CI, helmet

[Guest guest]

My son Lucas wore a helmet on the playground only during pre-school

for his first about 1 year ish, until he got familiar with the

surroundings. After a while at the same school (agew 18 mos to 5yrs),

he knew his way around enough to avoid too many accidents I also

required a one-on-one aid whenever he was outside - especially since

there are lots of tricycles and children whizzing-by that could spell

trouble. In the classroom, we just hoped for the best since there are

no climbing strucures to fall off or " traffic! " . A helmet is a

challenge with a CI, and we have tried many helmets. One thing that

worked was using a bike helmet and removing part of the inside padding

where the CI was so it wouldnt get knocked off - not perfect, but he

still had the hard plastic to protect the area. Make sure to get a

helmet that provides the utmost vision clearance around his forehead

and eyes, since kids with colobomas use their peripheral vision more

than most. You might also try a baseball cap under a skater helmet-

I havent tried it myself, but heard it works fairly well.

Wish me good luck this Fall when Lucas will have bi-lateral CIs and be

starting a new school environment so will need a helmet once again! Lacey