newcomer -just cast for starband

[Guest guest]

Hi Kia!1 Welcome to the group. I just linked up 2 days ago and already I am finding this so therapudic for me. I still have a long road ahead of me but with all the help and stories in this group, I have confidence that we will all get through it. From what I read its harder on the parents to see there little darling in a helmet than it is on the kids(we'll see). My son was just cast for his band and he is 6 1/2 months old. I havent heard from anyone that I was starting treatment late. Apparently most Drs. like to wait until their 4 months old and then re evaluate them. I refused to wait and requsted that they do something about it when he was 3 months old, but hear I am just getting started. Good luck and KIT

[Guest guest]

Hi all,

My son Cole has an extremely flat head all across the back

(brachycephaly). He was cast for a starband earlier this week. He

had a CT scan on Monday to rule out fused sutures (they weren't thank

goodness). But I've been a wreck since all this began. He will be 7

months old on June 20th (he should be in his band by then), and I am

worried that we won't see as much progress as I would like because we

are starting late and his condition is pretty severe. I also feel

completely responsible for not doing a better job with this. His

head was wide and flat in the back since birth, but I initially

thought that was just the " way he was " (it didn't occur to me that

this could have occured in-utero). At his 2 month appointment, I

asked the ped about his flat head. He gave the typical " it will

round out " line and suggested side sleeping. I attempted side

sleeping, but Cole was very resistant. And I didn't take this as

seriously as I should have because of the advice I got... it seemed

like no big deal. Unfortunately my son Cole also had awful diaper

rash and colic and all kinds of allergy problems (I was trying to

breastfeed him and figure out what in my diet was causing him

problems). I think these concerns outshadowed concerns about his

head back when it mattered most. Now I am worried that his head will

never look normal and he will be made fun of... and that it will be

all my fault! None of this happened with my first (who was a breech

baby... now I'm guessing because she was smart enough to realize

there wasn't room enough to be head down!). Anyone else plagued by

guilt about their child's head shape?

Kia

[Guest guest]

Hi Kia,

I would imagine there are a large number of people here who have felt guilty

about their baby's headshape from time to time. I would be among those

people. However, my daughter has been out of treatment for about a year now

and I have really gotten over those feelings of guilt. I'm glad I used the

helmet on her and I feel like that was the best I could to do to help my

baby. I know that this is easy to say, but hard to do - however, you should

not feel guilty about what Cole's head. The peds of the world have simply got

to start doing a better job at educating parents and helping them deal with

the plagio rather then downplaying it or blowing it off altogether! You were

just following your ped's lead - what more can a momma do?! You are getting

him help now and that is what matters. Try and focus on what you are going to

do to help Cole going forward and try not to dwell to much on what happened

before. (I know - so much easier said then done!!!)

I wouldn't worry at all about starting at 7 months. That is still a GREAT age

to begin treatment. You should see some really good improvement! My daughter

didn't start until 9 months old and we were very pleased with the results we

got.

Good luck with the STARband. We have lots of parents of STARband wearers and

graduates so you are in good company. Let us know if you have any questions

or if you just need some encouragement. The moms, dads and professionals in

this group are top notch!

Marci (Mom to )

Oklahoma

[Guest guest]

just noticed the name kia and had to post..do you know what your name means?? is it little princess??i think that is the name my dh wants to name our next child(IF i ever get prego) and its a girl..just wondering..

brenda

mom of tucker

Re: newcomer -just cast for starband

Hi Kia!1 Welcome to the group. I just linked up 2 days ago and already I am finding this so therapudic for me. I still have a long road ahead of me but with all the help and stories in this group, I have confidence that we will all get through it. From what I read its harder on the parents to see there little darling in a helmet than it is on the kids(we'll see). My son was just cast for his band and he is 6 1/2 months old. I havent heard from anyone that I was starting treatment late. Apparently most Drs. like to wait until their 4 months old and then re evaluate them. I refused to wait and requsted that they do something about it when he was 3 months old, but hear I am just getting started. Good luck and KIT For more plagio info

[Guest guest]

