Help Your Munchkin Walk!
Let’s talk today all about helping baby walk!
With new walkers, there are all sorts of things we try… two of the most common ways a parent helps their new walker is by holding their hand and catching them when they fall. While both of these are OK, (afterall, one of our main jobs as parents is to keep our baby safe) it is important to make sure you’re helping your munchkin in ways that are developmentally appropriate.
Let’s start with holding baby's hand. As they learn to walk, babies will often reach out for something to hold onto. Sometimes it’s a nearby wall or piece of furniture, other times it might be mom or dad’s hand. We often find ourselves holding both hands and helping baby walk in front of us, as in the picture below.
However, you want to avoid holding your munchkin's hands above his head while helping him walk. Instead, try holding your munchkin's hands below his shoulders.
Why does this make a difference? By holding your munchkin’s hands below his shoulders you are teaching him to be more responsible for his balance and to not hang on your arms while walking. It also encourages better posture of the rib cage by recruiting the abdominal muscles which are crucial for stability in walking. This simple change can help your munchkin to achieve independent walking with better posture and muscle use!
Next up, falling. With a new walker, falling is inevitable. Mistakes are how we learn after all. Next time your munchkin tries walking, do your best to avoid catching him, or overall preventing him from falling when he is trying to stand and walk.
Instead, try allowing your munchkin to fall safely.
It may seem counter-intuitive, but allowing your munchkin to fall will actually lead to less falls in the future. We want babies to continuously improve on their balance and one of the best ways to improve is to experience "failure."
A few tips on how to allow falling safely:
Set up the environment: Set up an environment with soft squishy pillows to the side, or have your munchkin first practice walking in a room with carpet rather than hard floors. Take your munchkin outside to walk in grass rather than concrete. Setting up the environment will help you feel more comfortable allowing your munchkin to fall independently.
Help your munchkin fall: When you are close to your munchkin and she is about to fall, try to help your munchkin fall by slowly lowering her to the floor. Try to hold your munchkin's waist and allow for her hands to be free as her hands will break her fall.
Of course there are perfectly appropriate times for you to intervene and prevent a fall from happening to avoid injury. Safety always comes first!
Do you have questions about helping your baby walk? Contact Dr. Hope here!
