Doctor said my 6mo needs PT

[moondo57]

@springwillow That definitely does seem early! But there could be other factors she’s considering, like if the Early Intervention services in your area typically have very long waitlists. I’ve heard of people waiting 3 months to see EI after a referral, so maybe she thought she’d get you on the list early just in case. Our pediatrician did that for a pediatric ENT in case we got another ear infection and needed to get tubes. The waitlist for the ENT was 6 months long!!

 

[cnews]

@springwillow My son had a few developmental delays stemming from lack of tummy time due to reflux. They recommended early childhood intervention, which could result in PT, OT, and speech therapy.
I put it off for a few months, thinking it was somehow personal. Then I realized that hey, it can't hurt! I had him evaluated, and he qualified for PT, which we received for 9 months and helped tremendously.

I can have him reevaluate every 3 months. The way I look at it now, If he doesn't qualify great. If he does, even better he can have a professional help him, show me better ways to help him.

Where I live; this does not appear on his school or permanent record until 3 years. This seemed like a win win for me.

 

[emmsmom81]

@springwillow Like actively moving to sit from lying down without any help? Ours did that around 6-7 months and I think that was pretty early..! So yes I'd be weirded out if someone would say it was required that they can do that before seven months...

 

[chickenken]

@springwillow My son started PT at like 3-4 months for torticollas and I think it completely changed his outlook. It was severe enough to get him fitted for a helmet. Had I been conservative with treatment and waited like a lot of people were telling me to my son would still be in a helmet at 20 months and without a doubt still need PT. He got to graduate from PT in March. However because of the PT issues there is a speech delay. I tell you this to say get it. Especially if it’s not a financial concern. Had I waited my son would of been severely delayed instead of mild delay in speech.

 

[brcseac]

@springwillow I would say no matter what PT is pretty fun for babies. Ours went for a flat hat (tight neck muscles making him favor a side) and they did all sorts of good exercises. Practiced sitting up, crawling exercises, etc. I recommend assuming it's covered by insurance.

 

[david57]

@springwillow My son was full term with moderate-severe torticollis. He started physical therapy at about 3 months old and continued PT until he was walking unassisted at 15 months.

Really depends on the diagnosis and why they’re worried. With my child 6-8 months would have been a very serious delay in treatment that could have meant he’d still be in PT today. The first few months can be excruciatingly critical for some conditions.

 

[jabezpraise]

@springwillow That’s what happened to me. Except one month later. My daughter also had consistently straight legs, so she had to go see a neurologist and get an mri just to rule out if this was something deeper then her not bending her legs. We did PT and OT and my girl is doing great. It took sometime. At the end, do I think she didn’t need it, probably, but it really doesn’t hurt them.

If you actually have the time for it, bc it doesn’t seem that serious, I would consider doing it. It was time consuming on my part to take her to two appointments a week, then two FaceTime appointments a week from early intervention.

At the end of the day, it’s your child and you them best.

For me, I discovered that my LO just didn’t want to do things until she was ready to.

 

[huntergatherer]

@springwillow Seems early - my girl wasn’t sitting on her own until probably more like 8, maybe 9, months. No doctor ever mentioned it, and she’s now an extremely active and independent 1.5 year old.

One other perspective though — my experience is that specialist referrals often have a very long waitlist, so it may make sense to still get the referral and make an appointment. Then, if you find out in a month or 2 that you do to see a specialist, you will already have an appointment coming up! As opposed to having to then wait in stress for a couple more months until the referral then waitlist system plays out

 

[israelbendavid]

@springwillow This is personally weird for me. My kiddo could sit at 5 months assisted, could sit relatively unassisted at 7 and stopped needing the occasional assistance at 8. Is there harm in an evaluation? No. But 6 months is pretty early for most babies to be sitting unassisted unless they get constant guided exercise while they're awake. Babies hit milestones "early" and "late," while still being considered normal.

At worst case scenario, put your baby on the wait list just in case. At best, ask more questions. It's their duty to help you make informed decisions!

 

[evall]

@springwillow We voluntarily took our baby to an osteopath, it was a total of 3 sessions. Very gentle massage to support skeletal alignment. (Crazy gentle, nothing like chiro which I would never ever do with a baby.)

My husband is a personal trainer and we’re super into balance in the body, and there’s nothing better than getting it now while the body is so young, and many functional patterns are still forming. We’re taking our daughter again soon now that she’s 1 year and starting to walk.

We always get sent home with “homework,” exercises to encourage healthy range of motion and balanced skeletal patterns. So getting with a physiotherapist like your NP recommended would be right up my alley, personally!! If you can get it covered by insurance, which I believe you can after you’ve been referred by a practitioner, that’s even better (we paid out of pocket for the osteo.)

 

[mikebex]

@springwillow My son is one and he didn’t get into sitting position on his own until he was 10 months, well after he was army crawling

 

[tr2]

@springwillow I don’t see the harm in getting an evaluation from a PT.

 

[ryant]

@springwillow Mine started sitting up consistently around 8 months.

 

[smallf]

@springwillow I don’t think getting evaluated us a bad thing at all. I advocated for a referral for my girl’s mild torticolis and I follow a bunch of peds PT on Instagram. With all the exercises I learned, I would practice them with my girl. She started walking at 11.5 months and now at almost 13 months, she’s trying to run. PT for babies really can’t harm them if done correctly. I would totally understand a medical professional over prescribing medication but this isn’t the same

 

[fallen18]

@springwillow We were recommended PT for our son at 6mo. He was a 6 week premie, so it made sense he wasn't sitting up yet, but figured what hurt could PT do if the doctor was recommending it. We went through early intervention and qualified for services. He started sitting up around 8 months. Did we really need it based on his adjusted age? Probably not, who really knows. Did it make me as a first time parent feel better with a professional having a set of eyes on him and giving me tips on how I could best help him towards his milestones? You betcha.

 

[annie9824]

@springwillow Do the evaluation with the PT. They are the experts on this, not the NP or you, and they will assess if PT is really necessary or not. Early intervention evaluations are free in the US. It doesn't hurt, only helps. If your child doesn't land up qualifying, then great. But you should give your child the opportunity for services if it's necessary.

 

[frequencydx]

@springwillow Ours started sitting unassisted right around 7+ months, she couldn’t at 6.

 

[wilts43]

@springwillow My little one really only started being able to meaningful sit up by himself last week, he's going to be 8 months on 7/11

Eta: we asked about sitting during his 6 month appointment and the pediatrician wasn't concerned at all

That being said I don't see how PT could be harmful, if anything it will put them ahead.

 

[oononta]

@springwillow Hi OP! I am a pediatric OT. In isolation, any skill can theoretically be mastered outside of the expected window with no need for concern. Every baby is different and will gain skills at different times! However, it’s really important to look at the whole picture. Does your baby seem to have adequate core strength for rolling, reaching, holding his head up? If so, he may just need some more opportunities to sit up and he’ll eventually get the hang of it. If not, the Dr may be recommending a PT Eval because she sees that baby is lacking the foundational motor skills required for sitting (which would also affect crawling, walking, development of fine motor skills, etc.) I would ask your Dr more about what her specific concerns are! Good luck!

 

[ancientbrotherbass]

@springwillow Why are you against PT? Maybe it’s not necessary but it’s still helpful.