Brand New to Site: Anyone have advice on getting baby comfortable at night w/DBB

[Guest guest]

Hi. I am new to this group, and am joining, because I feel like I am

the only one going through this in my town...My 10 month old was in

casts for 8 months (6 mos of poor casting- only to knee in military

hospital overseas), and then 2 mos with Ponceti method at a

children's hospital here in FL. She has had the Dennis Brown Bar for

almost 2 months, and although she seems fine with it during the day,

she screams almost all night long. I think that as soon as she gets

herself close to sleep, she turns to get comfortable, and realizes

that she can't move her feet independently, then starts screaming.

Once she is finally calm, the process starts all over again in a

matter of minutes. I am frazzled. My husband is now gone for 6

months with the Navy and I feel like the doctors just kind of shrug

their shoulders when I ask about this as if to say, " She's going to

have to tough it out. " She is such a happy baby during the day, and

it is killing me that she is so frustrated and sad at night. I have

tried holding her, rubbing her, and even tried not going to her at

all (which was the worst- I hated that she needed me or help and I

wouldn't go to her). I know that the DBB is necessary for her

development, but does anyone have any advice about how to make this

easier on her? What has worked for everyone else for this to be

long term?

[Guest guest]

When my son is sleeping he has the same issues. For

him I realized that the weight of the bar may have

been uncomfortable on his other joints. I tried

putting a blanket under his legs (from knees down) and

that seems to help a lot. I don't know if it will

work for your child, but it helped for .

Good luck.

--- cricketsmom05 wrote:

> Hi. I am new to this group, and am joining, because

> I feel like I am

> the only one going through this in my town...My 10

> month old was in

> casts for 8 months (6 mos of poor casting- only to

> knee in military

> hospital overseas), and then 2 mos with Ponceti

> method at a

> children's hospital here in FL. She has had the

> Dennis Brown Bar for

> almost 2 months, and although she seems fine with it

> during the day,

> she screams almost all night long. I think that as

> soon as she gets

> herself close to sleep, she turns to get

> comfortable, and realizes

> that she can't move her feet independently, then

> starts screaming.

> Once she is finally calm, the process starts all

> over again in a

> matter of minutes. I am frazzled. My husband is now

> gone for 6

> months with the Navy and I feel like the doctors

> just kind of shrug

> their shoulders when I ask about this as if to say,

> " She's going to

> have to tough it out. " She is such a happy baby

> during the day, and

> it is killing me that she is so frustrated and sad

> at night. I have

> tried holding her, rubbing her, and even tried not

> going to her at

> all (which was the worst- I hated that she needed me

> or help and I

> wouldn't go to her). I know that the DBB is

> necessary for her

> development, but does anyone have any advice about

> how to make this

> easier on her? What has worked for everyone else

> for this to be

> long term?

>

>

>

>

>

>

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Hi & welcome!

I'm sorry you're struggling! Hopefully we can help you out!

There's a good tips and tricks document under the files section that

might help. Do you think that her brace is set up correctly so that

it's comfortable for her? There's another yahoo group called cfpics

where we share pictures (this group doesn't allow attachments and

the photos space is pretty much full) so maybe you could also join

there and send us pictures of how her brace is set up?

There's lots of brace info in the files section.

I'm wondering if maybe her shoes aren't too close together.

Hopefully we can help you troubleshoot the problem!

Some parents have had luck w/ putting the baby in a pack and play

since the soft netting on the sides is easier than the brace hitting

on the crib rails.....not sure if this is a contributer or not

either. It might take some time for your daughter to adjust since

she's older, but two months of problems is telling me that something

just isn't right......typically either the brace isn't set up right

or the foot/feet aren't truly corrected and therefore not ready for

the brace.

Big hugs to you and your sweetie!

& (3-16-00, lcf)

[Guest guest]

and ,

Thank you so mcuh for the advice. I will try to send pics Monday or

Tuesday on the cfpics group. I will add that group in a minute. I

will also check the files. Thanks again, and I will get back to you

soon!

>

> Hi & welcome!

> I'm sorry you're struggling! Hopefully we can help you out!

> There's a good tips and tricks document under the files section

that

> might help. Do you think that her brace is set up correctly so

that

> it's comfortable for her? There's another yahoo group called

cfpics

> where we share pictures (this group doesn't allow attachments and

> the photos space is pretty much full) so maybe you could also join

> there and send us pictures of how her brace is set up?

