Variations of Crawling before sitting is the most important stage which infants should not skip.
Let’s discuss ,
Why should we not carry babies upward or in sitting position?
It is not okay to make babies sit with our support –
Firstly, they are not physically and physiologically ready.Extension/ expansion of the vertebral axis ( spinal column with skull and rib cage) is very important before sitting.
Secondly, they skip very important vital stages which are natural physical and Physiological orders before mastering the skill of sitting on their own.
Thirdly, elongation of vertebral column or movement of central axis and latticing of torso with movement of muscular architecture is essential before sitting, standing and walking as we are biped.
Sitting babies up prematurely prevents them from sliding, scooting, or doing much of anything else. When an infant is placed in this position before they are able to attain it independently, they usually cannot get out of it without falling, which does not encourage a sense of security or physical confidence.
The babies I’ve observed playing this way look as if they’re pinned to the floor with chest dropped, immobile from the waist down. While other infants are moving freely , rolling from back to tummy and beginning to pivot, scoot or belly slide and crawl.
But the seated babies can only bend at the trunk to reach objects of interest. If a toy rolls out of reach, the seated babies must depend on an adult to get it back. Of course, infants are brilliantly adaptive but some distortion remains which is unnoticeable in a normal child. I’ve seen babies routinely placed in this position learn to swivel around in a circle and eventually mobilize themselves by scooting on their bottoms.
Babies like to continue doing what they know. The habits we create for them can easily become their “needs”. When we sit babies up, they usually begin to expect and want that. Conversely, if you don’t sit a baby up, they won’t desire the position. If parents want to backtrack and try to break the sitting habit, there will probably be an adjustment period and some complaints from the baby, who has to be encouraged in small doses to get comfortable on their back. This is a position from which their motor development can progress naturally.
We should not hold Baby in a sitting position with support.
Even though you decide that they can hold their neck to prevent them from having any sudden movements.
Their neck is the most delicate and vulnerable area in the vertebral column. It is a bridge between the head and the torso.
Therefore, we should not pressure babies to do things they are not ready to do.
Why in today’s lifestyle we are in a hurry to make them grow fast without understanding the importance of natural developmental order which is imbied in their ancient memory to unwind with Righting reflex governed by physical laws. The natural order of the unwinding process is essential for their future physical , physiological and psychological state of health.
( Anatomical distortion at the level of atoms leads to slow down or brings in distortion of physiological function of organ systems which further leads to permanent pathological changes in the tissues which we can see in children).
Every baby develops according to their own timeline, and we should not pressure babies to do things they are not ready to do.
Please don’t force your baby to sit until they do it by themselves.We should not break this physical order, sequence of physical laws at very early stage.Remember that babies are born with many intelligent powers which imbibed in their ancient brain.
Baby should have some specific large motor skills before attempting this milestone of sitting—like the ability to hold their head and chest upward, lifting the front side of the body towards head, pushing back side downward for extension of vertebral column and maintaining some balance of forces acting on our body.
In general, babies’ muscles elongate / extend from head to toes and strengthen to become physically stable for locomotion in stages like rolling, sliding forward in belly and classical Crawling, sitting on legs and tripod poses then to stand , squatting pose , walking. So better not to obstruct them and ignore them as they are normal and healthy children.
We have seen, when the baby begins lifting their head off the floor to look horizontally.
The learning process will play a major role in the whole later life of the human being. Through this kind of development, the infant learns the ability to do something independently, through patient and persistent effort.
While learning during motor development to turn on his belly, to roll, begins lifting their head off the floor to look horizontally,to creep,sliding in their belly/stomach, crawl then sit, crawling, stand, and walk,
They are not only learning those movements, but also *how to learn*. They learn to do something on their own, to be interested, to try out, to experiment.They learn to overcome difficulties. They come to know the joy and satisfaction that is derived from their sequence of efforts – failure and success, the result of their patience and persistence.
Babies must learn to balance four forces within before sitting alone. Although having strong spine and trunk muscles are essential which get developed in sliding forward on belly,to roll, lifting their head off the floor to look horizontally,to creep,sliding in their belly/stomach, crawling stages l then sit, crawling, stand, and walk,
Please don’t force your baby to sit until they do it by themselves.
Remember that babies are born with many intelligent powers.
Baby should have some specific large motor skills before attempting this milestone—like the ability to hold their head and chest up, lifting the front side of the body, pushing back side downward with extension of vertebral column and maintaining some balance of gravity versus anti gravitational force .
