Funny Head

Dear Piper:
I agree this seems difficult for a baby, but I have a friend who used this method to reshape her daughter's head, and the little girl is three years old now and has a beautiful shaped head. I am certain she had trouble adapting to the helmet, but the process worked for her.

Hi Piper!

I haven't had this experience with my own little one, but a good friend of mine did. Her daughter had to wear a helmet for a while. It wasn't bad (the helmet was not like a bike helmet, and she decorated it with flower stickers and whatnot so Maya liked it). In the long run it'll be worth the hassle, and she'll be out of it before you know it.

:)
Jess

The helmet has been used very effectively to correct misshapened heads of infants and to prevent it from being a long term problem where the child's self esteem is effected.

This happened to my next door neighbor. If possible, please get a second opinion. Her son wore the helmet for several months when it turned out he was misdiagnosed and needed surgery. The helmet was very expensive and insurance did not cover it. It was a waste of precious time and money. If he truly does need it, then I would do it, but make sure he doesn't have another condition. Good luck!

It does seem extreme but the helmet really does correct the shape a child's head- a misshapen head can cause ears to be be at different heights and the eyes even look like they are not spaced correctly.
My grandson wore one for a few months - I think 5 months for 23 hours a day. So I researched the helmet particularly wondering as do you if it was necessary. I recommend you seriously consider the idea- my grandson and the many others I checked with have very positive results.

My neighbors 5 month old is getting something called a 'band' on Monday to correct his head which is flat on one side. It would have to be adjusted weekly. They're hoping that he only has to wear it for two months (but for 23 hours/day during that time). It should correct the shape of his head. If left untreated, she was told that it could affect the development of his jaw joint, position of his ear, and facial deformities later, among other things. It seems to be an uninvasive procedure to correct the shape of his head and eliminate the potential for other problems later. Left untreated, who knows what you'll get into.

My 14-month old granddaughter had this, too. Her pediatrician said if it didn't get better, she would have to wear the helmet. However, he suggested we rub her head in a circular motion on the "flat spot" several times a day to see if it would get better. I rubbed and rubbed and rubbed and now it is MUCH BETTER. In fact, it's not noticeable now. Best of luck with your little one!

Piper,
I've seen little ones with the helmets on, and though it's a shame that they have to wear them (actually, Im sure that it's harder on the parents than on the babies), if it corrects a problem that won't be able to be corrected later on, I'd say do it. Your child will definitely thank you for it later. Take care!

Piper,

My cousin's son had to wear a helmet and it really helped him. He was fretfull at first, but eventually got used to wearing the helmet. She had to take him once a month for adjustments due to growth. However, if your insurance is like most others it will only pay for the helmet and follow-up adjustments if there is danger of brain damage if the correction is not made. A friend of mine just took her son for a consulation and it was deemed cosmetic and not a threat for brain damage so the insurance will not pay. The helmet itself costs around $1500 and the adjustment visits are $260 a month for six months. I hope this info was of some help to you.

my daughter had a flat head and we did get her a helmet which worked great. She wore it for four months and LOVED it. She would cry when I'd take it off her! And, it kept her safe at an age when she did a lot of tumbling. That all being said, my second daughter (who is now 15 mos) had a flat head too. At the age of about 6 months I took her to a cranial osteopath (to try to avoid the helmet route again). He told me that he could fix her problem, that her flat head was due to her neck being tight. I was suspect but I figured his treatment couldn't hurt and it actually completely worked! Within a few weeks her head went back to a normal shape and she never needed a helmet.

My sister's son had to do this, but he actually had to have surgery as well. He was born with fuzed fizzures in his skull, and so, they literally had to "crack his skull". He wore a helmet for a while afterward to correct the positioning of the bone plates.

The helmet intervention is not actually that uncommon--they even make them with racing stripes. It worked for him, but his situation might've been more severe--his brain growth would have been affected.

Best wishes,

My son wore one for a flat spot on the back side of his head. If he did get it his cheek would have stuck out further on one side and he would have had a knot on his forehead where his cranial plate remained shifted. It causes facial assymetry. My son got his at 8 months old and wore it for 3 1/2 months. We put his name on it and put truck stickers all over it. I see kids all the time with them now. I am so glad we got it for him because if we did not his head and face would have been misshaped. My niece has the same problem and my brother opted not to get one for her and she is 2 and her cheek sticks out further on one side. It is real noticeable. I think they did want to get her one because of what other people would think. They did not want people to think something was wrong with their child. You just have to explain to people why he has it but most educated people with children know why they wear them. I am so glad we got my son one. He wore his for 23.5 hours a day and after a couple of weeks he got used to it and everybody else did to. It helped him too because he was started to walk and everytime he would fall he would not hurt his head because the helmet protected it. I highly recommend the cranial helmet. You can paint it and put stickers on it and make it fun.

