15 month old not walking

G

galileesilk

New member
I know this can be “normal”. But he is also not standing independently (without holding onto something) He gets up with assistance easily and cruises and climbs. But he doesn’t seem to have the balance to stand alone. I have so much anxiety about it. He just turned 15 months and he’s been on track with his other milestones with the exception of taking a little longer to sit upright on his own. I was hoping for some reassurance from his pediatrician but she just referred us to PT. He goes to daycare and all the other babies his age are walking like experts so he’s around it all the time. He’s so perfect, I just can’t stop feeling like I’m a failure. At the playground today he just kept bending his legs when I tried to hold his hand and tried to crawl on the rough pavement (ouch) Anyone know what I can do to help him or should I just chill the F out about it? My husband is so nonchalant about it so I can’t talk to him. And no one I know with babies his age has this issue.
 
@galileesilk My little one started walking at 16 months, I apparently was walking when I was 1, and my sister’s son started walking at about 18 or 19 months.

My point is that there is a ton of variation, and you don’t need to stress. You could always get some physical therapy sessions for him. I know someone that did it because their daughter favoured one side heavily when crawling, and kind of dragged the other leg. It’s not a huge deal, but it could help.
 
@galileesilk My toddler didn’t start walking until 16.5 months so I get the anxiety. You say he’s cruising — maybe you can see if he’s interested in holding on to something with one hand, and holding yours with his other? So it’s like cruising but also doubling as assisted walking? Then eventually he might build enough confidence to walk assisted with just you.

Like you mentioned, there’s totally a range though. I’ve previously heard things about how you shouldn’t feel the need to reach out to a PT

until closer to 17 months, and I personally know people who didn’t walk until closer to 18-19 months. I know this doesn’t help with present anxiety tho!
 
@cpo Thank you! He does hold onto my hand and take some steps but only for a few seconds, and then bends his knees and wants to crawl. I feel like I am forcing him when I offer my hand or try to assist him to walk. But I do keep trying to offer- I just dont want to push him if he doesn't want to. But I will keep trying to encourage it and I appreciate you sharing your knowledge!
 
@galileesilk The fact that he’s even taking a few steps before wanting to crawl is promising I think! It shows there’s at least an ability to do it. My child was also like that too.

I’m not a professional but it does seem like he’ll figure out it out—even if it does fall on the latter end of the range. Try your best to not sweat it, and just keep encouraging him to do assisted walking when it makes sense for him. He’ll get it!
 
@galileesilk My daughter was similar (and also born a little early). She was great at cruising and standing with furniture but had just about zero interest in standing alone or trying to walk. Then, when she was just about 15 months she went from 1-3 shaky steps between things to full walking literally within 2 weeks. She just waited until she was fully ready before she even dared to try! It was wild!! What seemed to work best for her in those couple of weeks was having a big, open space with a lot of things she could move between to kind of encourage her. It was my sisters visiting and sitting on the floor around our living room, so there were like 4 people, 2 sofas, a coffee table, and her various toys. Lots of short distances to practice. And we'd just sit around for an hour or so talking and spending time together and letting her navigate around the space without any specific pressure. She built a lot of confidence in a short time.
 
@galileesilk Our friends have a son who is 18 months old and not really walking. They don’t seem concerned. Basically we think that he can walk but just isn’t into it and would prefer other methods to get around (crawling and butt scooting).
 
@wug
just ?
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I didn't mean "just" as in she did nothing- I really appreciate her referral. And I am hoping it will help when they reach out and I get to make an appointment. My anxious brain was just looking for her to say "it's totally fine dont worry etc etc." In the meantime I'm having all this worry and anxiety, people always asking if hes walking. I'm glad to be learning that PT seems to be such a postive experience for many.
 
@galileesilk My oldest niece never crawled, she'd scoot on her bum everywhere. She never had any interest in pulling to stand or walking at all, she was as quick as could be on her butt. So many of her pants were all worn out in the butt from sliding it across the floor 😅

She started walking at 18 months. One day she just decided to get up and walk and that was it. Every child is different, my first born started walking at 14 months whereas my nephew was walking at 10 months. There is a lot of variation between children.

There's no harm in attending a few PT sessions to get some insight and tips to do at home.
 
@galileesilk 15 months isn't too worrisome, but if you want to be proactive, it's there as a resource. I honestly believe that PT could help ease your anxiety too.

I work with PT & OT in my career and they do amazing things!
 
@galileesilk My son was diagnosed with hip dyplasia at 4 months and we were told he may have delays in crawling and walking by a couple of months at best.

The Ortho told us at 10 months that if he was not walking at 15 months ( independently) to bring him back for a check up as it could be an indication of weakness in the hips etc.

I know you have a referral for PT but my son's PT doesn't necessarily deal with a delay in walking but definitely go the appointment as they do give very handy excersises for strength. But I would be pushing for a x-ray of the hips and a referral to a pediatric ortho.

I'm in Australia btw so the medical system differs we would usually go to our GP and request a referral for an x-ray/ultrasound and then based on the results get a referral to a specialist.

There may not be anything wrong and it's all dandy but for peace of mind I err on the side of caution and get things checked out as early intervention really helps.

In addition I am not sure if PT's can do this in your country but they are allied health where I live so they can basically write a letter to your pediatrician with reccomendations for what tests should be carried out or if they should provide a referral to another doctor. They can advocate for you and your child to seek further help so definitely see if your PT can do this.
 
@galileesilk My friend’s son didn’t start walking until 15-16 months, and I remember her being so worried about it. He was pretty advanced with his communication and talking though, so he definitely just had different interests that he was pursuing at the time. And when he did finally start walking, he was a pro already - not wobbly or anything, very confident and secure. Whereas my son started walking at 9 months and was a literal wrecking ball. I remember reading something once about a lot of that has to do with personality. Some babies just go for it and learn as they go, and some babies wait until they have the skill down and feel more confident before moving forward.
 
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