Tips For Helping Your Baby Side Sit When They Hate It!

“I saw your post about side sitting, but my baby HATES it when I put them in that position. What do I do?”

Answer: Okay, so here’s the thing with side sitting – because it is a transitional position (meaning one that a child will move in/out of during play or as moving through sit to crawling/sit to belly), it’s not necessarily something we want to PUT our kids in and make them stay! In this scenario, your best bet is to set the environment up for success (sick of hearing me say that yet?? 

This is a scenario where placing items on the sides of them encourages trunk rotation and subsequent transition from sitting to another position that we want. With toys placed on the side, you will naturally see that trunk rotation (the catalyst for the transition), AND if needed, you can gently guide them towards the toy on the side to get the rotation piece (if they’re struggling). 

With toy placement on the sides of them & trunk rotation building on itself, you should start to see that side sit becoming more fluid, and eventually leading into the transition. 

Once it’s a nailed down and comfortable transitional position, you may even see them start to play in that position for long periods, which takes a lot of core and hip strength and is AWESOME! 

Hope that helps – and remember, when all else fails, try being hands-off and making it more about environment set up than anything else! 

WANT MORE?

For developmental questions, tips and guidance related to milestones about tummy time, rolling & sitting, crawling and walking, check out KC’s developmental Masterclasses linked here.

KC is a pediatric doctor of physical therapy, wife and mom of two (soon to be three)! She has spent her career working with children and young adults of all ability levels, and currently specializes in birth to three years.