The act of starting to walk in children is usually seen around the age of one, related to the child's neurological development. Some children start walking at the 9th month, while others may start walking around 14-15 months. Starting to walk may be delayed even without any underlying disease. If the child has a delay in walking while other developmental stages are normal, it should be waited until 18 months. If the child is still not walking, then a child neurologist's opinion should be sought. In fact, it is necessary to evaluate children's development as a whole. The months of holding the head upright, starting to sit without support, crawling and starting to talk are of great importance in terms of evaluating the child's neurological development. If the child was able to sit without support by the 8th month and started saying words such as mama, grandpa, daddy when he was 9 months old, we consider the child's neurological development to be normal. In these children, walking can be waited until 18 months, but if the child is one year old and still cannot sit without support, cannot say a word or walk, it is necessary to consult a child neurologist without waiting for 18 months. It is necessary to investigate for an underlying neurological disease.
HOW CAN FAMILIES SUPPORT CHILDREN DURING THE WALKING PERIOD?
First of all, the baby should be encouraged to walk and opportunities should be created for him to walk by holding his hand. The object he is holding on to should be strengthened and he should not be prevented from standing up by holding on. When someone resists walking, they should not be angry or forced. You should not sit for too long during the day, and you should practice walking at home and outside. In order to strengthen the foot and leg muscles, they should be allowed to walk around the house with bare feet or non-slip socks. You should not wear tight, heavy shoes that are not suitable for foot health. When he attempts to walk, his attention should be attracted by offering him a toy and he should be able to reach the toy. His clothes should not be tight enough to prevent him from walking.
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