Kia, Kia, Kia

as i sit here reading your post i am instantly sent back to 18 months ago..my son tucker was just born, his noggin was mishappen, the drs said not to worry and i couldnt get the breastfeading thing down to save my life..tucker wouldn't latch, the nurses were just horrible to me,,i cried so much the 2 days i was in the hospital that they decided to intervene with someone who is assinged to teen parents, (i was 19 AND married however!!) tucker also ended up getting colic and then we found out it was that he was allergic to my milk (can we say..here comes guilt)so we started the wonderful search for a formula..i felt like an inadiquat mother.so that is when my guilt sank in,,i couldn't figure out why i would do this to myself, why i would do this to tucker, i was horrible for giving him such an unfit mother..etc..etc..etc.. tuckers head continued to get worse and all our drs visits sound like yours..finally at our 6 month check up at my persistance the dr gave us a referal and tucker didn't get banded till 8 months..he was diagnosed with severe positional plagiocephaly and received a docband..he wore the same one for 6 months and graduated in march of this year..he received (i think) excellent correction..about 75-80 percent..i still see the flatteness in his head and am overwhelmed with sadness very often..i start to think about when he starts school, what kids will say, when he starts swiming in school. how the kids will react..all that stuff ..my dh tells me not to worry but i still feel its my fault..if only i had pushed the dr harder,if only i had tried just a little harder at tummy time..*tucker hated tummy time*..all the what ifs..i'm starting to realize that that isn't helping and tucker is a happy and healthy boy and that should be good enough but some days i just wanna start all over and go back to the day he was born..well i've rambled on long enough..thats the jist of my story..so yes..guilt is sure running rampid in my head!! dh doesn't feel it as much as i (MEN) and hopefully tucker gets that tuffness for any teasing he may get..

brenda

mom of tucker

docband grad

banded 8/23/01

grad 3/6/02

newcomer -just cast for starband

Hi all,My son Cole has an extremely flat head all across the back (brachycephaly). He was cast for a starband earlier this week. He had a CT scan on Monday to rule out fused sutures (they weren't thank goodness). But I've been a wreck since all this began. He will be 7 months old on June 20th (he should be in his band by then), and I am worried that we won't see as much progress as I would like because we are starting late and his condition is pretty severe. I also feel completely responsible for not doing a better job with this. His head was wide and flat in the back since birth, but I initially thought that was just the "way he was" (it didn't occur to me that this could have occured in-utero). At his 2 month appointment, I asked the ped about his flat head. He gave the typical "it will round out" line and suggested side sleeping. I attempted side sleeping, but Cole was very resistant. And I didn't take this as seriously as I should have because of the advice I got... it seemed like no big deal. Unfortunately my son Cole also had awful diaper rash and colic and all kinds of allergy problems (I was trying to breastfeed him and figure out what in my diet was causing him problems). I think these concerns outshadowed concerns about his head back when it mattered most. Now I am worried that his head will never look normal and he will be made fun of... and that it will be all my fault! None of this happened with my first (who was a breech baby... now I'm guessing because she was smart enough to realize there wasn't room enough to be head down!). Anyone else plagued by guilt about their child's head shape?KiaFor more plagio info

[Guest guest]

Kia,

Welcome to the group! Your son Cole is still at a great age to see very good

results. We've had members share that they started at 13 or 14 months, some

later, that still showed improvement. You are not alone in hearing the it

will round out theory, and the fact that you addressed your concerns with

your Doctor shows that you care about your son and were given horrible advice

from a paid professional. Unfortunately, many Doctors dismiss this as just

being cosmetic, and feel like parents are making a huge deal out of nothing.

I for one can't understand how Doctors who are trained to understand the

skeletal system can act as if a shifting of growth of skull bones would not

also affect the functions that those bones are responsible for (jaw, eyes,

ears). The important thing is that you are helping Cole with this now, while

there is still ample time, and I hope you start to see those results quickly

so that you can put your fears to rest. Good luck on your journey and please

use this great support group to answer any questions you may have!

