Did Anyone Have a VERY LATE Walker?

I had a late walker-he didn't walk independently until 18 months. Although, by 15 months he was moving forward on his belly (army crawling). We did physical therapy, and some questions the physical therapist asked were: can she support her weight while you help her stand (if she can't, it could be a problem), can she get from sitting to her tummy or vice versa, how much tummy time has she had, what does she do when she's on her tummy?
I would definately follow through with the physical therapy evaluation-we did physical therapy for about 4 months, then he started walking and slowly caught up. He's 6 now, and you'd never know there was ever a problem. He plays soccer and baseball as well as all his friends.
Some of the things we did with him were: kneeling and playing at a low table, practicing lots of pulling up-he started by sitting on a low bench and pulling up on our train table, rolling on his tummy on a big yoga ball, and forcing him to spend time on his tummy (he hated it!).
It sounds like, other than gross motor, all her development is on target. I wouldn't worry too much, especially if the pediatrician isn't very concerned. Work with the physical therapist and I bet she'll be up and running within a few months.

My kids both used a "Johnny Jump Up". It hangs from a doorway and they can freely bounce and move. They loved it and I think it made their legs stronger.

L. B

My son didn't walk until about 15 months. I think it was because he was so tall so he had so much body to pick up and coordinate! He was 23 1/2 inches long at birth and always off the charts in height. He's now 14 and 6'3" and supposed to be 6'9". He also was late with holding his head up, sitting and crawling because, again, he had so much body to deal with :) Not sure if this is your daughter's problem, but just wanted you to feel better to know I had a late walker who is fine now. That's good that you're getting it checked out though. Hopefully it's nothing and she's just a late bloomer like so many are.

My daughter walked at 16 - almost 17 months. She is 3.5 years old now and couldn't be more normal, no lasting issues with walking "late"! We just laugh about the fact that she wasn't going to walk until she was sure she was good at it - which is is still how she does everything.

My son was over 15 months when he walked and he ONLY army crawled and rolled prior to and was delayed in doing those things as well. I worried a little bit BUT he also had a big sister that he had wrapped around his little finger so there was no need for him to get anywhere or get anything on his own. Maybe in your case it is just a doting mommy and daddy as you describe! :) Try to encourage her to get towards something herself and stay back a bit and let her try before you cave and get it for her. I bet your evaluation will go fine and that they will have some ideas to try to get her moving. We didn't end up needing to go that route...my son walked on his own...for a potato chip! :) Good Luck - don't' worry too much mama...she will get there and once she gets it figured out you will surely be chasing her everywhere!

I have twin boys that are 17 months old. One of them did not start walking until he was probably 15-16 months old. We had the doctor and a pediatric physical therapist look at him and both said he would be fine. He has what the physical therapist calls low tone muscles, which means his muscles are more relaxed than his brother. The PT suggested getting him some good shoes (we bought Stride Rite) with good arch support and standing him up so he could lean on something (like the couch) and then putting a toy or something he wanted a few feet away. It worked well and we started putting things farther and farther away. Now he's walking all over the place and we feel SO much better. Like you, we were getting concerned because his brother had been walking since he was a year old. Do you participate in the Parents as Teachers program? If so, they can refer you to a physical therapist to have your daughter checked out (usually at no charge). Keep working with your daughter. She'll get there!!!

15 months old is not late for walking, it is actually still considered within the normal range. Not crawling at 15 months may be another story. Does she have any mobility? How old was she when she started sitting up? There was another poster that asked some of these same questions. All good, with good ideas. I'm not sure where you are getting the PT from, and definately do it, but just so you (and everyone else reading this) know, there is a national (government funded) program that provides therapy services for FREE! No matter where you live it is covered. This includes speech, physical, occupational therapies and more! The difficult thing is that the program is often headed by independent agencies, so they can be hard to find and many doctors don't even know about them. There is a number to call, I don't have it, but could find it if any needs it (send me a message), that has a listing of all of the agencies by location. Oh, and this is for a newborn up to age 3, after 3 years of age the school district takes over. Many people still seek private therapy which is great, but just wanted to let everyone know that money is not a reason to not get any services if concerned. The agency will set up an appointment to discuss concerns, then will evaluate the child to see if they qualify (have a delay) and will start services based on that. The nice thing is that they look at more than just one area (speech, fine and gross motor, cognitive). They also consider you a branch of the therapy so teach you things to do to help them.
So, keep your appointment, and in the mean time, get her on her hands and knees or even just kneeling at the couch, or tummy time, and try to make her work for some things. If you want to send me a message with a little more detail about her skills, I could give you some better activities. (I'm an occupational therapist who has worked with infants and toddlers in these areas.)