Tummy time!

[Greenleaf21]

My two month old hates tummy time. I'm worried it will affect her development as all I keep hearing from everyone is how much she should be doing at this age. She lifts her head up a little but just cries all the way through. If we sit her up, she is able to hold her head in position so I'm not concerned that there is an issue there but I'm worried that not enjoying tummy time will affect her? Has anyone else similar problems?

Mine is 11 months now and hated tummy time until he was about four months and had a bit more control of his hands. He could hold his head steady sitting up and didn't mind being on his front swimming well before that so I think he was just frustrated at not being able to flail madly at things, as is his preferred mode of operation at all times (dear god may that stop soon). He started rolling to his back really early, I think out of sheer aggravation.

Have you tried doing it with her on your chest and such? Might make it more interesting for her. You might just have to hold out until she can get her hands out front and grab.

Try putting a rolled up blanket under her arm pits.

None of mine did tummy time (though I did use a sling which I think 'counts') all were completely normal and one actually started crawling this week at 15months so she's clearly not been 'deprived'

at 5* months, no idea where the 1 came from!!

My DS1 hated it for ages, he always cried. Although it was good for getting wind out 😂
He was fine meeting milestones and was happy on his tummy once he could get there himself. A playmat with lots of interesting things hanging on it is good for encouraging this.
Have you tried lying down and placing her on your chest?

Mine hated it until I got a tummy time pillow. Now he quite likes it and has started to sort worm himself across the floor.

In hingsight I wouldnt buy a special tummy time pillow because they're EXACTLY the same as travel pillows 😂

Mine absolutely hated it until they were 5 months and could roll over by themselves. Now they are never off their front - constantly rolling about and even sleeping on their front. Some babies just hate it.

A lot of them don't like it, but it's really good for them. It helps them develop all kinds of things internally.

Try lying on your back & lying her on your chest for an chat'

Lying her on the bed, you sit on the floor

Rolling a towel up and laying her Chest over it with her arms out over the top (Make sure it's only thin or it won't be comfortable)

Obviously interesting things to touch/look at

It can be very hard work for a while, but it really is worth doing.

A lot of people will say they didn't bother and their kids are fine, but you can't see all the things it helps with internally.

Eventually you'll build up to them enjoying it to the point you can move away & have 5 minutes, but you need to build up to it.

2 months is absolutely tiny, she still just wants cuddles. Stop stressing yourself, and making the child do something she doesn't like. Revisit in in a month or 2.

Mine hates tummy time till 6 months.. literally hated it.

*hated

My DD never really did tummy time for any significant length of time. She hated it and would scream so I didn't push it and make her distressed. She also learned to roll from her tummy to her back about as early as they can, so she would just instantly roll back on to her back as soon as she could. It may well have effected her development in that she didn't sit up til 6.5 months (not late, but not early either), and she didn't crawl (she bum shuffled instead). But it hasn't had any negative effects, as neither of those has been a problem in any way. She slowly learned to crawl from being about 20 months interestingly (she was walking at 16m anyway).

It's quite normal for babies not to like tummy time. Please don't stress about it. Try lying down yourself, or sitting reclined, and lying baby on you. They often like it (or at least tolerate it) better this way. Also, make sure they get plenty of position changes throughout the day, and not just on their back - either lying or in the car seat.
Congrats 🥳

Little and often is the key here. As others have said, if your little one can tolerate lying on you, and you slowly start angling back they will get used to it.

There’s a brilliant group called Sensory Sessions (based in Scotland but with COVID19 have gone online). They have loads of ideas on how to help your little one get better at tummy time, and they’re brilliant at explaining why it’s important without being judgemental or patronising at all.

Have a look, at two months old my DS was doing seconds on his tummy some days, minutes other days. It’s a marathon, not a sprint x

I never knew I was meant to do it, I fell through the gaps in the system and never had health visitors, my son bum shuffled until he was nearly 2 😬

I never bothered with tummy time much - I took the view that as my baby didn't spend loads of time lying on his back it wasn't an issue as the problem came around from babies lying on their back in cots most of the time.
His development has been absolutely normal and fine.
Its not worth stressing over and I would move her if she doesn't like it but just try and make sure she spends time if different positions - e.g. You could carry in a sling for example.

It’s a pseudo science! We’re advised to do tummy time mainly to prevent flat head syndrome-far more babies get this since guidance was updated to say that all babies should sleep on their backs. It’s turned into one of those things that just give mums even more to feel guilty about- there is zero evidence to support any arguments that it can impact on other milestones- this isn’t surprising because it’s actually impossible to measure. No one can ever tell if their child truly benefited from it or if they were just going to gut that milestone at that point anyway.

Yes, my DCs favourite positions when awake was being propped slightly upright in more of a sitting-type position, or being in the baby carrier.

I’m not the type of person to usually say this... but babies have been learning to turn over and crawl for a long time, without tummy time. Of all the baby advice I think ‘tummy time’ is the most gimmicky and possible has the least affect on a babies‘ development. I think the vast majority would learn to turn over and crawl at exactly the same time whether they do it or not.