Tort ladies- OT

[Guest guest]

e, , Christy and other tort moms,

I can so relate to you all, and I can tell you that it will, or should, get

easier in regards to the tort. When I found out had tort at 2

months, I cried and cried. Then I got busy! Then I got tired!! Stretching

is no easy task. As I'm sure your all aware at this point. And you feel so

overwhelmed!! Did I stretch enough today? Is he going to be ok? Are we

really hurting him, or helping him?

The therapy ball was a great source of " entertainment " for , we would

put him on his tummy, or have him sit up looking at the T.V. and roll from

side to side so he would " right " his head to midline. was in

professional therapy from 3 months to 9 months- 2x a week plus everyday

stretches and massage from mom and Dad- he was considered severe and also had

the lump. The lump was a severe hematoma and finally dissipated around 6-7

months old. I can also tell you that although he is considered " resolved " as

the muscle is stretched out, he is almost 15 months and we are STILL having

him do stretches, although its mostly making him " right " his head (very

important to strengthen that opposite muscle to be able to do this), and we

still see him tilt his head on occassion- although its not that common

anymore. The tilt, or I feel the constant tilt, is the last to go. The

occassional tilt I was told may be a comfort position, but making sure they

sit up straight, and correct that posture will help for the long run. The

more on top of it you are now, the easier it will be in the long run- and I

know how stressful doing those daily stretches (which usually makes them cry!

are. I was told that even when they appear resolved, keep an eye on this

(posture, milestones) until 2 years old.

I cried myself when FINALLY could lay on his stomach and turn his

head left- I thought we'd never see that day!! A tip for that working for

you- we would turn his head when he was sleeping, and sometimes he would just

wake up, but we still tried as much as possible. I would say its not a good

idea to force them, but my pt was not " gentle " and would make him turn his

head that way- the key is to have lots of distractions to make it " fun " to

look that way. would lay on the mat on his back and I would blow

bubbles as my pt would turn his head left. We were fortunate that a lot of

our stretches were done successfully while he was conked out. Our pt showed

us relaxation techniques, I would use massage, and then go for it. He had no

problem after awhile turning to the left when on his back, but on his

stomach, he couldn't do it for the longest time! I also would lay him on me,

belly to belly, and kind of have him half to my side and then have him turn

left, so it wasn't a full rotation to the left. This eased us into it

better. I want to stress not to be very " agressive " and twist that neck fast

and hard, but keep in mind that you can't be too passive with this either, as

the muscle is already tight, only time and improper posture will make it

worse without getting somewhat " aggressive " with those stretches. Holding the

stretch longer to the left and right helps as well. If you were to think of

a relaxing neck exercise, where you rotated your head in each direction, back

and up, this is essentially what we did as well.

Keep the faith, you will be able to see that light at the very end of a long

tunnel- and I think that was the hardest part- looking for a quick fix- some

tort is worse than others and takes much longer to resolve- keep plugging

away. He now has full rotation to the left, and rarely tilts, but I will

still tell him " hold your head up straight " and believe it or not, this 15

month old knows what I'm saying and sometimes listens (poor thing is probably

traumatized!!). But I think this is what we HAD to do, and I'm sure he'll

thank us later for being very proactive and on top of getting this resolved.

I will probably always notice a slight degree of tilt when he gets tired, or

hits growth spurts, but in comparison to where we've come from, I'll take it!

Good luck and keep the faith!

' Mom