As a rule, children start to move on all fours from the age of nine months. But what if my baby does not crawl? Don’t worry! Everything about the causes and tips on how you can gently promote it.
Basically, all babies and toddlers have a natural urge to move. But not all are the same in terms of their motor development. While some babies crawl through the living room at lightning speed as early as eight months, some only do that at ten or eleven months. And there are also the children who don’t crawl at all. Does your baby belong to the latter category? In principle, this is not yet a cause for concern.
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Baby does not crawl: these could be the causes
There are several possible causes for a baby not to want to crawl. These are three reasons that are more common. In two of these, the behavior of the parents plays a role.
The baby is being urged to sit even though it is not physically ready
A baby should only sit when it can get into the sitting position on its own. But some parents can’t wait for it and sit down, even though the motor isn’t ready yet. The result can be that the muscles, the trunk and also the sense of balance do not develop naturally. And that can also help prevent the baby from crawling.
Typical for such babies: Since the brain is not yet able to make the connections between how it got into the sitting position or how it comes out of it, the children often slide forward on their buttocks.
The baby is not encouraged to move
The baby signals that it wants the ball two meters away – and the parents put it into their hands immediately? Not a good idea if you want to encourage the independent urge to move and thus also crawling. Instead, you should always let the child try to achieve what is desired first.
There are physical reasons why the baby may not crawl
If there are certain physical problems, such as blockages in the neck, shoulder or pelvic area, this can contribute to the fact that a baby cannot or does not want to crawl. During the U-examinations , the pediatrician checks whether all physical requirements are met for the crawling stage of development .
Of course, you can also get an appointment out of turn and have your little one checked through in this regard. Milestones: Babies 6 most important development steps at a glance
Baby does not crawl: This is how you can encourage it specifically and gently
If your baby is nine months or older and still makes no move to crawl, there are a few simple things you can do to gently encourage them to crawl.
Very important for all crawling exercises: Give your baby courage and praise it for every success, no matter how small!
Demonstrate crawling yourself
Babies and children are constantly imitating us. So it can’t hurt to show them how to crawl. After all, we don’t usually get around on all fours. Do you have a baby in your family or with friends who is of a similar age and is already crawling? Let the two play together. Other children can also be role models and encourage them to follow suit.
Take off your socks
So simple, but so important: Take off your baby’s socks or tights as often as possible and let them be barefoot . Because not only can the foot muscles develop better in this way. It also has a much better grip so that it can move around on smooth floors.
Take away weight
Pass a towel or scarf under your baby’s tummy and carefully lift both ends up. Of course, hands and feet still have to reach the ground. Perhaps this is how it is encouraged to practice crawling? Or having to carry your own body weight is much easier after all.
create incentives
Your baby is crazy about your cell phone? Then use this forbidden obsession to encourage it to crawl. Just put it down a little way from him. Perhaps his will to get there is so great that he resorts to crawling.
