Flat Head? - Des Plaines,IL

I didn't have those foam form things so I don't know about them. I would put one of those night time musical/with a fish in it and lights on the side of the crib that he doesn't look at to get him to look the other way. Then when his head gets evened out you will need to alternate the side you put the toy on every so often.

Tummy time is a great technique to implement, and It's great that you are working with your pediatrician to address your concerns early. There are many other techniques you can implement to help with your baby's symptoms too. I would suggest the following ways to get your baby moving her head to the side she is not currently favoring. Try feeding her so that she must turn her head in the direction of the non-favored side. When approaching her, come from the side that requires her to turn her head to the side she isn’t favoring in order to see you. Place interesting and stimulating toys to the unflavored side, and ontinue to put her on her tummy as much as possible. Finally, when your baby is calm and relaxed, try gently massaging the neck muscles to get her to stretch both sides equally. Education and awareness is key, and it sounds like you are taking really taking charge of the situation!

we got a pillow with a hole in center so she laid straight when slepping and we used to put it alternate day. It got better with no other aid.

V.

My now 6 yr. old wore a cranial molding helmet when she was 1. Her flat spot, which was diagnosed as plagiocephaly, caused her forhead to boss on one side, her ears were out of alignment, and one eye and cheek were bigger than the other. My father was a family doctor, it took him being away from her 2 weeks to notice it, he had been monitoring her head size (it was kinda big for her age), and I just never noticed. (have a friend that told me I had been in denial something was wrong with her, nice). SO, since you have noticed, and your doctor is aware, you should lay him in the crib and alternate how you put him in. (so his head is postioned to the other side) and move the swing, bouncy, etc so if he is looking out into a room, he is going to want to turn his head in the direction needed. We did not catch this in time, so we did get our child a helmet, after testing, molding, etc and not cheap and a lot if insurance co. consider it cosmetic and do not pay. Anyway, he is little enough that this can be corrected by you. Keep an eye on it, take some photos, especially from the top of his head (look down at his head), watch for the facial changes I mentioned my daughter had. It may take a few months, but you can do it without a helmet. Also, alternate the arm you hold him in for feedings. If you want mre info on this, please contact me, it is STILL not easy to find a lot of info on this, I have some good info and websites.

Hi C.,

My son had signs of a flat head at 2 months and the doctors had me try more tummy time, alternating sleeping sides for 2 months. The flatness was still there and it seemed he had a preference for looking to his left side. So we were sent to a plastic surgeon (in OH that is who was specialized for this condition). He was diagnosed with plagiocephaly (flat head). We were also sent to a physical therapist to determine why. He was diagnosed with torticollis. Basically, he had preference towards one side. We did get the orthapedic helmet to help correct the flatness and he wore it for 4 months. My son was right at the degree of flatness where they recommended the helmet so we could have went either way. I am happy we decided to get the helmet, those few months in the long run were worth it. Now since he had torticollis, he had to go to therapy. Basically the physical therapist does exercises to help stretch and strengthen the muscles of the neck (especially the weak side). They also showed us exercises to do at home. He went until he was walking ensuring proper symmetrical mucscle development.

Hope this helps, e-mail me at ____@____.com if you have any questions.

L.

My cousin has a flat head. His head was flattened not in back, but on the corner above his eye and towards his ear. Since birth he looked like his head was flattened by a frying pan. His Mother would hide it by putting hats on his head and saying that he will grow out of it. Now he is 10 and he a very handsome, but his head is still smooshed. He never grew out of it and his head formed. I hope he never goes bald. Ask your doctor. Because the helmet is non surgical, I would get one. Again, if you have a light case of flat head, it will work itself out. I trust you know the difference. Good Luck Momma!

I would look at what he is doing during the day instead of altering or using "devices" at night. Is he in a bouncer/infant carrier/swing/on his back the majority of the day? If so you may want to use a sling/bjorn to keep him upright for long stretches at a time. I think the majority of babies get this to some degree.

My daughter had a similar problem and I noticed that she would always turn her head towards a light source like the window. So what I did was turning her in her crib during those first couple of months, maybe until 9months every now and then. So she would automatically turn the other side. Otherwise tummy time is crucial. She hated it, but I stuck to it, first only 2-3 minutes at a time and slowly increasing.

My son was beyond any device and we had to have him fitted for a helmet. He wore it all of 2 and a half months, and it seemed to help. He is now 20 months, and you can still kind of tell that he had a flattened spot. I would agree to lessen time spent in swings, bouncy's, carseats, or anything that the baby will be laying down. Good luck!

My son had a flat head...Starting to improve now that he is 9 months....Alternate his head position when he sleeps...Also, lots of tummy time even if he screams...I would time it...You don't want it to get too flat. Also lay him at oposite ends of his crib or bassinett so he is forced to look in the other direction which will help his head.