My sweet little love is getting a
DOC Band.
Back story....
Elena was born with Torticollis. I probably noticed it when she was only a month old but if you look at pics of her -even in the hospital-her preference to look right and tilt left was clear even then. I didn't know what Torticollis was at the time but I Googled something along the lines of "my baby doesn't look left" and was able to diagnose her right off the bat. It is basically wry neck from the way she was positioned in my belly. Imagine looking over your right shoulder while simultaneously cocking your head so that your left ear touches your left shoulder. That was baby girl's sweet spot.
We started going to physical therapy in August when she was 2 1/2 months old and have been going weekly ever since. Ms. Eleanor is amazing and Elena has made such incredible progress. They have the sweetest little relationship and I am such a proud Mama as I sit and stare in awe at my girl and how far she's come. I pretty much cry every week. I don't really know why. It's more of a my-heart-is-so-full-of-love-it-could-burst sort of cry. Like I am just so overwhelmed when I watch her from the sidelines, interacting with someone else. Usually I am in the moments with her, loving her up. So to observe her from afar, well, it just totally fills me up.
Anyway, I knew that the helmet was a possibility, as Torticollis can cause Plagiocephaly, which is when the head begins to develop a flat spot from the constant pressure on the skull. Plagio also has become more prevalent since the launch of the
Back to Sleep Campaign. Knowing this, Paul and I were fairly vigilant about repositioning her whenever she was sleeping, in the car seat, in her swing etc. We tried to do tummy time as much as she would tolerate, which, in the early months was not very often. She hated it and would face plant into her activity mat and scream. Now I can't keep her on her back if I wanted to and tummy time=all the time.
(stupid effing blogger just deleted the end of this post...grrr)
Soooo, where was I ...Her flat spot seemed to get better so I wasn't really thinking a helmet was in her future. Her PT and Pediatrician didn't seem too concerned at first either. It wasn't until she was 6 months that I really started noticing the asymmetry in her face. So, at her 6 month well visit, I brought to the doctor's attention the bulges I noticed above her ears and the slope in her forehead. I also noticed her head was coming up to a point sort of on one side. He met my concerns by telling me that her head wasn't perfect but it wasn't as severe as some cases he'd seen. Deciding to listen to our gut, Paul and I agreed to get an evaluation.
We went for the evaluation the following week. The entire situation was overwhelming but the people at Cranial Technologies couldn't have been nicer. Considering there are only 13 locations for the DOC Band, we felt truly blessed that one was so close to us. We met with an OT, had some
pictures mugshots taken of Elena and ultimately left with the recommendation for treatment. She has a moderate case of
Brachycephaly. If we don't treat with the helmet her head will continue to grow the way it is growing and could lead to jaw issues and difficulty with glasses due to the squamoid bulges she has developed over her ears. Her facial asymmetry also has the potential to get worse. As someone who has my own facial asymmetry due to Bell's Palsy, I live with it every.single.day and would not want to subject my child to a lifetime of living with it. If it can be corrected in 3 months with the band at an age when she will never remember, it's a no-brainer. Done and done.
Can we discuss for a moment how well-behaved and cooperative our girl was? I mean, seriously...this girl knows how to step it up during times of stress. If she could talk she'd surely have assuaged our fears and told us, "Mom, Dad....Chill. I got this." Any tears shed were mine. And really only a few of guilt over not listening to my gut sooner.
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| Wanted: Baby girl. Chubby cheeks. Chubbier thighs. Rosebud lips. Button nose. Comb over. |
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You can see in the pic her left shoulder hikes up. That is a result of the Torticollis. We still need to gently remind her shoulder that it shouldn't creep up to meet her ear. That will continue to improve with PT and the stretches we do at home.
We went back for a follow up visit to have the digital images of Elena's noggin taken so that they could custom make her band. Again, she was such a trooper and just let the girls position her as they needed to in order to get the right photos. To get the most accurate images they needed to put a stocking over her head. Between the mugshots and the stocking, my child officially looks like a career criminal.
So, there you have it. We're on our way to becoming a DOC Band family. Lainey will get fitted on the 21st so stay tuned for pics!