> There's lots of brace info in the files section.

> I'm wondering if maybe her shoes aren't too close together.

> Hopefully we can help you troubleshoot the problem!

> Some parents have had luck w/ putting the baby in a pack and play

> since the soft netting on the sides is easier than the brace

hitting

> on the crib rails.....not sure if this is a contributer or not

> either. It might take some time for your daughter to adjust since

> she's older, but two months of problems is telling me that

something

> just isn't right......typically either the brace isn't set up

right

> or the foot/feet aren't truly corrected and therefore not ready

for

> the brace.

> Big hugs to you and your sweetie!

> & (3-16-00, lcf)

>

[Guest guest]

Maybe the bar is too short, causing discomfort when she lays down. I'd check on

that first.

If the bar is OK then I'd move on towards looking at her sleeping arrangment.

Maybe her feet get stuck between the slats of teh crib and wake her up, or it's

happened before and now she is frightened of that happening again.

Maybe just the noise of the fab hitting the slats has come to frighten her.

In either of those I would try putting her to sleep in a play-pen with net

siding instead of crib with wood/metal slats.

If not that, have you tried giving her a sleep-sack instead of blankets?

Blankets get tangled on the bar and around the baby causing frustration, etc.

It may not be FAB related at all, ya know? Is she congested and can't breath

well laying down?

Could it be bad dreams or night terrors have invaded? Are shadows on the wall

freaking her out? Do the stuffed toys come to life in the dark?

Um, acid reflux creeping in when she lays down?

Is it related to your living conditions changing, new house, new bedroom, your

husband going on tour, etc?

At her age it could be a lot of things. It's easy to assume it's the FAB cuz

it's so obvious but try to dig deeper if you find no problems with the FAB.

Does she have a really set bedtime routine? If not aim to have one for her,

something she can count on every night to happen in ABC order start to finish so

she winds down and settles in to sleep. BAbies need that.

Is she even tired at bed time? Could be too much napy time during the day

ruining her desire to go to bed when you send her.

WEll, hope some of that might help you figure it out. Good luck!

s.

Brand New to Site: Anyone have advice on getting

baby comfortable at night w/DBB

Hi. I am new to this group, and am joining, because I feel like I am

the only one going through this in my town...My 10 month old was in

casts for 8 months (6 mos of poor casting- only to knee in military

hospital overseas), and then 2 mos with Ponceti method at a

children's hospital here in FL. She has had the Dennis Brown Bar for

almost 2 months, and although she seems fine with it during the day,

she screams almost all night long. I think that as soon as she gets

herself close to sleep, she turns to get comfortable, and realizes

that she can't move her feet independently, then starts screaming.

Once she is finally calm, the process starts all over again in a

matter of minutes. I am frazzled. My husband is now gone for 6

months with the Navy and I feel like the doctors just kind of shrug

their shoulders when I ask about this as if to say, " She's going to

have to tough it out. " She is such a happy baby during the day, and

it is killing me that she is so frustrated and sad at night. I have

tried holding her, rubbing her, and even tried not going to her at

all (which was the worst- I hated that she needed me or help and I

wouldn't go to her). I know that the DBB is necessary for her

development, but does anyone have any advice about how to make this

easier on her? What has worked for everyone else for this to be

long term?

[Guest guest]

-

As previously mentioned, we used a rolled up towel under my daughters legs.

Also, we had to adjust her bar, it was too short and this causes

discomfort. Her doc bumped her up to a 10 inch bar (bar should be the width

of her shoulders). This combined with the towel worked for us. It has been

almost 4 months and she still sleeps with that towel to support her legs

and feet. I had to flatten it out some... and her legs just lay on it. She

is so used to it now that she wakes up if it is not there.

Best of luck to you!

Kim

Mom to Maddie, BCF, 06/16/2005

>

> When my son is sleeping he has the same issues. For

> him I realized that the weight of the bar may have

> been uncomfortable on his other joints. I tried

> putting a blanket under his legs (from knees down) and

> that seems to help a lot. I don't know if it will

> work for your child, but it helped for .

> Good luck.

