjibbet: Good luck!

They do make us out to be liars don't they! I'm not sure whether I was happy or sad about his performance. I felt like such an idiot!

my auntie said my cousin was over two before she walked she took her the doctors and while she was there my cousin got up and walked across the room, they do make big liars out of us dont they.

Let me tell you how it is from the other side! DD is 5.5 months, rolls across the room, crawls and is desperate to stand up. At the clinic yesterday all of the other babies were lying down nicely on the changing mats, DD was trying to climb down the side of the changing table. It's a bloody nightmare!! Make the most of the peace. I was expecting at least a couple more months before I had to start baby-proofing...

good thread midge, my 5mth old is not rolling either, well he did a couple of rolls a few weeks ago on the bed and that's it! His brother however was rolling at 15 wks and lots of people keep saying how he must be rolling over etc now and well he isn't!!

DD rolled this morning! Wouldn't you know it, they always make liars out of us, don't they!!! But still not sitting - am sure it'll come in time but as I say, get the fear about her when I go to baby clinic and see all these other 'prodigies'!