Helmet
pathfindermon
member
So, it looks like my lo is going to need a helmet 
. I know that it isn't the end of the world- some of my friends kids had them and everything went fine. But, I'm still really upset about it. I think if he wasn't a preemie I wouldn't be taking it this hard but after being in the NICU and all I just really wanted things to go smoothly from here on out. Yes, that is totally unrealistic- I know. I'm just still really dealing with him coming early so everything feels like a big thing. It's not 100% yet but his PT said today that she would be surprised if he didn't get one.
So, after all that- does anyone have any experience with this? Can anyone give me any advice to make the experience easier on both my lo and myself? Any positive experiences?
TIA!!
Re: Helmet
::lurking::
Is it for plagiocephaly? Forgive me for posting if it's not. My daughter wore one for 4.5 months, she was born with torticollis due to positioning in the womb. She favored one side for the first few months of her life and subsequently developed a flat spot. We also did PT.
I was torn up about her having to wear one. But I'm SO glad she did! You'd never know she had a flat spot now. Well, as a mom I can still see a very minor spot but no one else would ever be able to tell. There was an adjustment period of about a week where it affected her sleep and then she was fine. I don't think she ever noticed she was wearing it after that. We were allowed to take it off 1 hour a day. If she saw it sitting there while it was off, she would pick it up and bring it up to her head like, "put this thing back on!" I think as a result of this she loves wearing hats
If your LO is going to wear it in the winter months, that's lucky- those things can be very hot & sweaty. They make really cute designs now too.
Yes, you will get stares in public which is hard for a mommy to bear. But you will know you are doing what's right for your LO in the long run. Now when I see a mom with a baby in a helmet I make a point of talking to them; I felt so bad being the mom with the kid in a helmet and the few moms I have approached have been really eager to talk.
GL!
Both my twins wore helmets earlier this year. We started noticing the flatness about 6 weeks after they came home. At that point we tried doing things to keep it from getting worse such as stopping use of the Rock N Plays and increasing tummy time. They HATED tummy time and would scream every time I tried so needless to say that never went very well. Any how, after about 2 months of that our pedi finally referred us to the helmet place and they recommended the DOC band for them. I was upset too about it too and felt guilty about it. However once they got the helmets my feelings about it got much better.
They only needed them for 6 weeks because they grew so fast. It was a big improvement in short time and their heads look great now! The biggest pain in the process was having to come once a week for adjustments. Otherwise you and baby get used to them really quickly. The place we went to encourages you to start the process around 6 months for the best and fastest results. My boys were about 5 months adjusted when we started.
Peanut Butter and Jelly!
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