>

> --- cricketsmom05 wrote:

>

> > Hi. I am new to this group, and am joining, because

> > I feel like I am

> > the only one going through this in my town...My 10

> > month old was in

> > casts for 8 months (6 mos of poor casting- only to

> > knee in military

> > hospital overseas), and then 2 mos with Ponceti

> > method at a

> > children's hospital here in FL. She has had the

> > Dennis Brown Bar for

> > almost 2 months, and although she seems fine with it

> > during the day,

> > she screams almost all night long. I think that as

> > soon as she gets

> > herself close to sleep, she turns to get

> > comfortable, and realizes

> > that she can't move her feet independently, then

> > starts screaming.

> > Once she is finally calm, the process starts all

> > over again in a

> > matter of minutes. I am frazzled. My husband is now

> > gone for 6

> > months with the Navy and I feel like the doctors

> > just kind of shrug

> > their shoulders when I ask about this as if to say,

> > " She's going to

> > have to tough it out. " She is such a happy baby

> > during the day, and

> > it is killing me that she is so frustrated and sad

> > at night. I have

> > tried holding her, rubbing her, and even tried not

> > going to her at

> > all (which was the worst- I hated that she needed me

> > or help and I

> > wouldn't go to her). I know that the DBB is

> > necessary for her

> > development, but does anyone have any advice about

> > how to make this

> > easier on her? What has worked for everyone else

> > for this to be

> > long term?

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

>

>

> __________________________________________________

>

[Guest guest]

I know that it could be other things, but it all miraculously

started at the onset of the DBB. Our family practioner has a 3 year

old child with ucf, and we have taken her to see him, and he checked

her out as far as everything else goes. No congestion, etc. She does

not seem to do any better in her pack and play, or even when we have

her co-sleep with us. Jut more of the same, crying fits everytime

she turns in her sleep. If I get too exhausted and take the bar off

once a night at 3:00 in the morning, she sleeps soundly for the next

8 hours. She does wear a sleep sack, she is not congested, and she

has the gold bar that is bent, and she is at 70 degrees. The bar

(from bolt to bolt) is shoulder-width. Even the family practitioner

that has gone through this says that it is the bar and that they all

hate it. Is this just something that we have to live with, and have

to live like for the next 5 years? (ortho doc says she will probably

be in DBB at night until first grade.That seems like forever since

she is only 10 months!)No sleep for baby and mommy = many days of

tears. Help!

>

> Maybe the bar is too short, causing discomfort when she lays

down. I'd check on that first.

>

> If the bar is OK then I'd move on towards looking at her sleeping

arrangment. Maybe her feet get stuck between the slats of teh crib

and wake her up, or it's happened before and now she is frightened

of that happening again.

>

> Maybe just the noise of the fab hitting the slats has come to

frighten her.

>

> In either of those I would try putting her to sleep in a play-pen

with net siding instead of crib with wood/metal slats.

>

> If not that, have you tried giving her a sleep-sack instead of

blankets? Blankets get tangled on the bar and around the baby

causing frustration, etc.

>

> It may not be FAB related at all, ya know? Is she congested and

can't breath well laying down?

>

> Could it be bad dreams or night terrors have invaded? Are shadows

on the wall freaking her out? Do the stuffed toys come to life in

the dark?

>

> Um, acid reflux creeping in when she lays down?

>

> Is it related to your living conditions changing, new house, new

bedroom, your husband going on tour, etc?

>

> At her age it could be a lot of things. It's easy to assume it's

the FAB cuz it's so obvious but try to dig deeper if you find no

problems with the FAB.

>

> Does she have a really set bedtime routine? If not aim to have

one for her, something she can count on every night to happen in ABC

order start to finish so she winds down and settles in to sleep.

BAbies need that.

>

> Is she even tired at bed time? Could be too much napy time during

the day ruining her desire to go to bed when you send her.

>

> WEll, hope some of that might help you figure it out. Good luck!

> s.

> Brand New to Site: Anyone have

advice on getting baby comfortable at night w/DBB

>

>

> Hi. I am new to this group, and am joining, because I feel like

I am

> the only one going through this in my town...My 10 month old was

in

> casts for 8 months (6 mos of poor casting- only to knee in

military

> hospital overseas), and then 2 mos with Ponceti method at a

> children's hospital here in FL. She has had the Dennis Brown Bar

for

> almost 2 months, and although she seems fine with it during the

day,

> she screams almost all night long. I think that as soon as she

gets

> herself close to sleep, she turns to get comfortable, and

realizes

> that she can't move her feet independently, then starts

screaming.

