Any advice from parents of pre-mature babies?

Question

My son, who is now 1, is 8 weeks pre-mature. He is just finally for the 1st time sitting up from a laying position. He still doesn't pull himself up to stand. I am curious how well other premies are doing.

Answer 1

Did your son ever have occupational therapy? If not he might need it. My son was 11 weeks early and his therapist showed us different exercises to do with him to help his development. Even being born early your son should have been sitting up before now. My son was sitting up at 10 months (birth-age, not corrected age)

Answer 2

My daughter was born 6 weeks early and is now 4. She was behing developmentally for about the first four or five months, and has always been small for her age. She has been developing fine since the age of four or five months and has finally hit the 50th percentile for size. She's finally an average sized kid.

My recommendation would be to take your son to the pediatrician and voice your concerns. I was also told that once your child hits a year old that they're normally considered to be "on-track".

Also, try to remember that there are HUGE developmental ranges for specific tasks. I would be willing to bet that your son is well within that range.

Good luck!

Answer 3

I have had three preemie babies! For the most part they do things a bit later than full termers,however after the first year they usually catch up. My children crawled at nine months and walked fourteen months.However you should check with your doctor to be on the safe side.Some preemies do need a little more support.I find that preemie babies do grow big and healthy.Mine are just as smart as ever(honor roll students).Im sure many other parents of preemies will tell you the same about their children.I wouldnt worry too much

Answer 4

My son was 6 weeks premature and the first year I went through a lot with him , i.e. pneumonia, bronchitis, allergic reaction to antibiotic. But now he is 21 and 6'2" and a strapping young man. That being said, it sems like at 1 year your son should be walking. Have you talked to your pediatrican? Most school districts do intervention for free when your child is three years old if he is delayed. They will do OT (Occupational Therapy) to get his skills up to par. The other thing to know is you may need to have him repeat a grade or have him start school later. Boys who are preemies have a lot of delays in school because they are developmentally young for their age. Stay on top of it.

Answer 5

Hello. My daughter was born at 25 weeks. She was 15 weeks early. You should be correcting your son's age for the first 2 years for milestones, and so should your pediatrician. Is your son being followed by Early Intervention services? If not, look them up in your local phone book or contact the social worker from the NICU, who can give you the number as well.

Did your son suffer from an Intraventricular Hemorrhage? If so, is he being followed by a Neurologist? I'm not trying to scare you, please don't think that. But if you are seeing major delays, your son could need therapies to help him reach his milestones. For walking and crawling, pulling to stand, and cruising (all gross motor skills) you'll want to request a Physical Therapy Evaluation. For fine motor tasks, like stacking blocks, clapping, banging two objects together, pincer grasp; you'll need and Occupational Therapy Eval.

My daughter did not sit until 4 days after her first (actual) b-day. She didn't walk until 30 months. At 27 months old she was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy. Again, I'm not trying to scare you, but wanted to pass along this information so your son could get the services he needs. Please feel free to ask me any other questions if you have them. I wish you luck!

Answer 6

I am an aunt of a pre-mature baby she was 3 months early she is now 5 years old she dose every thing like a normal child should do

Answer 7

my son was a month early, he was 4 pds, now he is going in 6th grade, he is in the top 5 of his class, and all that worrying I did about him being behind was for nothing. Give your baby time, he will catch up.

Answer 8

It is probably just how your son is developing. Some kids need time and some kids just boom. Don't panic too much about it as every kid develops in their own time. If your really worried give plunket or your gp a call or take him in for a check up just to give you assurance.

Answer 9

my premie is now 11y , the only hinderance in her life has been her parents , who arent ready to let her live to her full potential....you can teach them stuff , and if you cant, try learning some stuff.

Answer 10

Do you have a service coordinator?