My son has developed a small flat spot, I try to get him to sleep on his side but some how he ends up flat on his back. His pediatrician wasn't to concerned but said to work on getting him to sleep on his side. I have tired everything from swaddling him, putting him on his side with towels rolled up behind him, to sleep inclines and nothing is working. I don't know what else to do. I don't want him to end up in a helmet. Any suggestions on what I can do to get him to not sleep flat on his back, and if he does how can I get him to turn his head to the side and stay that way?
During the day it isn't an issue, we do tummy time during the day, and he also sits up if not by himself, in his bebepod chair.
I just wanted to thank everyone for all the advice. The flat spot is slowly disappearing. He spends all day in his activity center, bebepod or on his tummy and he loves it. When he goes down for a nap I put him on his side but still ends up on his back. But his ped said it's fine as long as during the day he isn't on his back. So again, thank you all so much! I will continue to do what I am doing, and try a few things you guys have suggested.
i would do as much tummy times as possible when he is awake. Helmets are rare-and once he has hair, any flat spots will be covered.
Put him on his tummy and see how he does with that. At this age had can lift his head so he should be fine. The only real time for concern of sids is right after a vaccine when their little systems go haywire because of all the toxins introduced in to the nervous system.
my son slept on his tummy from week 1 and he is still alive.
All babies get flat spots... their skulls really are flexible little things! What with the open sutures and the fontanelle, talk about mobile.
What will happen is this:
He'll start becoming more mobile himself. He'll start sitting up, rolling over, squishing his face into places that you're sure he's either going to suffocate or die of CO2 poisoning, all kinds of movement that are going to have you yearning to duct tape him back flat on his back.Then he'll also start dragging his face on the carpet, bouncing his head backwards into the couch or chair (rocking while sitting), and riding in a different car seat.
Oy! How DO we all avoid brain damage?
In any event: All of these repetitive motions and new positions will add new flat spots and round out old ones, until eventually, everything normalizes out. It takes quite some time for the fontanelle and sutures to close. Until then, take a deep breath. It's going to be okay.
try having him sleep on his tummy. my daughter has a cute little round head lol and all i did was always had her on her side or tummy. if your son is already rolling then hes putting himself in that position because hes most comfortable that way. also do a lot of tummy time and avoid him being on his back all day. i hope this is helpful!
I didn't want my kid in a helmet until it was too late. We did the the helmet for 6 months and did see a real difference but once they get about the 18 month mark their head shape can't be changed much because the bones have fused. I'd check with your doc and see if he thinks your son has a condition called tortacolis (i know i spelled that one wrong!!). It basicaly means that the muscles in his neck are short making it uncomfortable to sleep with his head to the side. Stretching these muscles can make a HUGE difference. Lean his head from side to side as though you are trying to have his ear touch his shoulder. Also turn his head from left to right. They don't love it but after time my son made a game of it. And no you cannot pop your kids head off!! My biggest concern was hurting him. Now that he is 2 and i am ready to pop his little head off I laugh about it. You won't hurt him so get to stretching! It will make a huge difference. Good luck
Do you give your son tummy time every day? He is 4 months old, so he needs to start developing his strength to learn how to crawl. The less time he spends on his back, the better. My daughter HATED tummy time and would just lie there and scream, but I made sure to give her tummy time every day. Start with just 1-2 minutes if he hates it and slowly work your way up to longer durations. Do it several times a day when he is awake so he can do "pushups" and he will get stronger and stronger. Then he will get comfortable being on his tummy when he is awake and you won't need to worry so much about when he is sleeping on his back, since he is not on his back when awake.
He needs more tummy time during the day. Also, use of a swing and bouncy chair will help as well. Basically he doesn't need to be on his back all day long. As for sleeping, sorry I am all about babies that young sleeping on their backs. You can place his head at different sides of his bed every night.
Good luck!
Hi jennifer,
We also ended up in a helmet as our baby's eyes and ears began to be affected. For us, it was the carseat that we think was the biggest "flattening" culprit as we were in the car alot and then just lifted out the carseat into the stroller!
With our second child, we used a Boppy Nogin Nest. We put one in her carseat, swing, etc. Her head never got a flat spot. This suggestion is only for daytime or naptimes when he is supervised, not for sleeping at night. S. :)
My son had torticolis when he was about 6 months old. (His head turned one way more than the other.) My doctor sent us to physical therapy. We had to do stretching exercises. Sit the baby on your lap and with one hand get him to turn his head as far as he can each way. Maybe if you try those stretches, he might be more willing to sleep on his side. I also had to get out the baby wedge for him to sleep on his side. Hope this helps.