> Once she is finally calm, the process starts all over again in a

> matter of minutes. I am frazzled. My husband is now gone for 6

> months with the Navy and I feel like the doctors just kind of

shrug

> their shoulders when I ask about this as if to say, " She's going

to

> have to tough it out. " She is such a happy baby during the day,

and

> it is killing me that she is so frustrated and sad at night. I

have

> tried holding her, rubbing her, and even tried not going to her

at

> all (which was the worst- I hated that she needed me or help and

I

> wouldn't go to her). I know that the DBB is necessary for her

> development, but does anyone have any advice about how to make

this

> easier on her? What has worked for everyone else for this to be

> long term?

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

,

First of all, hugs to you. It's not easy getting by on little sleep and--I'm

sure--wanting to just chuck that (darned) DBB/FAB out the window. You are not

the first to be in this place, believe me!

However, when a child's foot/feet are well-corrected and the FAB is set up

properly, most children have no trouble at all. I do notice with my son, who

has been wearing the FAB for just over 2 years, that he gets very, very

uncomfortable at night when his shoes get too tight or his bar gets too short.

I think some children are more sensitive to this than others. In my experience

here, most children are more comfortable when their bar is set up so that the

distance between their heels (when the shoes are mounted on the bar) is the same

as the width of their shoulders. For us, setting the bar up this way has made

an enormous difference in how well Jonah tolerates it. I do notice that you say

that the distance bolt-to-bolt is the same as your daughter's shoulder width.

With the heel-to-heel measurement, you'd need a bar that is 2 " longer than what

you have. It's worth a try at least.

Also, I think wearing the FAB until 1st grade sounds a bit excessive. The

recommendation now seems to be releasing from night-time wear between 4 and 5

years.

Best to you!

Naomi

The Family

Naomi Hannah(02/21/01) Jonah(06/20/03, corrected bilateral clubfoot, FAB

14/7)

cricketsmom05 wrote:

I know that it could be other things, but it all miraculously

started at the onset of the DBB. Our family practioner has a 3 year

old child with ucf, and we have taken her to see him, and he checked

her out as far as everything else goes. No congestion, etc. She does

not seem to do any better in her pack and play, or even when we have

her co-sleep with us. Jut more of the same, crying fits everytime

she turns in her sleep. If I get too exhausted and take the bar off

once a night at 3:00 in the morning, she sleeps soundly for the next

8 hours. She does wear a sleep sack, she is not congested, and she

has the gold bar that is bent, and she is at 70 degrees. The bar

(from bolt to bolt) is shoulder-width. Even the family practitioner

that has gone through this says that it is the bar and that they all

hate it. Is this just something that we have to live with, and have

to live like for the next 5 years? (ortho doc says she will probably

be in DBB at night until first grade.That seems like forever since

she is only 10 months!)No sleep for baby and mommy = many days of

tears. Help!

---------------------------------

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[Guest guest]

, I am so sorry that you are having such a hard time! I went thru 3

weeks of HELL with my daughter screaming thru the night. It is all such a

blur to me now. Some how she (well ,we) eventually figured out how to make

this work. Here are a couple of other things that I tried... maybe one of

them will work for you. I mentioned the towel before, but it took us a

while to get to that point.

A couple of nights Maddie slept in her swing... certainly not ideal, but

she got some sleep and I was able to sleep on the floor! I found that she

could get about 4 hours this way, but I was desperate. I also tried leaving

her shoes on without the bar. Once she would get to sleep in her crib, I

put the bar on carefully as not to wake her. This is how we started using

the rolled up towel.

I think you said that she has been in the shoes and bar for 2 months and

still having these problems. Have you considered the shoes? They

are softer and more comfy for little feet.

