How to Care for a Child with Physical Developmental Delay

Physical developmental delay is when your child is not doing activities that children his/ her age are doing. Some of these activities include rolling over, sitting, crawling (not all children crawl), standing and walking.

This can show in the way a child behaves with others, converses, moves, contemplates, and learns. If, over time, your child does not show signs of movement, social or language skills, that is the alarm right there that something is not okay. Early detection can largely make the difference.

If you are worried about your child and you are not sure what could be the problem, talk to your family nurse or pediatrician. They are better placed to tell if your child has physical developmental delay.

Causes of physical developmental delay:

Hereditary condition

Hereditary condition such as Down syndrome are one cause of physical developmental delay. Down syndrome is a hereditary disorder where there is a presence of all or part of a third copy of chromosome 21, meaning a child is born with an extra chromosome.

Complications during or after birth

Complications such as premature birth or introduction to toxic substances such as alcohol can also be a contributing factor. Premature birth is when a child is born before 37 weeks of pregnancy.

Trauma to the Brain

This can happen because of injury to the brain during or soon after birth due to birth complications. This can cause cerebral palsy, which is a disability where the brain cannot regulate body and muscle movement properly.

Low Birth Weight

With prematurity comes the risk of low birth weight that results in underdeveloped organs in the infant. This may lead to complications such as infections, underdeveloped lungs, anemia and digestive and gastrointestinal immaturity.

Lack of Oxygen at Birth

This occurs when an infant lacks blood and oxygen supply to the brain, which causes some brain cells to die in minutes.

How to care for a child with physical developmental delay

The realization that something is not okay with your child can be disheartening. I remember it was April 2021 when my son’s pediatrician, Prof. W. M. Nyandiko, diagnosed my child with physical developmental delay. He advised me to see a physiotherapist and take my son for an MRI. It broke my heart and a lot of questions lingered on my mind, wondering what could be wrong with my son.

The earlier they detect it, the better as early intervention makes all the difference. Occupational therapy or any other form of therapy, depending on the type of delay, is very helpful and largely makes the difference. Children with physical developmental delay take longer to learn a skill and might learn it differently. These are some ways to care for them:

1. Regular visits with your child’s pediatrician

Take your child for regular checkups with his pediatrician and make it a habit. His pediatrician is better placed to tell you how your child is developing, if at all, and when to carry out more tests.

2. Therapy

The pediatrician/ family nurse may recommend different therapy techniques depending on the delay.

• Occupational therapy helps children with fine motor skills delay, sensory processing and do-it-yourself issues.

• Physical therapy helps children with gross motor skills delay.

• Behavioural therapy is helpful for children with socially appropriate issues.

• Speech and language therapy assist children in developing language and speech sounds. It also helps in areas of understanding.

3. Set a routine for your child

Children with physical developmental delay know when and how to expect an activity. If we disrupt their routine, we can frustrate them and make them act out. It is very important to set a routine for your child, for example, when to nap, play, eat, exercise (usually recommended by the therapist) and so on. Include an image or symbol where possible for children who can’t read.

4. Play and read with your child

Play is very crucial to your child’s development. Find time in your busy schedule to play and read with your child. This is how they learn some life skills and the world around them. Play introduces problem-solving skills, creativity, social-emotional skills, independence and fine and gross motor skills.

Bottom line

Raising a child with physical developmental delay can be a daunting task, but take heart you are not alone. Take it one day at a time; take a break when you dim fit.

Join a support group with the other parents and interact with them. This is very supportive as you can share your wins and challenges and learn from them.

Try to be strong and encourage yourself that it is well.