Gross Motor Delays

That sounds a little over the top to me. But, if you have the time and the PT is not too expensive, it could be a fun thing to do together.

My daughter had Early intervention because her left side wasn't as strong as her right, long story on the diagnosis. We loved the therapists, they were so good with her and with scared crazy mommy me. Even the people who come out to handle the tons of paperwork are great and are very clear about everything.
please call right way and get everything set up. it should move quickly, but the sooner the better. It would be a good idea to ask about a medical card to pay for anything in the future, but for right now most everything should be free.
My guess, is that even if he has a delay now, within 6 months of work with a therapist adn just his own natural development, He'll be fine and totally caught up.
Here's the thing though, by getting him the help he needs now, you'll have the best resources, it will be free, they will come to your house or where ever, and you'll have the peace of mind that you have done everything you can to help your little guy succeed.
More people than you know use these services and in most cases it all works out great and after a bit he'll be all caught up and you can forget about this whole phase.
If it comes down to them suggesting an MRI and you'd like to talk, please private message me and i'll tell you our experience.

I would definately get him into early intervention. It works. My daughter is now 8. She was put into EI when she was 20 months old. She was diagnosed with fine & gross motor skills delay along with a speech delay. She was also diagnosed with low muscle tone. She was able to get all of her therapy in our home until she was 3 & she was then put into a preschool until she turned 5. By the time she started kindergarten, there was no more speech delay.

I give the credit to those EI therapists when my daughter first started for her walking, climbing, & going up steps. If it was not for them teaching her how to, she would not be walking, etc. Her jumpling has taken many years to be able to come off of the ground.

A neurologist is a good idea to find out if there is anything else going on. In my daughter's case, her brain (the white matter) was abnormal. She has a disease called PVL. She was also diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy a few months ago (we had doctors who would not come out to tell us it was CP, just it could be. We had to go get a second opinion at Cleveland Clinic).

My best advice is EI works. It does take sometime. If you want to read more on my daughter, I have a website about all we have been through with her. Please send me a message for the link.

While I did not experience this personally, one of my best friends did. Only for her son it was the opposite. He developed physically fine but his speech and verbal skills were delayed. Another friend had similar problems to you little guy. Both of their sons received the appropriate therapy (speech or physical). They are both doing fine now. Please try not to worry at this time. So far all you know is that your son is a little behind and that they are going to get him help in the form of therapy to catch him up.

For all we know, he is progressing just where he should be for him. But in our society, we like to make sure everyone can do certain things by a certain age. It helps keep them caught up later in school. Start the therapy and see the neurologist but don't worry unless they give you something to worry about. My son has been to the neurologist several times in his 4 year old life for something that may or may not indicate a problem. It turns out that so far it is just something that is normal for him.

I know it is easy to say don't worry and much much harder to actually follow the advice. But worrying won't help. So until you have something to actually worry about, concentrate on enjoying your son by playing with him and encouraging him to try some of the physical things that he is working on learning.

Hope this helps in some way. Best of luck to you and your little guy.

Hi R.,
We are going through a similar thing right now. Our daughter is 12 months and has been doing PT for about 2 months now. We have learned many tips from the physical therapist that we can incorporate throughout our regular day. It has really helped give our daughter a boost. We are starting to see doctors too, just incase her gross motor delay could be part of something else. It is scary, but we want to make sure we do everything we can for her. She is such a joy. Enjoy your little guy! And, feel free to contact me to chat.

Make the most of the (free!) early intervention help - my guys love our therapist and she is so skilled. She comes to the house once every two weeks, but they ask much more frequently if she's coming. It is wonderful to have suggestions of things to do with them and to know that they there catching up, right on track, or still need some more help. Most of all, don't let this diagnosis change his happy-go-lucky personality :)

Hi R.,
My son is now 20 months and he has been having therapy with Chester County Early Intervention for a few months. He was diagnosed with low muscle tone and wouldn't stand up, pull himself up or put weight on his legs. He also hated being on his stomach for any length of time. My son was also very laid back and was content to just sit and read books in one spot. He wasn't the type of kid that wanted to be across the room getting into other things. Now that he is mobile, he scoots on the hardwood floor and crawls on the rugs, he is definitely into everything and progressing really well. He has a weekly physical therapist and a bi-weekly social therapist. We are hoping that he will start walking in the next few weeks!

