15 Month old not sitting from laying position or walking

[Heather4]

I've had this little guys brother for over a year now and this little one since he turned a year. They are both naturally small for their ages.
He seems completely on track with a lot of things except for the fact that he will not stand. Hates it and refuses. He won't pull himself up to stand and when you pick him up to put him in a standing position, he automatically lifts his legs to sit.
He can however but scootch. Very well actually, no normal crawling at all.
I've noticed that his brother will help him sit up from laying down and finally told him to leave him be so he can do it on his own. I try to get the kids to have as much independence as possible.
Well, it's been an hour and he CANNOT go to a sitting position at all from laying down. He can roll though. He won't even hold on to something to pull himself up. He's been laying and rolling on my floor for an hour. He has complained a couple times and I try encouragement but he will not do it.
Any advice? I asked Mom a bit ago about the standing and she was given pointers from a nurse practitioner about trying to stand for 20 mins a day but he almost just refuses so it's hard for her. I just mentioned the not sitting and she laughed it off and said big brother usually helps him but I'm super concerned.

[MommaL]

While this doesn't really help you as a daycare provider, I just wanted to share my experience. My own son was a bum scootcher, who never crawled and never wanted to stand or walk. He was also late at learning to sit up, though I think was doing so by 15 months. However, it was around that time that he diagnosed as having hypermobility in his joints (particularly his hips and shoulders). You'll probably want to google it for more info, but it explained everything (not crawling, not standing, etc.). Basically, he felt very unsteady and uncomfortable trying. He was referred to a physiotherapist who met with us regularly and gave us some tips for how to help him at home. He eventually started standing around 17 months and walking around 18 months and today he's a typical 2 year old, other than that he's more flexible than most.

[5 Little Monkeys]

I'm not sure I'd be worried yet. Kids meet milestones at all different ages and if brother and mom are picking him up, it could just be a case of not learning yet or too lazy to do on own?

You've expressed concerns to mom, you encourage brother to let him be, you're encouraging child to learn on his Own....not much else you can do. Maybe set aside some time every day (when you're down on the floor with them maybe?) and practice standing with him. Eventually he will hopefully learn!!

Did the brother have this issue too?

[Heather4]

His brother didn't have any of these issues. I wouldn't have been too concerned about the standing or anything but not being able to sit up from laying. That just doesn't seem right. I know many children beat to their own drum but My instincts say something is up. im really hoping it's just a case of being over helped.

[Heather4]

I'm wondering if it will end up like this. I'm hoping the right person will come along and kinda get things going for him. The nurse said to have him stand but I think she just puts him in an exceed saucer or walker and I don't think that's helping. Prob hindering him just as much

[babydom]

As I was reading this I thought exactly as mommaL said. I've seen a lot of kids with joint and hip problems and all of them couldn't sit up or want to stand. They were all over a yr old. One little guys was bad...he'd screamed when we tried to stand him up....he was in a lot of pain in that position :( something to Google and watch for

[kindertime]

From my limited experience working with children with special needs, I have been able to pick up a bit of knowledge in this area. There are a few things to look for.

Muscle tone. A "high" tone means the muscles are always flexed. For example, if you are sitting straight up with your shoulders right back, and then move your shoulders forward and hunch forward.... you have gone from being flexed to loose. If a child has difficulty going from one to the other, they are likely to have difficulty changing positions.

Flipping vs. rolling. When the child is on his back, does he purposely roll over, or... does he end up flipping over because his muscle tone is high? If you lie down on the floor, what muscles do you use to roll over? Pay close attention to what you are doing and in what order. When you observe the child, is he doing the same things?

Muscle strength. All of these types of movements require strength. We have to push our limits a little bit because muscle is "built" when we damage the muscle and it repairs itself. Does he have heavy boots, yet? When he's wearing them, his feet will be heavier and maybe it will be easier for you to hold him up while his feet remain on the ground/floor.

Hope some of that will help. Good luck!

[flowerchild]

I had a little one who couldn't roll from her back to her front. She could do everything else, but if I left her on her back, she couldn't get up. It was around 18-19 months and it just clicked for her. :)

Hopefully that's the case here.