“She used to wave every time Dad left. I cannot remember the last time she did.” A thought like that can make a whole day feel wobbly. You do not need to decide by yourself whether it is a developmental problem.
If your baby seems to have lost a skill they previously used, contact your health visitor or GP and describe the change. Write down what you saw before and what you see now. Do not wait for the next scheduled development review or for an app to explain it. The CDC advises families to act early when a child loses a skill, and the NHS says you can contact a health visitor or GP whenever you have a developmental concern.
First, describe the change without trying to diagnose it
One missed wave when your baby is tired is an observation, not proof of a lost skill. Equally, a skill that has truly gone away should not be dismissed as “just a phase”. You do not have to settle that distinction before asking for help.
Make a short note with four facts:
- The skill: “She waved bye-bye on her own,” rather than “She was advanced.”
- What you had seen: how often and in what ordinary setting it happened.
- The change: when you last clearly saw it and what happens now.
- Other changes: any change in movement, interaction, hearing, feeding or how well your baby seems.
For example: “At the end of September, Maya waved when her grandad left on several visits. We have not seen her wave in the last ten days, even in that familiar situation. She is otherwise feeding and playing as usual.” This is an example of a useful description, not a ten-day waiting rule. If you are concerned today, get in touch today.
If you already have a short video of the earlier skill, you can bring it. There is no need to spend days trying to film a new “test”. Your account of what changed matters.
Ask for a review, not an internet verdict
You could say to the health visitor or GP:
> “My baby used to do this skill and seems to have stopped. I last saw it around [date]. Could we review their development and whether they need an assessment?”
The CDC suggests sharing your concern and asking about developmental screening. In the UK, your health visitor or GP can advise what assessment or referral is appropriate. If your baby was born early, mention their birth date and due date; the NHS uses the original due date when considering premature babies' developmental age up to age two. That context helps the conversation, but it does not cancel a concern about a skill you already saw.
Our milestones-without-comparison guide is about noticing development without turning it into a race. This question is different: it is about a change from your own child's earlier ability, not whether they met somebody else's timetable. The not-waving-yet guide covers a skill that has not appeared; it should not be used to explain one that disappeared.
When to seek urgent help instead
Developmental concern and a suddenly unwell baby are not the same situation. If your baby is difficult to wake, has a seizure, struggles to breathe, or you think they are seriously unwell, follow the NHS urgent-help guidance for under-fives: call 999 or go to A&E in an emergency. In the UK, call NHS 111 if you need urgent advice about symptoms and do not know what to do. Elsewhere, use local urgent or emergency services. Do not wait to collect milestone notes first.
Keep the first, and note the change
In OBubba, Grow → Milestones lets you record a skill you saw, with its first date or “not sure yet”. That can help you recall the earlier observation when speaking with a professional. Do not unmark a genuinely achieved skill just to make the record reflect today's concern; the earlier date is useful history. Write the new concern separately and tell your health visitor or GP directly. The app cannot decide whether a skill has been lost or assess why.
If you need help gathering a concise history for the conversation, our appointment-summary guide can help. Explore OBubba if a calm record would be useful for your family—but make the clinical call first.
This is general information, not a diagnosis. You know the change you noticed; a clinician can help work out what it means.
Ready to try OBubba?
Use OBubba to track feeds, sleep, naps, nappies, growth, milestones and family handovers in one calm baby tracker app.