We were told to also see a pediatric neurologist but my pediatrician said that it takes forever to get an appointment and they will likely tell us to have him do physical therapy, which we were already doing. So we are going to revisit whether or not he needs the neuro. down the road. So far so good!

If you are in Chester County and need a physical therapist for your son's needs I would highly recommend Alina Gottschalk, she is with MARC, a subcontracting company out of the Norristown area. She is WONDERFUL!!!

Email me if you have any other questions.

Early intervention is key- you are doing the right thing!
If an appt. with a neurologist was recommended it won't hurt to have things looked into a little further.

Best of luck to you and your little guy!

My one son that is a twin has had deleloment deleys threw his life. The fact that you are getting the help and sercive early in his life is a good sign. My son was laid back and didn't really cry and had other things that delayed ceratin steps. Just keep working with him and encourge him and don;t let the last word be from the doctor. If something they say dosen;t seem right then go by your gut feeling.

Hi R.,

My son was also diagnosed with a gross motor delay when he was an infant. We went through Alliance for infants and toddlers. They came right to the house every week for an hour to work with him. It went great! He caught up in only 10months! He will be 3yrs old next month and doesn't look like he ever had any trouble at all! By the way, Alliance is state funded so it doesn't cost you anything. I hope this helps.

My son (born 5/25/07) also worked with an early intervention physical therapist. He was moving slowly - but was making progress. He crawled at a year old and now, at 18 months old, is just starting to walk. I declined physical therapy for him three months ago. He hated therapy, and with four kids and homeschooling, it was super stressful. There wasn't anything wrong, he just was so laid back that he was taking everything slower. I'm not convinced the therapy helped him - I just played with him on the floor a lot once we quit the pt and he still made progress. Go with your gut - early intervention is great, but your son will make progress on his own schedule!

Hi R., Every child grows and learns at their own pace, espicially when they are babies. Does your ped. Dr. think he needs to see a neurologist? If not, I would wait a bit. He may seem "delayed" because his personality is "laid back" and he just isn't in a big hurry. As an example, my youngest didn't say more than a handfull of words until she was three...we had her tested for speech a couple of times out of concern and she always tested "boarder line". She fooled us all. When she decided to talk she used complete sentences, multi-sylable words, and frankly we called her "marathon mouth" within a couple of weeks! It was as if she was saving up or just waiting til she could do it exactly right from the start! Kids can always surprise you! My advice is talk to your doctor, let your common sense (not fear) be your guide and give him a bit more time before putting him through painfull tests. Best wishes & Happy Holidays.

Make those appointments asap cause especially with neurologist can take few months. Also call and sign up for medical assistance which will help pay for the ot etc since most reg insurance covers only some if any. Son will be classified as handicap due to the delays don't worry about that and no income limits.

Just keep up with the therapy and when little older have them do speech as well.

good luck

Hi R.-
I know exactly how you feel...we were told our son had a 30% delay in gross motor skills...at over a year old he wasn't pulling himself up into a standing position, wasn't going from a laying position to a sitting position on his own, didn't crawl...things like that...
We had contacted Early Intervention and they evaluated and diagnosed him with the delay...they said he needed therapy so we scheduled the first session (not easy because of their schedule and mine)...two days before his first session, he started doing EVERYTHING! Poof - just like that! The day the therapist came, she looked at me with an expression that said "why am I here?"
He is fine now...he was a little slow to catch up but he is on track...
Try not to worry yourself too much...go ahead with the therapy (better safe than sorry)...and just know that he will probably surprise you!
Good luck!

Dear R.,
You've gotten a LOT of great advice. My son was not diagnosed until 26 months, and by then he has fine & gross motor delays, as well as speech delays. He still has some gross motor delay, & has PT for 1/2 hour every other week. He has speech once a week & OT once a week. The OT is for his fine motor skills. He REALLY struggles with cutting, writing, etc. Keep an eye on your son. A two month delay may not seem significant, but it's better to be aware & watching than to be caught off-guard later on. I'll be praying for you & your son. BTW, don't be afraid to ask questions of anyone who sees and/or treats your son. Also, ask them what you can be doing between visits to help him make progress. You will NOT regret it! God bless!