Tori Roloff is getting candid about her son Jackson’s dwarfism and the impact it has on his daily life. Participating in an Instagram Q&A with fans on International Dwarfism Awareness Day, the Little People, Big World star, who is currently pregnant with her second child, revealed if her son’s condition has resulted in any “developmental delays” for the 2-year-old.
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“Does dwarfism include any developmental delays? Speech wise? Or is Jackson just a quiet kid?” one fan asked the soon-to-be mom of two in the comments section of an Instagram post inviting questions.
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“Dwarfism does not come with developmental delays,” Roloff replied. “There are always exceptions. J has hit all milestones of an average height babe. Speech can sometimes be effected [sic] because of the jaw structure but in Jackson’s case, he is just very observant and a little bit of a perfectionist and can get embarrassed if he doesn’t say something right. I would say that’s what keeps him on the quieter side. Except at home. At home, he talks all day long haha.”
Roloff also answered a similar question regarding if her son’s condition impacted the time with which he began to walk.
“Every kid walks at different stages and it’s hard to say when a dwarf child should start walking,” she wrote. “J started walking around the same time most kids start walking. Zach didn’t walk until he was two. I know an LP that started walking at 9 months. You never know when kids will walk.”
With her life playing out on the small screen on the TLC reality series, Roloff has used her platform to spread awareness and open up discussions surrounding dwarfism. Speaking with fans in October of 2018, the reality star revealed that she is “definitely not” worried about her son and that she was more worried about the every-day problems that any parent with a young child faces, such as bumps and bruises.
In an emotional May 2019-dated post, she again opened up about her son’s condition in following a trip to the local festival, during which her son didn’t meet the height requirements for certain rides that other children his age were able to enjoy.
“I often forget that my son is any different than yours… I forget that he’s different because he’s so capable and I see nothing other than my mister mister,” she wrote in part. “Today pointed out that he is different and that’s never going to change. He watched as kids (many younger than him) rode rides at a festival here in town and he wasn’t able to join… It was harder for me than it was for him for sure. It was really the first time I was hit in the face with the fact my child is different.”
Roloff is currently expecting her second child, a daughter, with her husband. Although recent reports suggested that the little girl will have the same type fo dwarfism as Jackson, Roloff wrote in her Oct. 25 post that “all you need to know about baby girl right now is she is a healthy girlsie!!”