Crawling Strangely & Cerebral Palsy

A normally delveoping baby has more control over her body movements.

Spontaneous exercise associated with a normally developing baby is not present in babies with cerebral palsy. A normally developing baby can move his arms and legs continually. He can roll, crawl, sit and stand. A baby with cerebral palsy has limited movement and usually is content to be relatively inactive.

Spastic

Babies with cerebral palsy crawl strangely because they do not have the same control over their muscles as normal babies. The muscles can become "spastic." This means that part of the body becomes very rigid or still. The position of the head often can be the trigger for the body to move into abnormal positions. Movements become slow and awkward when the child is having a spastic attack. Increased excitement, frustration or sadness can make movements even more exaggerated.

Athetosis

Athetosis, or uncontrolled movements, can cause problems when crawling. The child's extremities or facial muscles have uncontrolled movement. The movement can be slow, wiggly or quick. Uncontrolled movements can cause the baby to fall while crawling. The movements also can prevent a baby from being able to crawl at all.

Ataxia

"Ataxia" is the name given to poor balance in a child with cerebral palsy. Poor balance leads to difficulty or inability to sit, crawl or stand. Ataxia can directly affect the way a baby is crawling. The inability to stay balanced on the hands and knees at the same time will cause a very awkward crawl.

Building Sensations

It is important to keep a baby's joints and muscles strong. The exercises normal babies receive in their development will not be seen in babies with cerebral palsy. The parent will need to help the cerebral palsy baby attain the exercise needed to for physical development.

One of the basic exercises parents can do with their babies is called baby roughhousing. It helps stimulate different parts of the body to react and move. Baby roughhousing consists of playing with them calmly and moving the different parts of their body, giving them external stimulus. This is done through stimulating the tactile and vestibular systems. Simply put, the baby will learn how different parts of his body responds to different stimuli. This type of exercise helps to develop those skills necessary to crawl and then walk.

Encourage Exercise

Fine motor skills develop the portion of the brain that helps the baby control her body movements. Allowing her to complete a simply puzzle encourages hand-eye coordination. Dump the puzzle pieces on the floor. Allow the baby to pick up the puzzle pieces. Help her manipulate the puzzle frame so she can put the puzzle pieces into the openings correctly.

Encouraging a baby to crawl can be done by simply placing a toy just outside of his reach. Allow him to scoot on the floor to get to the toy. Move the toy a little father away the next time.

Later in development, if the child is crawling but is doing it slowly, don't get discouraged. Continue to provide experiences where she has to exercise. Repeating the toy exercise daily will help the child increase her strength and stamina.

Physical Fitness Class

Enrolling a cerebral palsy baby or young child in a gym or exercise class specializing in the disease can benefit the child and parent greatly. The trained exercise therapist will work with the child and provide suggestions to the parents on what exercises will specifically help their child.

References

• The CPChild: Cerebral Palsy - A Mom's Perspective
• Cerebral Palsy

Resources

• Mama's Health: Children with Cerebral Palsy