W position is one of the most popular and common position of sitting among children. When playing, watching TV or reading they are positioned like that.
When child is sitting in other position it develops its own control and rotation of the body and the separation of the both sides. These two functions are essential for having hand dominance and improved motor skills.
In opposite, W sitting should be avoided and is not recommended to anyone. Parents have to pay more attention how they kid is positioned. This position leads to many other problems.
This position is favored among kids because they are motoricaly active during games and they care only about their toys. They do not pay attention on their balance.? In W position they are totally concentrated on the game, they are in front of the toy but are unable to make trunk rotations and to shift their weight. The shifts and rotations are important for improving the body balance and necessary for proper development.
Who should not w-sit?
All children should avoid it. It can lead to orthopedic problems and other disorders, such as pain in the back, hip dislocation, dysplasia and can interrupt the growth of muscles and bones on proper way.
If child start to tighten muscles, this position will stop him. It stops all the physical movements and will interrupt all tries for rotation.
It does not have only temporary effects, but it also leads to other more serious problems on long term. For example it can delay the normal development of the body as well as the neurological development, it leads to hypertonia and spasticity and can harm the bones.
W sitting is also bad because provide moving only in front. Kid is not able to make rotations to take things from his environment. He cannot use his hands and only take what is in front of him. Even if he wants, ne cannot move in that position.
Avoid W position as much as you can. Every time when quite long sitting appear, take your kid in a walk, or change the position. Encourage you kid to be more physical active and to sit in normal position. Even Q-position is more allowed than W. It gives direct movements of the body in a shape of plane-forward and backward, it provides rotations and weight shifting so the kid will improve the ability to maintain balance, to learn the left and right side and how to use his hands.
How to prevent W-sitting
First of all take care for not making habit of this sitting. Be in permanent contact with your child, watch his movements and avoid any situation when this position is included. Do not let him to learn it. Change the position of the body of your child regularly and force him to change it alone. Try alternative and new positions, and avoid long sitting. If the kid noticed and found this position, change it with other, show him some other movement to forget on it.
When playing, hold his feet and knees together when creeping on knees and hands. On that way he will not be able to make W position and will sit on feet, back or to one side.
Encourage him to sit on side and to lay when is exhausted instead of continuing playing in W position. Include more movements, trunk rotations in the daily games and also do some easy exercises for moving the body and using his weight.
If the kid is not able or cannot sit in other position than W, consult therapist and also try your kid to spend more time sit on a chair.
