Questions and Answers:

8. If my child’s base of support is too wide, what may happen?

A wide base of support may block movement in one direction and encourage it in another which may be to your child’s disadvantage. For example, if your child has low muscle tone and/or lax hip ligaments, he or she may experience increased flexibility leading to a wide base in sitting. From that position, it may be difficult to shift his or her weight to one side or the other in an attempt to rotate his or her trunk and pelvis and lower onto the floor. The legs in a widened position may block the movement by not allowing the necessary weight shift to initiate it. The most available option is then to move through the middle and lower onto the floor by simply folding over at the middle. This option does not assist in developing more mature patterns requiring rotational movements which promote increased balance and strength necessary to care out those patterns. This same blocking effect can be observed when “froggy legs” make it difficult to shift and rotate out of stomach lying to side or back lying, or when pulling to stand becomes difficult with the wide spaced knees blocking the weight shift to initiate the movement.