>

>

> I know that it could be other things, but it all miraculously

> started at the onset of the DBB. Our family practioner has a 3 year

> old child with ucf, and we have taken her to see him, and he checked

> her out as far as everything else goes. No congestion, etc. She does

> not seem to do any better in her pack and play, or even when we have

> her co-sleep with us. Jut more of the same, crying fits everytime

> she turns in her sleep. If I get too exhausted and take the bar off

> once a night at 3:00 in the morning, she sleeps soundly for the next

> 8 hours. She does wear a sleep sack, she is not congested, and she

> has the gold bar that is bent, and she is at 70 degrees. The bar

> (from bolt to bolt) is shoulder-width. Even the family practitioner

> that has gone through this says that it is the bar and that they all

> hate it. Is this just something that we have to live with, and have

> to live like for the next 5 years? (ortho doc says she will probably

> be in DBB at night until first grade.That seems like forever since

> she is only 10 months!)No sleep for baby and mommy = many days of

> tears. Help!

>

>

> >

> > Maybe the bar is too short, causing discomfort when she lays

> down. I'd check on that first.

> >

> > If the bar is OK then I'd move on towards looking at her sleeping

> arrangment. Maybe her feet get stuck between the slats of teh crib

> and wake her up, or it's happened before and now she is frightened

> of that happening again.

> >

> > Maybe just the noise of the fab hitting the slats has come to

> frighten her.

> >

> > In either of those I would try putting her to sleep in a play-pen

> with net siding instead of crib with wood/metal slats.

> >

> > If not that, have you tried giving her a sleep-sack instead of

> blankets? Blankets get tangled on the bar and around the baby

> causing frustration, etc.

> >

> > It may not be FAB related at all, ya know? Is she congested and

> can't breath well laying down?

> >

> > Could it be bad dreams or night terrors have invaded? Are shadows

> on the wall freaking her out? Do the stuffed toys come to life in

> the dark?

> >

> > Um, acid reflux creeping in when she lays down?

> >

> > Is it related to your living conditions changing, new house, new

> bedroom, your husband going on tour, etc?

> >

> > At her age it could be a lot of things. It's easy to assume it's

> the FAB cuz it's so obvious but try to dig deeper if you find no

> problems with the FAB.

> >

> > Does she have a really set bedtime routine? If not aim to have

> one for her, something she can count on every night to happen in ABC

> order start to finish so she winds down and settles in to sleep.

> BAbies need that.

> >

> > Is she even tired at bed time? Could be too much napy time during

> the day ruining her desire to go to bed when you send her.

> >

> > WEll, hope some of that might help you figure it out. Good luck!

> > s.

> > Brand New to Site: Anyone have

> advice on getting baby comfortable at night w/DBB

> >

> >

> > Hi. I am new to this group, and am joining, because I feel like

> I am

> > the only one going through this in my town...My 10 month old was

> in

> > casts for 8 months (6 mos of poor casting- only to knee in

> military

> > hospital overseas), and then 2 mos with Ponceti method at a

> > children's hospital here in FL. She has had the Dennis Brown Bar

> for

> > almost 2 months, and although she seems fine with it during the

> day,

> > she screams almost all night long. I think that as soon as she

> gets

> > herself close to sleep, she turns to get comfortable, and

> realizes

> > that she can't move her feet independently, then starts

> screaming.

> > Once she is finally calm, the process starts all over again in a

> > matter of minutes. I am frazzled. My husband is now gone for 6

> > months with the Navy and I feel like the doctors just kind of

> shrug

> > their shoulders when I ask about this as if to say, " She's going

> to

> > have to tough it out. " She is such a happy baby during the day,

> and

> > it is killing me that she is so frustrated and sad at night. I

> have

> > tried holding her, rubbing her, and even tried not going to her

> at

> > all (which was the worst- I hated that she needed me or help and

> I

> > wouldn't go to her). I know that the DBB is necessary for her

> > development, but does anyone have any advice about how to make

> this

> > easier on her? What has worked for everyone else for this to be

> > long term?

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

[Guest guest]

,

Can you share pictures with us of her bare feet, and pictures of her

in the brace also? (either through a website like yahoo pics,

photobucket etc. or through the CFPics yahoo group) Maybe there is

something that we'll see in the pictures that will help generate ideas

as to how to fix the issue.

Does she nap okay in the brace? I can't remember if you said she was

in it fulltime still? She's got no issues during the day, just at

night, right?

Does she like to sleep in a particular position (tummy, side etc.) and

can't get comfortable?

I would suggest that you have your orthotist order the adjustable

length red bar now, and when that comes in, you might have better luck

in adjusting the length to find a more comfortable distance for her.

Hang in there.....

& (3-16-00, lcf)