' Mom

[Guest guest]

Boy does your story sound familiar. What formula did you end up

using? Cole is on Alimentum, and I still breastfeed him once per day

(in the evening only). Even with cutting out all the usual culprits

from my diet, he still has trouble with my breastmilk. We even went

to a GI specialist who said this is rare, but some babies just can't

tolerate the proteins in breastmilk. I nursed my first baby for a

year, and I had planned to do the same with Cole. I spent lots of

time feeling inadequate and weepy over the breastfeeding issue. But

now the concerns about his head make those pale in comparison. This

is one time I truly wish I could turn back the clock (and do

everything better!).

Kia

> Kia, Kia, Kia

>

> as i sit here reading your post i am instantly sent back to 18

months ago..my son tucker was just born, his noggin was mishappen,

the drs said not to worry and i couldnt get the breastfeading thing

down to save my life..tucker wouldn't latch, the nurses were just

horrible to me,,i cried so much the 2 days i was in the hospital that

they decided to intervene with someone who is assinged to teen

parents, (i was 19 AND married however!!) tucker also ended up

getting colic and then we found out it was that he was allergic to my

milk (can we say..here comes guilt)so we started the wonderful search

for a formula..i felt like an inadiquat mother.so that is when my

guilt sank in,,i couldn't figure out why i would do this to myself,

why i would do this to tucker, i was horrible for giving him such an

unfit mother..etc..etc..etc.. tuckers head continued to get worse and

all our drs visits sound like yours..finally at our 6 month check up

at my persistance the dr gave us a referal and tucker didn't get

banded till 8 months..he was diagnosed with severe positional

plagiocephaly and received a docband..he wore the same one for 6

months and graduated in march of this year..he received (i think)

excellent correction..about 75-80 percent..i still see the flatteness

in his head and am overwhelmed with sadness very often..i start to

think about when he starts school, what kids will say, when he starts

swiming in school. how the kids will react..all that stuff ..my dh

tells me not to worry but i still feel its my fault..if only i had

pushed the dr harder,if only i had tried just a little harder at

tummy time..*tucker hated tummy time*..all the what ifs..i'm starting

to realize that that isn't helping and tucker is a happy and healthy

boy and that should be good enough but some days i just wanna start

all over and go back to the day he was born..well i've rambled on

long enough..thats the jist of my story..so yes..guilt is sure

running rampid in my head!! dh doesn't feel it as much as i (MEN) and

hopefully tucker gets that tuffness for any teasing he may get..

>

> brenda

> mom of tucker

> docband grad

> banded 8/23/01

> grad 3/6/02

> newcomer -just cast for starband

>

>

> Hi all,

>

> My son Cole has an extremely flat head all across the back

> (brachycephaly). He was cast for a starband earlier this week.

He

> had a CT scan on Monday to rule out fused sutures (they weren't

thank

> goodness). But I've been a wreck since all this began. He will

be 7

> months old on June 20th (he should be in his band by then), and I

am

> worried that we won't see as much progress as I would like

because we

> are starting late and his condition is pretty severe. I also

feel

> completely responsible for not doing a better job with this. His

> head was wide and flat in the back since birth, but I initially

> thought that was just the " way he was " (it didn't occur to me

that

> this could have occured in-utero). At his 2 month appointment, I

> asked the ped about his flat head. He gave the typical " it will

> round out " line and suggested side sleeping. I attempted side

> sleeping, but Cole was very resistant. And I didn't take this as

> seriously as I should have because of the advice I got... it

seemed

> like no big deal. Unfortunately my son Cole also had awful

diaper

> rash and colic and all kinds of allergy problems (I was trying to

> breastfeed him and figure out what in my diet was causing him

> problems). I think these concerns outshadowed concerns about his

> head back when it mattered most. Now I am worried that his head

will

> never look normal and he will be made fun of... and that it will

be

> all my fault! None of this happened with my first (who was a

breech

> baby... now I'm guessing because she was smart enough to realize

> there wasn't room enough to be head down!). Anyone else plagued

by

> guilt about their child's head shape?

>

> Kia

>

>

>

>