My youngest's head ended up being flat on one side because he always turned his head to the left when he slept (always on his back of course). We had to take him to physcial therapy for several months to strengthen the muscles on the other side of his neck and make sure he was hitting all the physical milestones (rolling over, pulling up, crawling, climbing, etc.) using both sides of his body because he strongly favored his left side. I talked with his doctor about doing something to reshape his head, and she told me that the specialists at Duke tend to advise leaving it alone (because a child's head still grows and reshapes itself until age two), but the ones at UNC are more willing to use a helmet, so she said if I wanted to go the helmet route she would set up a referral to UNC. However, she was also of the opinion that my son's head would probably round out the closer he got to his second birthday (we addressed this around nine months). My son also had fairly little hair until he was almost 18 months old and the flatness was more apparent then. But his head did round out the older he got, and the more hair he got the less noticable it all was anyway. I don't know if this helps you at all, but I'm glad we just waited. I think his head may still be a tiny bit flat on that one side, but you can't tell by just looking at him, and few of us have perfectly rounded skulls anyway. Good luck making your decision.

My precious granddaughter had this problem and the same solution was suggested. They DID use the helmet method for a few months and it DID work beautifully! If I could I would attach a photo to show you the improvement. Her deformity was a large "crowning" to one side (as if a vacuum had JUST been used to deliver and it never changed appearance), very visible from every angle except the opposite side. Now you can't tell she was ever anything but perfect!
A little about me - I have four children, 9 grandchildren, college education, medical certifications, and was active firefighter/EMT for ten years.

The NEXT option after a helmet is surgery, which i think is just really extreme. It makes wearing a helmet not seem like such a bad thing.

The helmet basically keeps him from applying more pressure to one side of his than another which cause the "funny head" look.

HTH

This is just a question....did your child have a soft spot when he/she was born? Talk to your pediatrician about craniosynistosis.......

a friend of mine's little boy had the same problem and wore the helmet. She painted it and made it fun and he never minded at all. In fact, I don't think he even realized it was on! Now he has a perfect little head and is happy as could be. They said if he didn't wear it his muscles in his neck may not develop appropriately and that he may end up with a limited range of motion when turning his head.
Hope that helps, good luck!

My best friend's daughter had to wear one. It works. Her daughter's head was flat in the back, and the helmet let her head form back into a round shape, and she is perfectly normal looking now. Her second daughter had the flat head too, but didn't require the helmet, and it took shape on its own. If he needs it, do it. It's not a big deal to them once they get used to it.

I just wanted to say that my son had to wear a helmet during his first year of life. Honestly, it wasn't that bad. Yes the all day long thing was difficult at first. I hated to see him in it but we did it and as his head got better he didn't have to wear it as long daily. We even got to a point with him that we took off the chin straps completely because he did not even care it was on his head anymore. That took about 2-3 weeks. He got it on valentines day 06' and it was off by his birthday in October 06'. It broke my heart in the begining but i can tell you from experience, it wasnt that bad and it worked. I would say do it now, dont wait any longer. The longer you wait the harder it will be to correct the misshapen. My son was 4 1/2 months when he got his. Good luck.

My son had a mishappened head. Have you tried alternating the direction in the bed you lay him in (most babies turn their head toward the door)? Wouldn't hurt to try it for a few weeks.

I didn't like the idea but my daughter had to do the same for I think it was 3 or 4 months. But the time flies by. My daughter didn't mind it at all. The exercises that I had to do in addition to the helmet she didn't care for. But once I made that a blowing on the neck game while stretching her neck she laughed. It's harder on the parent because we are so protective of our kids. But most people actually asked why she had it on. And I painted it hot pink with stickers. And it works.
The casting isn't much fun for the baby but all and all. It's worth it. She's 4 1/2 now. Head still a little flat in back but I think being a mom u recognize the least little thing about your kids. I hope I Helped.

When my son (who is 8 now) was little he went through occupational therapy for his neck. Because he could only turn it to one side he would lay on only one side of his head at night and now his head is badly misshapen. The doctors told me it would probably correct itself. It didn't, and now I wish that I had pushed a helmet. Decide what would be best for him, a helmet now, or a misshapen head for life. The helmet is more common then you think. It would be hard to see them in a helmet when they are so little, but think about what will affect him down the road.

It may sound crazy but it works and as the Mom you need to diligent about him wearing it. You don't want him to have a misshapen head his whole life, that could cause not only physical challenges but emotional ones too--kids can be very cruel.

He will fight it, throw a fit at first but you need to make it look like fun & insist on him wearing it. The benefits are huge here. When my son was 8, he suffered a severe head injury. This resulted in him having a problem with his eyes due to optic nerve swelling. He had to wear a patch everyday, and we had to switch it from eye to eye every 2 hours. We did this for a few months until his eyes were stronger and he didn't need it. He hated it a lot of the time, but we persisted. In fact, his entire Sunday School class wore eye patches the day we returned to church--too sweet.

