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Expert Q&A
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| By John Dorsey, M.D. Pediatrician | ||
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My son is now 7 1/2 months old. He is not even attempting to crawl. I lay him on his stomach and he just gets mad and screams! Is this normal?
Your son's not attempting to crawl at this age may be looked at from two perspectives. The first relates to his level of interest in crawling, the second relates to whether or not he has the ability to do so. While a few babies may make some crude attempts to crawl as early as 4 to 5 months, sophisticated crawling may not be apparent until 10 to 11 months, depending on a variety of factors.
If he's used to being carried everywhere and plopped in places near toys or people, without needing to exert any effort on his own, he may have little incentive to locomote independently -- he's being escorted to the things that are interesting in the world or perhaps it's all being brought to him, so why bother? However, in order to crawl he must also have some prequisite motor abilities. Can he roll over from his back to his stomach? How much head control does he display when you hold him? Can he sit alone steadily? If you hold him up in in a standing position under his shoulders does he make stepping movements? If you've said "yes" to all of these milestones then he should be on the verge of crawling.
As to his "getting mad," this may reflect his frustration in not yet being able to move about on his own. When you place him on his stomach, does he push himself up by stiffening his arms to lift his head? If you press your hands against the soles of his feet, his creeping reflex should make him push off against you. If this occurs, he's almost there. If not, you should ask your pediatrician about this at his next well-baby checkup.
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