The ninth month of the newborn

Ninth month of the newborn

I nine months of life are the era in which it is already possible to get a clear idea of ​​how the child is developing under the psychomotor profile, which includes intellectual progress combined with the ability to perform and coordinate movements to achieve specific goals (grasping, move around, find out where a sound comes from, and so on).

In this article

• Steps towards the first steps
• What to do if she doesn't crawl
• First shoes, yes or no
• The walker
• What can happen
• To do
• What not to do

Steps towards the first steps

By this age he may already have reached a number of skills, first of all sitting with your back straight, moving your torso forward if necessary to take a toy placed at a certain distance. In some cases it is already possible that Tomcats (or smears) and in others it may already be able to use the spoon on its own with very few accidents along the way. From this moment on it becomes, if possible, even more important to allow him to carry out all the movements of which he is gradually more and more master - grabbing, moving, lifting, turning - without, however, exerting pressure or expecting him to reach goals for which he is not ready yet. In fact, for every single child there is a "right moment" that must be able to arrive without external forcing which, moreover, would prove to be more harmful than useful.

Il milestone of the first steps is considered the most important along the path that leads toautonomy. And if on the one hand it is understandable that we tend to consider it the most striking proof of a harmonic psychophysical development, on the other it is more than fair to also be pleased with the previous progress, first of all the control of the head, which constitute the best premise.

To make sure that everything is going well with it psychomotor development comparisons must therefore be made not between the child and his peers (as is often done) but between the child and what he is able to accomplish day after day, continually surpassing himself. Here are the main stages that lead to walking: what matters is that gradually the child, while skipping some of them, reaches the next goal up to the first steps.

• Around the five months must demonstrate good head control. That is, he must keep it straight and not dangling when held in his arms, in an upright or sitting position. He must also rotate it to identify the origin of a sound or a voice and fold it down to observe objects placed on the ground or that have fallen from his hand. At the end of six months, he has to sit for a few seconds without support.

• A nine months completed must maintain the sitting position for various times, without staggering or accidentally slipping too many times. While sitting he must grab the toys, throw them on the ground, concentrate on them for at least a minute. He must appreciate the songs, show fun when playing hide and seek with him, get angry when he wants something that is not given to him. It is between 9 and 10 months that he can begin to crawl, that is to move on all fours, or to move forward by moving on the bottom or even crawling one leg on the ground. However, the crawl stage is not compulsory and children who crawl may not walk before those who skip this stage (in this regard, see also the paragraph below "Se non gattona"). Exceptionally at 10 months he can begin to take his first steps without support.

  
  
  

• A 11 months psychomotor progress becomes very conspicuous and mainly concerns walking and, more precisely, the phases that immediately precede it. Almost all children are able to stand up even starting from the lying position, sometimes simply by propping their hands on the floor, others still by clinging to the bars of the cot or the net of the playpen. After having tried and tried to stand up until this step is done with ease, the child can begin to take the first steps by leaning against the wall, furniture, sofas or holding hands. From now on he could start walking alone, without support and without asking for help from his parents, at any moment.

• Most children hit the milestone between 12 and 13 months, but delays with respect to the average should not worry because walking more or less early is not an indication of more or less low intelligence. It should be borne in mind that there are prudent children, who prefer to start walking when they feel very sure of their balance and the ability to manage the inevitable falls: in general it is the tendency to do things well or nothing to delay the moment. Only in the event that he has not yet walked at 16 months, an event that is always associated with problems that are diagnosed long before the year, it is advisable to consult the pediatrician.

The goals of the ninth month

The newborn should ...

Extend your arms towards the people you want to get caught by, even leaning your torso forward.

The newborn could ...

Exceptionally it could respond adequately to a whole series of commands (Catch the ball! Clap your hands!) And perform the imitation of the animals' cry.

What to do if she doesn't crawl

Crawling, crawling, advancing in support on the buttocks is the first way in which the human cub begins to move in the environment. Usually the child begins to do it two to three months before the birthday, but there are children who do not go through this stage, even if they start walking at 12 months, which is the average time of the first steps.

However, this can be favored activities in a playful way, thus combining useful (making him do some active movement) with pleasure (having fun through a physical exercise that is equivalent to a game). To do this, you can place him on the ground on a four-legged carpet, and then sit on the ground in front of him at a short distance.

At this point you have to spread your arms and call him over and over by name, saying "come!" with an affectionate tone, without imperious accents. In the event that he demonstrates that he wants to collaborate by starting to move forward, you have to praise him with conviction over and over again, and then hug him, if he ever manages to make the entire journey. Always for "train it"you can often extend your hands to him, to invite him to stand up while holding on.

In no case should you insist, if you do not like these initiatives or, worse, you start to cry. Any forcing is counterproductive, always in the light of the aforementioned "right individual moment", which must be awaited with patience and trust, to the benefit of the psychophysical well-being of the child.

