Guest guest Posted May 9, 2009 Report Share Posted May 9, 2009 Hi All! I first noticed Lucy's torticollis when she was about 1 month old - I asked the ped about it and he said she had a " gaze preference " and then he pointed out her head flatness to me that I had never noticed before. He taught me stretches and repositioning techniques and told me to stick with them every day and hopefully if we corrected her " gaze preference " then her head would round out on its own. But from the beginning he also told me there was a chance a helmet would be needed (I love my Ped!). Well, after dutifully doing the stretches and repositioning - when I went in for her four month check up , although the torticollis was pretty much gone, her flat spot hadn't really seemed to change one bit so I asked for the referral to the orthotist as I learned after doing some research that earlier treatment tends to lead to faster and better results. We went to Hanger at Children's Hospital in Milwaukee, WI and saw - he was wonderful!!! We measured her and found that she had 11mm left plagio with right forehead bossing, recommended the helmet and we agreed and we scanned her. On December 1st, Lucy was 5.5months, and got her STARband. She adjusted to it easily and really could care less when it was on (thank God!) we only had a smell issue.....but after learning from all the wonderful people here that 91% alcohol does the trick, we were over that hurdle. Lucy had very quick results and 6 short weeks after starting the helmet therapy, she was at 0mm!!! So on January 12, 2009 she graduated. I love her little round head and am SO grateful for this board because it was so helpful so many times. I, like many, felt so guilty and upset when this all started, like I had done something wrong and was a bad mommy. But I learned how common this was and sometimes you do everything right and it still happens, the support you guys give is amazing. THANK YOU! Now looking back at it all, it was such a little blip in her life and I am sure we will have other mountains to climb throughout the years that will be much higher and harder to master. So, to all of you families just starting this process - hang in there, you will get through it, and soon you will look back and enjoy the memories of them in their band and even sometimes miss it because they are pretty darn cute in those things! Thanks and good luck! - Meg, mom to Lucy, 10.5 months, Milwaukee, WI. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 9, 2009 Report Share Posted May 9, 2009 It was great hearing your story. It is very inspirational, especially since we'll be getting our Starband on Monday and our baby will be 4 months old. I'm so happy you got great results and it was all worth it! > > Hi All! > I first noticed Lucy's torticollis when she was about 1 month old - I asked the ped about it and he said she had a " gaze preference " and then he pointed out her head flatness to me that I had never noticed before. He taught me stretches and repositioning techniques and told me to stick with them every day and hopefully if we corrected her " gaze preference " then her head would round out on its own. But from the beginning he also told me there was a chance a helmet would be needed (I love my Ped!). > Well, after dutifully doing the stretches and repositioning - when I went in for her four month check up , although the torticollis was pretty much gone, her flat spot hadn't really seemed to change one bit so I asked for the referral to the orthotist as I learned after doing some research that earlier treatment tends to lead to faster and better results. > We went to Hanger at Children's Hospital in Milwaukee, WI and saw - he was wonderful!!! We measured her and found that she had 11mm left plagio with right forehead bossing, recommended the helmet and we agreed and we scanned her. On December 1st, Lucy was 5.5months, and got her STARband. She adjusted to it easily and really could care less when it was on (thank God!) we only had a smell issue.....but after learning from all the wonderful people here that 91% alcohol does the trick, we were over that hurdle. Lucy had very quick results and 6 short weeks after starting the helmet therapy, she was at 0mm!!! So on January 12, 2009 she graduated. I love her little round head and am SO grateful for this board because it was so helpful so many times. I, like many, felt so guilty and upset when this all started, like I had done something wrong and was a bad mommy. But I learned how common this was and sometimes you do everything right and it still happens, the support you guys give is amazing. THANK YOU! > Now looking back at it all, it was such a little blip in her life and I am sure we will have other mountains to climb throughout the years that will be much higher and harder to master. > So, to all of you families just starting this process - hang in there, you will get through it, and soon you will look back and enjoy the memories of them in their band and even sometimes miss it because they are pretty darn cute in those things! > Thanks and good luck! - Meg, mom to Lucy, 10.5 months, Milwaukee, WI. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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