Did you compare your baby's progress to others?

Discussion in 'Babies' started by littlewitch66, Apr 7, 2018.

  1. littlewitch66

    littlewitch66 Active Member

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    It's always exciting to see a new baby develop and reach its milestones but they all develop at different rates. I remember my son was born around the same time as a woman I was in hospital with who had twins and we became friends. When they were about 2 years she brought them to my house and I couldn't help noticing how well they spoke compared to my son. They were forming sentences while my son was only managing single words. Of course he eventually caught up and by the time he was 3 he could speak well.

    It's very tempting to compare your child with others whether it be walking, talking or toilet training, but eventually they all get there. Did you worry that your child was behind with some of his milestones?
     
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  2. Alexandoy

    Alexandoy Well-Known Member

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    I don't think it is a good idea to compare babies whether yours or others. Babies have different pacing of development and progress that a baby can be much ahead today but can be delayed tomorrow compared to another baby of the same age. Ang if your baby is behind, you will be sad for that reason.
     
  3. iamawriter

    iamawriter Active Member

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    This comparing game is universal in all fields and that includes kids' performance at different stage in their life. Having said that it matters little how early they start talking or walking as their success in life depends on the effort they put in
     
  4. nangk08

    nangk08 Active Member

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    Sometimes I did that. I had my niece to compare my son with, she talked early, walked early as compared to my son. But then after I spoke to the doctor, he told me that girls usually reach milestones earlier than boys and it is perfectly normal. So I stopped doing that although it was a bit hard.
     
  5. littlewitch66

    littlewitch66 Active Member

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    Looking back I can see that it really wasn't important but at the time I worried that he would have a speech problem. in fact it was my daughter who was a late talker but by the time she went to school she was speaking normally. It doesn't matter what age they reach their milestones and if they have their regular checks any problems will be picked up early.
     
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  6. JiLLian

    JiLLian New Member

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    I keep on comparing my baby's progress to other babies too because my baby is too small. She is 6.5kilograms at 7 months and I'm so worried about her. She is breastfed and she doesn't like to drink milk using the bottle while I'm at work that is why her growth is kinda slow. Though she's so alive, she keeps on jumping, laughing, and even shouting if she found something interesting. Everything seems to be normal except her size.
     
  7. kaka135

    kaka135 Active Member

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    I can understand when we compare the progress. Sometimes, it's not to really "compare", but just want to make sure our baby or kid is healthy and has developmental growth. I think it's good for us to regular check if they have reached certain milestone at certain age too.

    I didn't really compare my babies with others, I guess perhaps it's because they always reached the "suggested" development milestones even compared to the other kids, so I didn't have the worry, except they are all being said "under weight", but I am totally fine with that, as I think as long as they are healthy, they have enough movement in the day, and they seldom fall sick. Moreover, I always believe there are different timing for everyone, and they will always be there without rushing.
     
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  8. tallulah

    tallulah Active Member

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    Maybe you should chat to your health personnel the next time your baby has an appointment. There is a reason why babies are measured after every 3 months. There is an average weight a baby is expected to achieve at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months. If a baby is under this figure or over this range, doctors are usually concerned and want to know if the baby is not feeding well or if the baby is being overfed, whichever is the case.
     
  9. Miches

    Miches Active Member

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    It's typical for parents to compare their child's progress to other kids although we know that kids have varying paces of development. We also worry if our child is a bit behind the child development chart. I wasn't worried at all that my child walked and talked five months later than my nephew who was five months younger. My son learned to walk at 1.5 years while other kids I know only started walking at 2. And yes, they all get there eventually. At 2, my son did not look as chubby or as robust as the other kids but when he reached 4, he started growing fast and have become very active like the rest of them. As far as physical development is concerned, he was within the normal range of the chart.
     
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  10. Risa

    Risa Starlight Baby Employee Staff Member

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    It is a common scenario among moms to ask each other about their babies. This even happens when babies have their regular check up, even though moms have only seen each other there and have never been acquainted before. Maybe that' s how mothers are. I agree with @kaka135 that the reason isn't merely to compare our baby, rather we look after if his development is just right for his age. I also agree with the rest of the comments that babies develop at different unique rates. Even siblings don't have exactly the same pace of development. In my case, my eldest son and my daughter both walked before their first birthday, while my youngest did a month after his first birthday. However, we should also be aware of the normal range with regards to each developmental milestone so that we know when is it already time to get a bit worried and ask help from a pediatrician. Going back to my example, all my children are within the normal age when a baby is expected to walk as most experts say it was until 18 months of age.
     

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