When a baby is learning to sit up, they’ll often put out one or both arms to help stabilize the torso, essentially turning the arms into a kickstand to hold up their body upright.
This is called the tripod sitting position, known as Baddhakonasan where the base is wider and more stable. Remember that our baby is still developing balance while sitting, and they can also become distracted by their surroundings, so supervision is key!
They’ll develop more control once they begin to sit.
After your kiddo gets better at sitting up, they’ll begin to pivot into different positions and learn to rock forward and backwards on rockers ( sitting bone) to get on their hands and knees. This rocking movement is very essential to adjust our center of gravity for any posture or in any form and variations of movements for our biped and vertical structure.
Natural order of unwinding stages are vital and most pivotal to unwind and conquer before sitting,
We have seen infants move backward at first rocking back and forth on their hands and knees, they spend weeks—or months—before they actually crawl. This is their longest period of unwinding process. In this period while making efforts to move backward, they sit on their hips pushing their back muscles towards hips/ pulling back muscles from hips and lift their head – chest muscles upward with arms and make efforts to sit.
So in sitting position keeping the vertebral column erect and to bring stability with equilibrium of forces is the most crucial part to conquer. The role of extensor Musculature which is weak by nature and to remove the dominance of flexor musculature step by step is an important factor in human species.
When do babies usually sit up unaided?
The right age to sit up would be around 8 to 9/10 months, which may vary as per babies.
If a baby cannot do this by the time they are about 1 year old, it does not necessarily mean they have a developmental issue or another health issue.
Giving infants their own space and period of time even if they have developmental delays, the freedom to move in accordance with their innate impulses may seem radical, but it is essential to their becoming persons with uncompromised self esteem.
Skipping motor milestones definitely brings anatomical distortion in spaces within body cavities.
Though children look normal, in today’s lifestyle, I am observing so called normal children having so many signs and symptoms of ill- health that we suppress them by giving physical mimicry in the name of fitness and chemical mimicry with medication and name of healthy food.
When parents write or talk to me concerned about their infants not reaching milestones like rolling or sliding on their belly on their own. It usually turns out that they’ve been restricting movement in devices like infant seats, jumpers and saucers, or sitting the baby up.
Babies can’t be expected to develop motor skills without the time and freedom to do so. If they are stuck sitting, infants sometimes even skip the other important milestones (rolling because of so called tummy time , scooting, sliding and crawling).
I believe in giving our baby a safe space in which to play and letting them move freely and develop on their own without assisting them . Refrain from propping them up to sit or helping them roll over on tummy.They have an innate desire to move through these developmental sequences and have inborn knowledge of how to do it in a way that is “right” for them. They do this at their own pace and they get pleasure from doing this.
Sitting babies up is a major roadblock to independent play. Since premature sitting is a dependent, static position, babies aren’t inclined to enjoy staying this way for very long (and this is assuming they don’t fall over).
Natural posture or form where sequential order and specific direction in flow of muscular architecture from foot to head and right and left side is essential to upright lifting and to adjust center of gravity at center for conquering ideal standing and walking skill.
Consider how hard it is for most adults to sit on the floor with their pelvis fully under them. More people are realizing how hard this is as sitting meditation becomes more “en vogue”, just as yoga made people realize how short and hard their muscles are. But, if we give a kid the chance to find their own way of sitting it means they have properly engineered their bodies in the best way possible “for them” through their own discovery and movement, and of course learning how to form curves in their spine and hips, and how to bring flexibility in their joints. When given the chance to do it on their own, it is a gradual organic process and the “form” follows the functionality.”
There are many other postures that occur between the biggies like rolling, scooting and sitting. Some are variations unique to the particular child, and if we believe in the wisdom of the body (as I do), they each have a valuable developmental purpose.
I remind parents to take pictures and vedios, because most of these are charming and short-lived.
What’s the rush?
Loving parents, eager to help, may hinder their baby’s growth by aiding them to move in ways unnatural for them.
I encourage you to sit back and simply observe your baby as they move through each stage of physical development which is essential for the physiological function of organ systems which further affects their psychology.
In this way you will also be able to relax and enjoy your baby, and they will be supported by your attentiveness and interest.
Babies build self-confidence when they are trusted, accepted and appreciated for what they can and choose to do. They’ll achieve it all in due time.
“Time and time again I have asked many people , ” How old were you when you learned to sit?
So far, nobody could remember. What is the benefit of early sitting? Why are so many people hooked on concepts such as “sooner is better”? Since our life span is getting longer – why not slow down? Why are concepts such as readiness and motivation?
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