Luke? Nope.
What does he love?
His fingers.
I bought all kinds of pacifiers for him when he was born. Knowing and hoping that he would love them as much as his brother. I knew they reduced the risk of SIDS (or so I have read) and I also thought it had a little to do with why Nathan slept through the night quickly. Also, I would rather have my child addicted to something I could take away instead of the dreaded thumb. Cuz you can't cut their thumb off. Well you could. But. How Horrible. Ok moving on....
I offered Luke a paci when he was two weeks old (I waited due to bfing) and he considered it for a day or two and then started spitting that thing out, throwing those fingers in his mouth and giving me a look that was like "Mooomm...why are you giving me this plastic thing when I have these two wonderful fingers on this hand of mine that I can suck on anytime I want?"
So I was like "hmm. He's a finger sucker. I guess it's better than a thumb" Oh well.
It took us a little while to realize he didn't just suck his fingers. He sucked the fingers on his LEFT hand. Always left. ALWAYS.
Everyonce in a while, if his left hand is occupied holding a toy, he'll stick his right hand in his mouth and try out the different finger combinations. But he can't ever seem to find those middle two on the right hand and after a few seconds of trying you see him realize "Oh, wrong hand" and pop- in goes the left hand fingers into his mouth!
This started to create a problem that started off small and became a much bigger one.
A flat spot.
Since he was always turned slightly to the left for the fingers- he developed a flat spot on that side.
(at 4 months)
It kept getting worse and positioning didn't seem to help.
At his 4 month appt I mentioned it to the pediatrician and he said "oh, he's fine"
When Luke was 5 months we were beginning to notice that his left ear was slowly migrating closer to his face and starting to stick out more and we got more concerned.
At his 5 month appt I once again asked the pediatrician if Luke might need a helmet. He said "eh, they only do that in severe cases" and didn't even look at his head closer. The whole appt Luke was laying on his back- so the doctor didn't even look to see that his ears were misaligned or that the flat spot was getting worse.
Finally, with a friends suggestion who has been through this with her twins, Marcus and I decided we need to look into getting a helmet ourselves.
I knew if we didn't I would regret it every time I looked at that misshapen head of that little boy I love so much. Even when he grew up and was a man- I could easily see myself sighing and wishing we fixed his head when it was still pliable. Plus- what if he needed glasses? And his ear was misaligned? They would need to be specially made. And headsets? Those wouldn't work well.
So we did what my friend recommended. Contacted First Steps and set up an evaluation with a Physical Therapist and Developemental Specialist.
I learned a lot at the evaluation and I'll leave that for another post but they did recommend that we look into a helmet and referred us to a neurologist. (He also has some issues with his right side since he prefers his left so much)
Today I took Luke to his appt with the neurologist. Just me and my baby.
While we waited for the doctor in the exam room I took a few minutes to nurse Luke so he wouldn't be fussy when the doctor was in. I then took some time digging some wax out of his ear and picking dry skin off of him (what? am I the only one that picks at my baby like we're primates?)
Then we sat and played while we waited. I did different things that made him giggle. I used my hand to pretend I was attacking his face which he LOVED.
And then I realized something sad and I was shocked. Shocked at how little time I spend playing with this adorable baby of mine. The mom guilt thing? I'm pretty good about not having issues with that but it hit me pretty hard when I realized this.
How could I not spend a lot of time playing with him? Well- I work. And I have an older child. And most of the time I am with Luke I'm nursing him. At home after he's fed I sit him down so I can do laundry or clean or wipe my oldest child's behind or wash cloth diapers or make dinner or or or or. Of course I smile at Luke and talk to him here and there. I sometimes put him in the high chair to play while I make dinner.
But to just sit and play with him? Find new ways to get him to laugh? Talk to him?
I definitely don't do that enough.
Maybe it's part of having a second child. And maybe it has a lot to do with my working outside of the house. But it's going to change. I'm going to play with that little boy much more- they grow SOOOO fast it's just insane.
I realized I'm stuck in a "do for" baby and not "do with" baby phase.
Anyways...
Back to the doctor visit...
Luke's doctor was very nice and took time to answer questions.
He said that Luke definitely needs a helmet but first we had to get some xrays. The xrays are to rule out craniosynostosis which is when the plates of the skull fuse to early. It can also cause a misshapen head. We're 99% sure that it's a positional issue but it's required to rule craniosynostosis out before we can proceed for the helmet.
The doctor said he'll most likely have a helmet for a few months and that he's at the ideal time to get one. Too young and their necks aren't strong enough for one. Too old and their head isn't as pliable and it's harder to fix.
The doctor gave me two referrals- one to get the necessary xrays and another for the helmet.
They said we could go to the hospital right away to get the xrays and I decided that was the best thing to do since we rarely make it over to that area and of course we want to get the helmet on him asap.
I took Luke to the car first to get the boba baby carrier (L O V E that thing!), strapped the little wiggly worm to me, and we walked a little ways to the hospital. We registered. Luke took a nap in the carrier. Then got the xrays (which he screamed during since he had just woken up and didn't want to be held down)
Now the next step is his appt in a few days to get fitted for the helmet. The neurologist will look at the xrays tomorrow and call me to let me know for sure it isn't craniosynostosis and then we're clear to proceed with the helmet.
After the fitting it will take 3 weeks for them to custom make the helmet and hopefully soon he'll have a lovely round head and ears that line up! Every time I look at that perfect head I'm going to be so glad we did this.
But honestly- I'm NOT looking forward to it although it's necessary. Nursing a baby with a hard helmet on? Not gonna be fun. Plus all the "what's wrong with your kid?" comments and stares. But I'm sure we're all adapt to it.
He'll have to wear it 23 hours a day. Just an hour off to give him a bath and clean the helmet.
Sometimes people pay professionals to paint the helmet. It's something fun I would like to do myself! I'll have to look into what paint to use etc.
(taken today)
I was joking with a friend that although Luke's head will be protected- the rest of us will most likely have injuries because of Luke accidently hitting us with his helmet head.
Then I'll return to the doctor with a boy with a perfect head but maybe I'll be all bruised and misshapen and need a helmet myself :o)
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