so my baby needs a helmet

trudibell

I'm totally crushed.  We've been holding him, putting him in carriers rather than strollers, doing tummy time 5 minutes every hour (he HATES tummy time) for months and we took him to the pedi today and his head has somehow gotten worse.  

So we have to do the helmet, someone please tell me it's ok and I'm not a horrible, horrible mother.  

=Lee=B

It happens...sounds like you did everything right.  Some babies heads are just softer and take time to harden.

A helmet will help reshape the head and he will thank you for it years and years from now.  From what I've heard the helmets don't bother the babies at all.  It's just mommies that worry about them :-) 

EmR22

You didn't do anything wrong. It happens and it sounds like you tried to stop it. Stay positive -- this will help it and he won't remember it. If you were a horrible mother you wouldn't even be worried about it.

ArmyWife114

Sometimes, there is nothing you can do.  We did everything you did, and PT for torticollis and it didn't help.  DS ended up getting a helmet when he was 7 months old and will be done with it this Thursday.  Once he was past the initial phase (about a week), he had no issues with the helmet and I don't think he noticed it unless I took it off to clean it.

This isn't your fault, sometimes there is nothing you can do.  The helmet will help your LO, he won't remember it. 

saphires

I just took DS to the PT today and he will most likely need one too. Like you, we did everything we could once we noticed the flat spot developing.

We were sent home with a bunch of things to do, most of which we have already been doing and next month they will determine for sure if he needs one. But the PT was very honest and said he most likely will. I feel like a horrible mother too.. and that it is my fault this happened. It sucks , but know you are not the only one.. this is sooo common now a days.

MynaBird

We had friends whose daughter had to wear a helmet. They dressed her up as a roller derby girl for Halloween and used the photos for the most awesome Christmas card we've ever gotten. So there are opportunities to make lemonade!

Seriously, it sounds like you did everything right. Don't beat yourself up about it.

poppyc8

we did the helmet for 6 weeks total starting at 4 months and i can say looking back (he is 8 months now) that it went by so fast and i am so glad we decided to do it.   don't be too hard on yourself and remember that it will be over before you know it!  

trudibell

Thanks for all the support, I'm feeling a lot better about it now.  I'd much rather endure him in a helmet for a few months than have him resent me for not doing something about a totally normal, correctable problem the rest of his life.  

AugustandAmber

You are not a horrible mother, this is actually more common then one may think. My son favors looking to his right so we are seeing a physical therapist and doing exercises with him daily. our goal is to catch this before it gets worse however, we were reassured by the PT that this had nothing to do with us. Sometimes babies are wedged or turned in a certain position in utero and they continue this position after birth. I wish you all the best with this as we are currently experiencing something similar and unsure if a helmet is in our future.

carriemcsmith

There r other options...look into a Cranial Sacral Therapist. Worked wonders on my DD

[Deleted User]

My little girl got one this week.  We tried everything to avoid getting one but her flat spot was not going away.  You did nothing wrong.  She hates it btw but this will help her in the end and she really won't remember it.  Good Luck.

Murphie82

There are at least two moms on the June 2013 whose babies need helmets and neither are bad moms just as you aren't a bad mom. These things happen and you're taking the appropriate steps needed to correct the issue. Also, I have to say I find babies in helmets crazy cute. Now you just need to decide if/how you want to decorate it.