So recently at one our 6-12 month parent classes, the facilitator passed out recommended developmental milestones for babies birth to 12 months. She asked all of us to check off where our babes were from birth to 7 months. Could they sit on their own, were they rolling over, were they babbling, blowing bubbles, putting things in their mouths, etc. As I was looking at the check off sheets…I started to think. What if the little guy was one of the babies that wasn't hitting these supposed milestones? How would I feel? Should I have read him more Baby Einstein books and less Dr. Suess? Was I doing something wrong as a mom? And then I stepped back and really thought about all of this. Did it really matter that much? The answer is generally, no. What would it mean if the little senor couldn't do these things…I don't know.
Would he thrive in life if he couldn't roll over? So after class, I called my mom. I asked her if I hit all the "supposed" milestones on time. She replied, I don't know that was over 29 years ago. Why are you asking me? Are you having difficulty rolling over, sitting, sticking things in your mouth??? No, I replied and started to laugh. This is when I realized that it is nice to double check to see if your baby is growing on target but these are general milestones. Some you will hit early and others late but at the end of the day as long as you have a happy , thriving baby thats all that really matters :)
This is a big hot-button one for me, mostly because I am on high alert for Scarlett because of Trevor. I have been doing the ASQ Questionnaires through Help Me Grow for precautionary screening for her, and their screening department called me in a panic because she wasn't banging toys together. Really. They wanted to list her as "high risk" for having autism. My pediatrician laughed hysterically when I told him everything. Seriously.
ReplyDeleteShe says "Da Da" with purpose now, she sits up on her own, crawls, BANGS TOYS TOGETHER, and does all of the things she should be doing for problem solving. She is also the biggest social butterfly around. Am I still concerned about her long-term? Sure. But Trevor met all of his milestones and he's on the Spectrum as you know. The only kicker is that he hit some of his milestone WAY too early, which is indicative of high functioning autism.
Anyways, I could go on... but don't worry too much. There is an acceptable range for all of these milestones, and the age they are presenting is merely the average.