For most the flat spot is a visual issue. Most moms with that concern don't have to worry about the health of their child. However, feel free to talk to your doctor about it but it sounds like you've already done this. Your son is at the age where he can or will be rolling over and changing position on his own. You can't make him sleep the way you want him to unless you stand over him while he is sleeping and move him back every time he rolls on his back. Even if you could to that it would be eliminating your sleep and disturbing his. All you can really do is work on getting him to nap with his head in different positions durring the day and give him plenty of time where he is sitting up with his head unsupported or looking in different directions. Tummy time, time in an adult's lap, sitting up in a stroller are all options.
Hi!
I went through this with my youngest son (now 4). I tell you this story because I was sooo worried about it, like you. My son's head was so flat that my pediatrician became worried and referred us to CHOC hospital. He evrn suggested we safety pin his clothes to the bed to keep him on his side. I coildn't do that. I just rolled him over whenever I checked on him.
When we went yo CHOC, the specialist there said that his forehead was slightly forward from the flat spot, but he didn't see any reason to put him in a helmet. He said most people have a flatter spot on their head somewhere. Thankfully out hair hides it.
Once the specialist said that, the pediatrician relaxed and we have a darling normal boy with no noticable problem with his head.
I hope this helps!
L.
Hi Jennifer. I know you've already gotten a lot of responses but here's mine. I had the SAME issue with my daughter. She hated tummy time and I didn't feel comfortable forcing her to do it for the sake of her not being on her back. I was really worried about the helmet too. I know it's more common now, but I just felt uneasy about her wearing one. Anyhow, some suggestions:
*tummy time (if your son is okay with it)
*sit him in a bumbo chair (if he can hold his head up on his own) This chair has back support but no head support. It'll last a while. It's good to have later when you want to feed him and you're at a friend's house with no high chair
*wear him in a baby carrier like a baby bjorn
*buy a "Noggin Nest" I tried this out and I'm not sure if it helped but it's not too expensive and doesn't hurt. Here's a link so you know what I'm talking about: http://shopboppy.com/shop/index.php?main_page=index&c...
I hope these suggestions help. I know how it feels to deal with this issue. If it makes you feel better, I did all of the above and my daughter is now 14 months old, never wore a helmet, and has a nicely shaped head. Good luck to you.
hi jennifer, you have some great advice below. i wanted to share with you that my 6 month old son also has a small flat spot, and i was really concerned. my pediatricin was too concerned as well. however they gave me a referal to see a specialist. we went to see a specialist just this month. going to see the specialist was great for me -- he put my mind at ease. at the visit, they ask a series of questions and do all sorts of measurements. at the end, he told me that baby was within the normal range. you wouldn't believe the relief i felt. a pediatric physical therapist accompanied him, they recommended the neck exercises every time he feeds. he validated positioning, tummy times, sleeping on tummy, so much. ask your pediatrician for a referral and put your mind at ease. :)
You will not spoil a baby by holding them too much. He should be spending more of his awake time on his belly. If you have him sleeping on his tummy at night, have a fan on him, that helps to keep the air circulating and helps to prevent sids. try having him spend some time in his highchair with some toys. let him learn to sit up a bit.
If you are really concerned, talk to your doctor...
R.
We had the same problem with our son and didn't want to do the helmet. The doctor told us to buy a 10 lb bag of rice and lay him on his side at night so he couldn't roll on his back. Also holding him upright as much as possible. Both these things made a huge difference and we didn't need a helmet.
Your son is supposed to sleep on his back...it's a preventative measure for avoiding SIDS. Let him sleep on his back. He'll develop of flat spot, but it'll go away. Very soon he'll start sitting up, moving around and being on his back less...all opportunities for it to go away. In the meantime, make sure you give him lots of supervised tummy time and play with him in different positions, but by all means let him sleep on his back!
-M
Did the Dr. check his neck muscles? If his neck muscles are even a little too tight you may need to do some home physical therapy with him. Also, the helmet is not a bad thing. My son needed one and he has a great little round head. It was better than the alternative of him having major facial reconstruction surgery when he was three. You might want to get a consultation with a specialist as well. I would highly recommend Dr. Elmendorf at Loma Linda in the cranial facial clinic. You can get an appointment by calling their pediatric department.
