The Stages of Sitting
Watching your baby gain independence
is exciting. A major accomplishment every parent looks forward to is when she
can sit on her own. Pediatrician Kurt Heyrman, M.D. says there are ways that
you can help Baby gain these large motor skills and help her sit on her own.
Here's how.
By Stacey Wilson
Before She Sits
Knowing what to look for and how to
help your baby learn to sit on her own is important. Your baby might start
sitting as early as 4 months old or as late as 9 months. Don't try to rush it.
According to pediatrician, Dr. Kurt Heyrman, you should make sure she has some
specific large motor skills such as she should be able to hold her neck up,
have some balance, and have trunk muscles.
Getting Ready to Sit
From birth, your baby will have
tummy time, where baby spends time playing on his belly which help strengthen
your baby's neck, stomach, and back muscles. In general, babies' muscles
strengthen from head to toe, so after his neck muscles gain strength, his upper
back and lower back are next. You'll know those muscles are getting stronger
when he begins lifting his head off the floor to look horizontally. To help
Baby gain these large motor skills, change his position often. For example,
shift him from his back to his tummy and from his crib to
the floor. Dr. Heyrman's caution: "Make sure he is getting tummy time only
when he is awake and when you are in the room to supervise him."
Tummy Time Troubles
At first, your baby might not like
being on her stomach. But it's very important for her to have this time. It's
how she'll gain those muscles needed for sitting and future milestones. You
might try to ease into it by placing her on your chest with her tummy down and
her face looking at you. Then you can try placing a C-shape pillow like a
Boppy, under her armpits, supporting her chest and allowing her head to be a
little farther from the ground.
Check Point
Once your baby can hold her head up
on her own (usually around three to four months), you can sit her in a
supportive chair like a Bumbo seat. Just be sure to always watch your baby
while in the Bumbo seat or something similar. You can also use pillows to support
your baby and help her sit up.
As Baby grows stronger, she will be
able to sit for a few seconds when you place her in a sitting position. At
first she'll be wobbly. She can hold her head up straight and balance a little
but usually for only a few shaky seconds. Although she will tumble or topple
often at this stage, she's learning. Practice makes perfect, so just be
patient. "By 6 months," Dr. Heyrman says, "most babies should be
able to sit for a second or two by themselves."
Building Balance
Babies need to learn balance before
being able to sit alone. Although having good trunk muscles helps this, it's
not all they need. Balance is neuromuscular, so before your baby will be able
to sit, she'll need some specific brainpower. To help her gain this, you can
place her in corners of chairs or couches so she can begin to feel what it's
like to sit up. If you want to work together, sit on the floor with your legs
crossed and let her sit between your calf and hamstring where she'll be safely
supported.
The Tripod Sit
When a baby is learning to sit up,
it's common to put out one or both arms to help stabilize the torso,
essentially turning arms into a kickstand to hold up his body weight. This is
the tripod sit. Until your baby has developed that strong core, he'll need a
little help balancing when he's trying to sit alone. Be sure to keep Baby on
something soft for these early weeks of sitting to help soften the fall when he
tips. At around 4 months, Baby is also becoming more aware of what's going on
around him. He might be distracted while sitting up and lose his balance. Make
sure he is supervised or away from the edge of a chair or couch he could fall
off of.
Products that Help
Strong neck, upper back, and lower
back muscles are all needed to sit up alone. Along with propping him up with
the support of pillows or leaning him against something soft, use child-size
seats so Baby gets practice sitting up. ExerSaucer, Boppy pillows, Bumbo seats,
and Jonny Jumps -- are a good way to encourage muscle growth.
What You Can Do
Put your baby on her back so you can
slowly pull her up by her hands to a sitting position. Dr. Heyrman suggests the
best way to learn: enticement. Baby loves looking at herself in mirrors
already. Try placing one just a little too high for her to see into; this will
encourage her to sit up. Another muscle-strengthening idea: Hold your baby
under the arms so she can put her feet on the floor. Baby can't stand alone
yet, but holding her in that position helps gain more core strength.
Be Prepared
Once your baby can sit alone, you'll
need to make some adjustments to her room. By 6 months, her arms are very
strong and she will be grabbing for everything. Check the crib's surroundings
and put anything dangerous out of reach. For example, you'll want to
remove mobiles so Baby doesn't get caught up in
the mobile while pulling on them. Also, lower the crib's mattress so she won't
be able to get out of the crib.
Cautions
Although your baby is strong enough
to hold his head up and is now sitting on his own, he is not ready to face
forward in the car. There is still a high risk of rapid deceleration injuries
in the car, so keep him in a rear-facing carseat.
Up Next, Crawling!
After your baby has the ability to
sit up, he will continue to gain strength in his lower body. He will gain
enough strength to rotate his hips at the same time or shortly after he learns
to sit. Not too long after sitting, Baby will be able to crawl
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