How far behind in development is too far behind for premie?

Heather - posted on 11/22/2009

My doctors told me that preemies are usually 2months behind non preemie babies. My son could do everything other babies could do till it came to learning to walk. He started at 14months which is still awesome, bc some of my friends kids didnt walk till that age or after and they werent preemies. Other than the walking he did everything at the right age or before.

Andrea - posted on 11/22/2009

My daughter is almost 7 months and her adjusted age is 6 months as of right now..

Emily - posted on 11/20/2009

when I left the SCN they gave me a book which contains guidelines for infant development. Here is a list of the your baby may be doing at 1 month corrected age: tonic neck position, on tummy may lift head for short periods, sensitive to bright light, sees objects 15-30cm, prefers patterns, human faces, bright colours, hands are fisted, grasps objects put into hand, throaty sounds, quiet alert state awake and comfortable, ready for short periods of play, stares at adult faces. My little guy was 8 weeks early and really didn't seem all that responsive at first. He slept ALOT! He also didn't cry for like 3 months, just kinda made snuffling grunting sounds when he was hungry. It's really easy to get concerned, but don't worry. My little guy is 16 months now (14 months c.a.) and he's walking and babbling and a very happy little guy. Try not to stress as I am sure he's doing fine!

Debra - posted on 11/18/2009

get an evaluation from early intervention. its free, and its in every state. my daughter was born at 29 weeks. she is doing great! but she fell behind in a few areas like sitting up, putting items into her mouth, and using the pincher grab. she works with an occupational therapist 1 a week and it is helping great! mary ellen also started to laugh later than other babies, and the tracking with her eyes took a lil bit of time also. what my daughters O.T. said was that alot of preemies may stray behind in one area, but then excel in another. i would say get her development checked myt early intervention. like lindsay said, they come by once a month and track her development. my daughter didnt even have to start with the O.T untill a month ago, and she is 11months old. and they have been involved with her since last february. good luck hun!

Heather - posted on 11/17/2009

My daughter was 6 weeks early and is now 2 months old. She doesn't seem to be doing much tracking or anything either. The thing is, every child develops differently. I was told that she may be a little behind on development because she was early. I wouldn't really worry about it unless he doesn't improve in the next couple months. If you're real concerned, you could always talk to your son's doctor.

Tina - posted on 11/17/2009

My daughter was 7 weeks 6 days early and the doctors continuosly warned me that she would probably be 2 months behind in her development. Even though she is smaller she is actually about 6 months advanced in her development. I am so proud of her everyday because she has such a curious little mind, wanting to do everything on her own and wanting to always learn something new.

Shea - posted on 11/17/2009

My daughter was born at 25 weeks 1 day. She didn't crawl until she was 12 months. She didn't walk until 22 months. Her gross motor was way off. But, she is now 14 yrs old and is a soccer all-star, swims, dances, plays softball, and is an honor student in the gifted and talented program. Don't stress and do not compare your baby to friend's kids that were full-term. It will drive you insane. He will do things at his own speed.

Allison - posted on 11/17/2009

Just remember that if you baby came out when he was due, then he would be on track. That is what all the doctors told me to do and it helped me calm down. My little girl is almost 2 now and she is develpoing a most babies her age. When she was younger she appeared to be behind, but she has caught up.

Jessica - posted on 11/17/2009

My daughter was a 24 weeker and now is 6 months(corrected age is 2months) and she is just now tring to left her head and some times she will track stuff if she feels like it but doesn't want to eat right so the best advice i can give you is just be patience and keep working with your little boy. Each child is different my oldest one was early on everything except walking. Each child has their on ways.

Jennifer - posted on 11/16/2009

have you had him screened my a developemental specialest? My son was born at 29 weeks. he didn't begin to roll over until 9 months old. He didn't begin to crawl until16 months and walk till 21 months. Every kid is diffrent, but it is okay to be causous. look up on line and see where and when they should hit the normal mile stones. then i would give your child at least 3 months longer. For the forst six months my son was like in a daze. He is fine now but still delayed. He only just began to talk and he is almost 4. As they get older the more they catch up but my son is still behind in many things like motor skills and speech. If you need the help they do have people that help them. thalk to your dr.they can tell you if he is really behind

Schmoopy - posted on 11/15/2009

It's so hard not to stress over every little milestone when you have a preemie. Try to let go a little. Be aware but not overly vigilant.



For my 29 weeker, I had her evaluated regularly - checking in with speech therapists and occupational therapists kept us on the right track. Have you looked into Early Intervention in your area? It's generally free - or pretty darn close - and every state has a program available to the community. Check here for your local program: http://www.nectac.org/contact/ptccoord.a...

Candace - posted on 11/14/2009

I wouldn't worry about it. My son sometimes seems to be behind but I don't claim that he is. He is one point with a lot of babies that are the same age as he is. Just be patient with him and try not to compare him to other babies. What you have to do is treat him like you would any other baby and talk to him and help him grow. He will be right where he needs to be, when he needs to. My son does all that yours is doing. He has not giggled yet, but he's trying to do things he can't like reach for me when he is not in my arms. They do it at their own pace and when they feel they want too, much like term babies

Sherri Lynn - posted on 11/14/2009

Preemies develop at their own pace, I really think all are different. It really depends on possible disabilities as well, You won't really know if your child is behind until school age. My son was on oxygen the first year and hospitalized with pnemonia allot.So every time he started to crawl or develop in some way, he would be hospitalized & that would hold him back with development again.He never did "catch up" (he's 24 now) He was in an infant development program, did 2 years of preschool and was held back in 4th grade.He still never caught up throughout school and had an I.E.P. his whole life with special education.He does have mild disabilities ! They don't tell you that in the ICU !!!

Lindsay - posted on 11/14/2009

Did he have his eyes checked in the NICU? Just curious. Also I wouldn't worry, some preemies fall a little behind with some aspects of their development...my daughter was 12 wks early (she's almost 2 now) and is caught up with her motor skills, even though she was way behind in that area for a looooong time. However now her speech is behind and she was always pretty good in that area. They change and develop at different paces. If you are really concerned, look into an early intervention program for your kiddo (in Ohio we have Help Me Grow-which is a program that comes to your house once a month and checks developmental milestones and can help to get help if your baby needs it-it's a free program). Also does your NICU have a follow-up program? We go back to the NICU every 6 months or so to be evaluated by the doc and dietician and different therapists...b/c of that we were able to get our daughter OT and PT and catch up her motor skill development. Good luck!!