I have a 5 mo old little girl, and I have been noticeing for awhile that her head seems to turn really good to the right, but not as good to the left. She almost turns it wierdly to the right, like too far. Well now I have started noticeing that her left arm seems to be a little stiff compared to the right. Like when I pick her up under her arms, the right goes naturally up as you would expect, but the left is stiff feeling. She grabs for things with the left hand and does turn her head left...just not as freely as the right side. Her mind/brains seem totally up to par, smiles, coos, reacts to things, etc. She even started rolling over a couple weeks ago : ) (we also have a 3.5 yr old little girl.)
I just had a doc appt and mentioned this to her today. She recomended seeing a physical therapist to get thier opinion. Has anyone dealt with this? Do you think she just needs more tummy time to stregthen those muscles? Could it be a medical issue/problem? I am starting to get a little paranoid/worried! Thanks for any advice or stories : )
**Update: I have been noticing the head thing for atleast a couple monthes, the arm thing for about 3-4 weeks now. And after reading about "Torticollis"...I am pretty convinced that she may have a mild case of that...VERY simllar to what I see going on with her, thanks so much for the advice already : )
It could be a medical issue. Seeing a physical therapist is a good place to start in making an evaluation.
I've heard of a condition called torticollis on this site. Here is a web site for it. http://www.babycenter.com/0_torticollis_10912.bc
I would actually see if you can find a chiroprator that treats infants. Most babies especally if they are born naturally can have issues with their back and neck. They should know what to do to help.
Good luck and God Bless!
First, don't panic. It could be anything. Literally. Has it just been a couple days? Maybe she slept funny and has a 'crick' in her neck (which can affect her arm) I'm not sure about physical therapists. Don't know enough about their training. Maybe a pinched nerve from sleeping funny. Chiropractor can correct that in a couple minutes time.
If nothing seems to work, as a last resort, I would ask for tests, although the only one I can think of is a test for cerabral palsy (I only say this because I just had a class that had a child in it with CP and it is on top of my brain- I think a child with that usually has stiffess on both sides)
I would see a chiropractor for torticollis, along with the physical therapist. You don't want their spine to grow in the wrong direction, causing scoliosis or nerve impingement. The spine houses the nervous system which controls all bodily function! Not something to mess around with.
My sons have a blood disorder. They see a physical therapist to make sure they have the movement they need. When I took my 5 month old in last month, she did mention torticullosis. This is tightening of the muscles that limits range of motion, as she explained it. Most babies have a preferred side they like to look to. My son's is the left. He looks right but tilts his head when he does. Her recommendation is more tummy time, holding him in my lap but not totally supporting him. We hold him in our lap but leaning forward a bit. This helps him strengthen his back muscles since he has to control them to pull himself more upright. Also, we should get him to reach for things more--putting things in front of him and have him reach forward or up to get it. I would take him to a PT for evaluation and see if there are recommended exercises or activities to do.
My daughter had a mild case of this. I caught it pretty early - right when she was getting old enough to follow objects. My pediatrician noticed it on the visit before I mentioned anything.
My pediatrician taught me some gentle stretches I could do and they took care of the issue. She said if they didn't work, we'd need to see a physical therapist, but she would rather avoid that.
Depending on how severe it is, you might get in touch with another ped or a physical therapist to see if they can teach you those stretches to try at home.
My son, now 5mos, wouldn't turn his head to the left at all for about 2mos.... this was probably from month 1-3... The dr said to always put the interesting things to that side when he is awake (ie, put him facing you that way so he has to look to the left to see us). He really struggled for awhile, but it was almost an overnight thing where he just started looking that way a lot. I think getting a couple months older helped as well, b/c he had more muscle in general to help. You can easily see a PT, but sometimes by the time you see one something has changed or gotten better. Mainly doing basic range of motion exercises will help. Good luck and I'm sure she is fine!!
I would do as the doctor recommended and see the physical therapist. The doctor knows he or she could give a more educated and experienced opinion and wants you to have the benefit of that in determining if there is truly anything out of the norm with your daughter. Don't diagnose or worry or be paranoid, none will help in any event anyway, just follow through with the therapist and what they recommend to best help your daughter.
My son has torticollis and it sounds a lot like your daughter but my son's is a bit more severe. If the doctor appointment you just had was with a pediatrician they should have been able to diagnose this. Seeing a phsical therapist is the perfect place to start. They can show you specific exercises to do with her to help stregthen the muscles. My son has been going for about two months now and I can defenitly see such a difference. Depending on your insurance you might need a referal from you ped.
Was the doctor appointment for YOU and you just asked the physician her opinion on your daughter. If it were *me*, I would take my daughter to a pediatrician and ask for testing but I work for a laboratory and provide genetic testing. Good luck!
First, be careful to self diagnosis your daughter with information that you find online. Whenever I work with parents, I encourage them to be very cautious when gathering information from online sources. Your daughter is still relatively young and this could be nothing. However, there is a possibility that it could signal something else. Usually what will happen is that you will begin working with a physical therapist. If the physical therapist doesn't see any type of improvement than your daughter will likely be sent to get additional testing. Most of the time, children end up showing improvement while working with the physical therapist and catch up fairly quickly.
"The child psychologist who thought she had all the answers to parenting until she became one herself." www.themommypsychologist.com
