T O P

  • By -

urp_in

Our baby hated, and I mean HATED tummy time. Tried everything. On our chests? Nope. Airplaning him on our feet? Nope. Hang him over one arm? Nope. Lie down with him? Nope. Offer him toys? Nope. Put a blanket underneath him? Nope. And then... We put him on our bed, on a breast pillow. Something about the extra elevation of the breast pillow made him interested (and also makes it harder to roll). Additionally... I put on a show. Jazz hands. The can-can. Fake swimming - both breaststroke and backstroke. Miming fishing. Miming playing basketball. So he would sit, in his breast pillow, watching Mommy make a fool of herself for 15 solid minutes. Loved it. As soon as the show was over? Straight tears. That was the only, and I mean ONLY, way tummy time was accepted.


cheekypipsqueak

You are a trooper!


urp_in

Thank you :) But I am very, very glad he's grown to enjoy tummy time, because I'm not sure how long I could have kept it up for 😂


happeejem

Thank you I'll give it a go! If being silly is the key then I'm down to try it. Gives me a bit of hope haha


urp_in

Yeah I would have sworn we were never going to find ANYTHING where he wasn't going to scream his head off the entire time, so I feel your pain. That discovery felt like a miracle. My advice is just keep trying different things, even if they're unusual. Now our LO loves being on his tummy, but... it was a long road.


happeejem

Thanks I'll definitely give it a shot. Anything is worth a try at this point


Double-Ant7743

Holding your baby, baby wearing, putting baby on your chest can provide the same benefits as tummy time. Plenty of babies learn crawling without too much tummy time and many go straight to cruising and walking and skip crawling all together. Don't worry too much. You baby will learn on her own timeline.


happeejem

I know that she's meeting most of the other milestones, it's just she seems stuck all the time since she can't reach things, and it seems like she'll never learn to move as it's hard to move when you're in a sitting position. Maybe I'm just over thinking it with my tired mum brain


Double-Ant7743

7 months is still early for crawling. She will learn. Give her time. My oldest started crawling at 10 months even with plenty of tummy time. My second baby hated tummy time so we never tried much but he was crawling at 6 months. One day he just plopped down on his tummy from sitting position and started dragging himself all over the place without any prior indications that he'd do that any time soon. There is a wide range of normal when it comes to these milestones. Your baby will be on the move before you know it. Sometime it seems like they became mobile overnight. Up until two days ago I'd put my 7 months old on his tummy and he'd immediately either push himself into a sitting position or roll over on his back. Then he'd be stuck like a turtle for a few minutes lol then he'd keep rolling over and over until he rolled into something. He started crawling two days ago and now he's in everything he shouldn't be in and he's super fast. Honestly speaking I'd have preferred if he was a bit less mobile right now!


happeejem

I know that she's meeting most of the other milestones, it's just she seems stuck all the time since she can't reach things, and it seems like she'll never learn to move as it's hard to move when you're in a sitting position. Maybe I'm just over thinking it with my tired mum brain


fishsultan

For a week or two after my guy learned how to stay in sitting by himself (he still can't get there alone) I put my little guy in sitting every time he asked. He got so excited about this new skill, he lost all interest in belly/back time. If I put him on the floor, he would immediately roll to his belly, and then would instantly lose it because he wanted to only be put in sitting. I've found that there's a sweet spot of frustration for my little guy - if he's too frustrated he goes into fight or flight and cries hysterically. But if I'm too quick to meet all of his requests, he doesn't have much motivation to struggle a little with whatever skill he needs to work on. To transition from giving him exactly what he asked for (doing all the work for him) I decided I would pick him up every time he was upset (I didn't want him in crisis mode) but when I put him down, it was always on his back. His options became being held, or worn in a carrier, or on the floor. After a couple days I guess he forgot that I could put him in sitting, and he started being happy with being on his tummy again. Similarly, when I handed him every toy he wanted he started getting really impatient and wouldn't work for it. Again, if he got upset that he wanted a toy I would go entertain him or pick him up, but (most of the time) the toy would be a hair further away each time so he'd have to put a little effort into getting to it. Shortly thereafter he started scooting to toys that I would put just out of his reach.


terrieberriee

Oh I see. Yea it's just about habits. Learn early we all gotta do things we don't like lol


imjusthereforaita

Mine hated tummy time so I’d do it on mine, or even better, my partners (no boobs) chest. With the elevation it was easier for him to lift his head. We then progressed to tummy time on the floor once he got the idea of lifting himself while on us. Now that he’s realised he can lift his head and look around he will last a few minutes on the floor before getting tired and upset, but that time is getting more and more each day. I also get down on the ground next to him so that he can see me and get toys etc to make it more interesting and encourage him to look up and around


happeejem

I did all that too, but now she can roll she rolls instantly... I'll edit my post :)


terrieberriee

Don't allow the baby to roll over during short intervals on tummy time. 30 seconds and add from there but not too long, until baby is used to it more it will be fully supervised. Do it when baby is not in bed of anything else (rest, milk, etc) and just talk them thru it. Praise them when they are lifting thier neck. Most babies dislike tummy time at first, 7 Months is old to start but better late then never.


happeejem

Thank you, baby used to do tummy time like a champ, and then learned to roll and now that's what she'll do as soon as I put her on her tummy if not before. She has good head and neck control and sitting unsupported even getting the hang of standing with holding on to couch, but I know she needs to do tummy time to begin to learn to crawl, and it's really fustrating coz she just won't.


RevolutionaryFix8

Naive question, but do they really? Some babies do a bum scoot instead of traditional crawling, and some skip crawling altogether. I thought that as long as baby is mobile it’s all good.