You may have guessed by now, but we've got another walker on our hands. William took his first solo step about 3 weeks ago and now he walks. Like, he can actually walk...with many steps in a row. It was a fast progression. Stokes took a long time to build up his walking skills and I feel like William just decided to walk and started walking! He is not quite an expert walker yet, but he can get across the room without falling or needing any help. William's gait is very slow and cautious. He doesn't have the best balance yet, so he takes his time between each step.
You know I always have a story, so here's the story for this one. Ryan's physical therapist, Ashley, asks about his brothers when she's here for Ryan's appointment. She would always ask about whether William was walking yet, and my response was always, "Not yet...I think he's holding out on us. I know he's capable, but he's just not interested yet." A few weeks back, Ashley was asking about William again and I gave my typical response and added that he had taken A step (not multiple steps) but none since then. Then she asked me to remind her how old they were. I told her they were 18 months and I could tell she was thinking something was up. Apparently, kids should be walking by the time they're 15 months, and that's on the later end of the spectrum. Hello! William was 15 months adjusted and 18 months actual, so I, of course, was feeling a little concerned. We don't even really consider adjusted age as much anymore since they're supposed to be caught up by the time they're two (so if you're thinking about adjusted age, you could maybe only give them a month or a month and a half at this point). It's almost like everything is excused because my boys were preemies. I appreciated the grace when they were newborns, but now I don't want to miss addressing issues because they're "allowed" to be behind. I'm not even sure that makes sense, and when it comes to school, I will probably want to wait until as long as possible to get them in their classes, but I did not realize that William had missed the walking boat by 3 months past when you should start being concerned.
While she was here, Ashley took a look at his feet and ankles and saw some pronation. His toes turn out and his foot is not in line with his calf and ankle. You can actually see his toes curling and his ankles rolling inwards. This could cause issues down the line with how his body adjusts to the incorrect alignment. In addition, it makes it harder for him to walk, which would explain the delay. Ashley's suggestion was to get him a physical therapy evaluation so she could take a better look at him and see what needs to be done. Getting an eval involves working with our Early Interventionist and getting an RX from the pediatrician. We will possibly get him some SMO orthotics (ankle braces), like we're getting for Ryan, to properly align his foot and make sure the right areas get stronger. She said he probably wouldn't need many sessions, but it's a good idea to get him help in case he might need it versus taking our chances and realizing down the road that we should have corrected this much earlier.
The interesting thing is that we are going down the road to get him set up with a PT eval and considering the AFOs and in the meantime he started walking. It is almost like he heard us talking and realized that we were serious and decided to show us! So although he is actually walking now, we're moving forward with the eval and possibly the AFO to make sure everything is good. Getting PT can only help, not hurt, so I should take advantage of all these opportunities now while I can!
And kudos to William, our 2nd walker, who still actually prefers to crawl 85% of the time. ;)
Video of William playing with my emotions. This was the night after he took his first step. He enjoyed teasing me about whether he was going to walk or not!
Recent video of William walking. Way to go, William!
You know I always have a story, so here's the story for this one. Ryan's physical therapist, Ashley, asks about his brothers when she's here for Ryan's appointment. She would always ask about whether William was walking yet, and my response was always, "Not yet...I think he's holding out on us. I know he's capable, but he's just not interested yet." A few weeks back, Ashley was asking about William again and I gave my typical response and added that he had taken A step (not multiple steps) but none since then. Then she asked me to remind her how old they were. I told her they were 18 months and I could tell she was thinking something was up. Apparently, kids should be walking by the time they're 15 months, and that's on the later end of the spectrum. Hello! William was 15 months adjusted and 18 months actual, so I, of course, was feeling a little concerned. We don't even really consider adjusted age as much anymore since they're supposed to be caught up by the time they're two (so if you're thinking about adjusted age, you could maybe only give them a month or a month and a half at this point). It's almost like everything is excused because my boys were preemies. I appreciated the grace when they were newborns, but now I don't want to miss addressing issues because they're "allowed" to be behind. I'm not even sure that makes sense, and when it comes to school, I will probably want to wait until as long as possible to get them in their classes, but I did not realize that William had missed the walking boat by 3 months past when you should start being concerned.
While she was here, Ashley took a look at his feet and ankles and saw some pronation. His toes turn out and his foot is not in line with his calf and ankle. You can actually see his toes curling and his ankles rolling inwards. This could cause issues down the line with how his body adjusts to the incorrect alignment. In addition, it makes it harder for him to walk, which would explain the delay. Ashley's suggestion was to get him a physical therapy evaluation so she could take a better look at him and see what needs to be done. Getting an eval involves working with our Early Interventionist and getting an RX from the pediatrician. We will possibly get him some SMO orthotics (ankle braces), like we're getting for Ryan, to properly align his foot and make sure the right areas get stronger. She said he probably wouldn't need many sessions, but it's a good idea to get him help in case he might need it versus taking our chances and realizing down the road that we should have corrected this much earlier.
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| See that big toe curling to try to gain some traction? |
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And kudos to William, our 2nd walker, who still actually prefers to crawl 85% of the time. ;)
Video of William playing with my emotions. This was the night after he took his first step. He enjoyed teasing me about whether he was going to walk or not!
Recent video of William walking. Way to go, William!
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