12 PHOTOS

How a baby grows month by month in the first year of life

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From the first smiles to when he manages to hold his head alone, from when he begins to take an interest in food at the first steps. In the first year of a child's life, every little progress is a ...

First shoes, yes or no

The clothing industry dedicated to early childhood has for several years been offering infinite types of shoes intended for the first months of life or, in any case, for the period preceding the first steps on the ground. In reality shoes are not necessary until the child learns to walk so the choice to make them wear them is only aesthetic.

At home it is advisable to leave it with the free feet, covered in soft socks, when the outside temperature suggests otherwise naked. The right shoes for walking, to put on starting from the first steps, must only serve to protect the foot from the trauma that it could receive by hitting stones and sharp objects.

They must have the flexible sole, to allow the foot to make a large movement and, consequently, to strengthen and should have a mild support function of the ankle, the only part of the foot that may need to be supported. At home, if the floor is covered with wood or carpet, the child can remain barefoot even when walking.

The walker

The walker does not enjoy the approval of specialists, even if in fact most children appreciate the freedom to move around the house it provides. In fact and unlike what is generally believed, it does not favor the possibility of walking earlier but, on the contrary, it can be an obstacle to correct psychomotor development.

The first accusation leveled against him is that he is an impediment in relation to the ability to "fall well", which when the child learns to walk is very important in order not to get hurt. Furthermore, it can prevent the child from acquiring the perception of his own motor limits. Finally, it has been noted that the child accustomed to the walker tends to walk on tiptoes more often, to the disadvantage of the ability to maintain balance in an upright position.

Read also: The baby walker: yes or no?

What can happen

At nine months we may have to face some rather common ailments such as the first allergies and febrile convulsions. 

Allergy to mites

L'allergy to dust mites, almost invisible insects that nestle precisely where there is dirt, can manifest themselves with more or less severe symptoms ranging from simple sneezing with mucus coming out of the nose, to tearing and redness of the eyes, to dermatitis with itching up to more fearful asthma attacks. The latter are characterized by an important breathing difficulty due to the sudden narrowing of the bronchi.

• What to do: First of all, it is necessary to have confirmation, preferably through specific tests, that it is precisely an allergy to mites. Then, as far as possible, the child must be prevented from coming into contact with the mites. At home all the precautions must therefore be taken to limit the presence of dust, which represents their ideal habitat. Here are the main ones: cover mattresses and bed pillows with special covers that prevent the passage of the mite; eliminate heavy curtains and hairy carpets; pass a damp rag on the floor and furniture every day in order to remove the poor without lifting it; do not use the broom but only the vacuum cleaner; do not give the baby plush toys. If possible, it is also advisable to place a small device for the purification of the environment in the child's room, which serves to capture the "floating" dust in the air. The house should be aired every day, even in winter, unless there is fog outside.

Febrile convulsions

Destined to cause much fear in parents, febrile convulsions are a consequence of the sudden onset of high fever. They affect about 5 per cent of children aged between six months and four years of age and are favored by family. The symptoms are unmistakable: the child is suddenly shaken by jerking tremors, then faints, sometimes uttering very slight moans. In some cases he can roll his eyes backwards, without this being a sign of greater seriousness of the episode. The seizure typically lasts 1-2 minutes in all.

• What to do: During the crisis, the child should be kept lying on the bed and turned on its side. As soon as the crisis resolves, paracetamol must first be given to bring down the fever. After that it is advisable to go to the emergency room. After a first seizure episode, parents are advised to keep a soothing preparation based on benzodiazepines in suppository at home, to be used in the event of a subsequent crisis. The suppository should be put on from the first appearance of the convulsion. The episodes can recur even two to three times in the first years of life, but they generally disappear definitively by the age of 5.

To do

From the ninth month onwards, every evening it is necessary to make sure that the strips of bumper fabric, used to cover the bars of the bed, are well stretched and do not have any depressions. The risk to be eliminated is what the child learns at any moment prop up against any improvised steps accidentally created by the fabric and then try to throw yourself out of the bed.

If the little one is particularly lively and there is a real danger that he will still be able to somehow to climb along the sides of the bed, and then throw yourself on the floor, it may be appropriate to replace the normal bed with a "camping" model, chosen from those with very high sides compared to the bottom, therefore impossible to climb.

What not to do

Il box, possibly adopted up to this moment, should no longer be used from 9-10 months as it is an obstacle to the possibility of learning to move in the environment, propping up on the bottom or proceeding on all fours. From 9-10 months the ideal place to keep the baby when he is awake is a soft fabric carpet, or in any case with very short pile and easy to wash in the washing machine.

If there is parquet there is no need for anything. The box can instead be used (if there is enough space) as a container for toys. It is possible, although not too often, that the child asks himself to come back for a few minutes, as he is attracted by the toys: in this case he must be satisfied, but removed immediately after the first signal of protest.

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• newborn ninth month
• newborn 9 month
• child's agenda
• first steps
• to crawl
• baby shoes
• walker
• allergy to mites
• fever