My 6 Month Old Daughter Hates Tummy Time - Please Help!

My daughter didn't like it when I put her on her mat on the floor, but she is okay now that we do tummy time in her crib. I lower the rail and kneel on the floor so my head is right at her level while she does tummy time there.

my eldest son HATED tummy time. So much so that he would cry and cry.lol Well, he did tummy time for about 1 day. He then proceeded to walk (by hanging on to things). He didn't crawl at all.He didn't find the need. He was walking unassisted by 9 months. Go figure. So, don't worry.

Keep trying. My daughter hated it too, every time I put her on her belly she would cry and roll over onto her back.
What she would tolerate was if I laid down on my back and put her face down on my chest. That is really the only way she liked doing tummy time.
I wouldn't worry about delays though...my daughter did very little tummy time and she was walking at 9 months.

My daughter absolutely hated tummy time, too. I found a tummy time mat by Boppy. It comes with a mini Boppy and a play mat. My daughter loved it and we got her to stay on her tummy a lot longer. The mini Boppy is great because it elevates the baby just slightly off the ground and you can put toys in fromt of her. You can find this item at Babies R Us.

Hi C.,
Yep. Some babies hate it. Mine did. Just find really fun things for them to play with only at tummy time - a mirror, toys that light up or make music. Get down and lay with her. If she can last 2 minutes, great. Then, do 3 minutes the next time. Work up. She won't always hate it and just because she hates it now doesn't mean she won't crawl.

My 2nd son hardly crawled at all. he scooted around on his butt. He crawled for about a week and then started walking. Kids reach their milestones at different times, so don't worry.

Keep working on tummy time and do a little at a time, and soon you will see that she will start to really enjoy it.
B. :-)

Keep it up. As I learned when my older son was in occupational therapy, tummy time doesn't just help them to crawl, it develops their vestibular systems (balance, etc.) which will help them with their coordination for the rest of their lives. Babies should spend less time propped up and more time on the floor and on their tummies.

Have you bought any of the tummy-time products, like those mats that have water and toys inside of them, or the activity quilts? That might help. And just sitting unsupported a lot is good.

Keep trying. The best solution is to start them on their tummies very young. It's important for their physical development to crawl and being able to tolerate being on their stomachs is part of that. Perhaps you could try having her lay on top of you or propped up on your legs while you are sitting on the floor? It always helped my sons if I talked with them or gave them a favorite/interesting toy. Does she have good head control or does she struggle with that? Sometimes the neck muscles are so underdeveloped that it's very hard for them to be on their tummies. If that's the case then just a little bit at a time (starting at a minute or so) might help. A lot of babies are not going to just be happy on their tummies if you leave them there so interaction is key. Believe me, it's worth the effort. Seeing them discover the world around them once they are mobile is really cool (and a lot of work!).

Some babies just hate it! Also, your baby doesn't need to crawl in order to walk. Some babies completely skip it. Don't get into the trap of comparing what your child does to every other child; babies develop at their own pace and you'll only drive yourself crazy!

Try the following - lay down at the floor at eye level and make goofy faces, use a mirror on the floor so she can look at herself, put toys in front of her that she likes, etc. You could also lay down on the floor/bed/recliner, and put your baby on her tummy on your chest (our baby wouldn't take tummy time on the floor, but would lay on our chest while we were in the recliner, reclined all the way back). Hug her, sing to her, make faces at her, etc.

Our baby didn't like tummy time until he could roll over on his own, which was about 3 1/2 months. He started crawling at the 'average' time and at 10 months is doing some walking and standing alone.

My first hated it - I never pushed it - did short spurts when she was up to it. She crawled and walked at "normal times" and is now of course a genius...Ha Ha! Don't worry too much about what they are or aren't doing unless you think it is really something developmentally serious - just go with the flow and it will really all happen!

Remember that the whole point of tummy time is to get them upper arm strength and to get them to flip over. Our doctor put it this way: You want the baby to get mad because when they get mad they start to push up and over. Let her be angry and stay there for a minute (time it), then 1.5, then 2... keep letting her stay on her belly longer each time and let her know that you know it's hard and that she's doing a great job. I know it's hard to listen to her cry, but know it's for her best and that she's going to be okay!

Good luck!

Connor was 7 months yesterday.

Connor HATED tummy time until he started rolling back and forth at about 6 months. Now he rolls all over the room to get where he is going. Now that he knows he can turn back over he spends a lot more time on his tummy. He also gets in the crawling position quite frequently and he "tries" to crawl toward things. I think he will crawl any day now.

Another thing I read is that once they can sit up then they "fall" to their hands an knees and start crawling from there. Connor does this sometimes too.

Just keep trying like the previous posters said and it will all come together!

My son hated tummy time also. I used the boppy pillow that someone else mentioned. Being propped up a little helped alot.