I know it looks weird, but I've seen kids in stores with them on & I know it's just something they have to do for a little while.

From what I've read, doctors are seeing an increase in the amount of children having to wear these helmets because we now put babies on their backs instead of tummies. They say because a babies brain develops rapidly in the 1st 6 months & they spend so much time sleeping, and on their back, often you'll get a child with a flattened head on the back & a protruding forehead. So the helmets help correct that. There was an article about a family going through this in the Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A14258-2005...)

This too shall pass Mama and know you are doing the best for you sweet one.

Best of luck to you.

I don't think I have ever heard or seen this!
Get another opinion from another doctor!
It sounds crazy alright.

Grace- marrried with three, I mean two kids (one being my husband)

from what i have heard thats about all they can do right now is the helmet. :( good luck!

Insurance companies will tell you that this is something "cosmetic", and I have to agreee. Unless your child's head is shaped in such a way that development is impaired, I don't see the need for this device. My little girl's head isn't perfectly round, but you know what? Her hair covers it wonderfully ;)

Take your child to a chiropractor. the bones in the head are not formed shut yet and a chiropractor can adjust them so that they will form together normaly. not all chiropractors will adjust the cranial bones, but some will i would call and find out who will. I have not had personal experanc but i know of a family that did and they went to a chiropractor and he helped them. I hope that this helps you.

Hello Piper K,
I don't have personal experiences from my own children, but several of my friend's have had children who wore a doc band for some months. If your pediatrician is recommending it you will still have to go for a consultation with the Cranial Facial Institute. They will do an analysis and from what I have seen a doc band is not ALWAYS their diagnosis. If the malformation is not going to cause later problems with brain, eye, speech development etc. They may recommend you just do exercises to help reshape your 11mo's head.
If however they determine the malformation is severe enough a doc band now is a kinder alternative to having issues later in life. Also early correction means wearing it for a shorter duration and prevention of severe complications later.
So. . . of my 3 friends who went for consult w/ CFI one did not get a doc band and had to do daily therapies w/ her daughter to retrain her neck muscles. Eventually the malformation corrected. She had scafycephaly (sp).
The other two had bands prescribed. One had torticollis and the diagnosis was later, she had to wear the band for longer, but now has a perfectly round head.
The third friend's daughter had brachicephaly. She had a reasonably early diagnosis, but the "damage" was done to her eyes during the time it took for insurance to approve her therapy so she now has to wear corrective lenses. It's possible instant action when she was diagnosed would have prevented that however.
The best of luck to you. There are many online resources available to help you to learn about your child's condition. If you can get the diagnosis from the ped. maybe try googling it and reading about what happens when you do and do not treat and go from there?
hth

Piper,I agree that would be kinda bad.How does your son lay most of the time?I don't know if it will help,but it's sure worth a try.Try making him lay in a position he normally doesn't.My first child was getting a flat head in the back,so I started her laying on her stomach to correct it.I'm sure it would have worked,but she died shortly after that of epstein -barr virus.I didn't get a chance to find out.She's with Jesus though and is happy and well.I'm glad,at least,she's being taken care of .She was a loan for a little while and I'm glad God gave her to me for that short time. Let me know. S. L.

Hey! I know this advice will sound "old school," but it works. Allow your 11-month-old to sleep on his tummy. Unless he has some condition which impedes him from rolling over, he's safe. The pressure on either side of his head as he lay on his side will gently form his head back to "normal."

A very close friend of mine had the same experience with her son. He did have to wear the helmet for the same ammount of time, but it was worth it to have the shape corrected and he didn't have to wear it for more than a few months. If I remember correctly, they even cut back the hours he had to wear it each day once the shape started to change back to normal. It may seem extreme, but correcting it now while the bones in the skull are still softer is the best thing. Any future teasing and cruel looks that can be avoided in the future would be worth it to me. My friend went to Vanderbuilt with her son, and he is two now and has a perfecltly normal shaped head.

Because babies have no tummy time because they sleep on their backs, this is a very common problem. If it is recommended, then it is probably necessary; however, ask the pros if his head will resolve itself over time. If not I'd do it, it will be difficult now, but he'll thank you later-especially if he's bald! :)
Blessings,
J.

I was born with what my family calls a cone head. I have seen pictures of my cone head. My mom sd she rubbed my head everyday. I am happy to say my head is perfectly round.

I read some of your answers, and I'm sure you've been relieved to find that your issue is so common -- and so simply corrected in most cases! I just wanted to add about chiropractors that the kind you'd want to see uses/applies 'cranial subluxation', so you'd want to ask about that if you call any. I go to one who uses 'SOT' (sacro-occipital technique), which includes cranial subluxation. At 50, it helps me a lot, so they probably could do wonders for your little one.

Blessings 2 U!

My friend has a (now) 2 year old that had head issues when he was younger. It was misshapen and he would frequently hit it against things (we assume when it would hurt him). She took him to a Craniosacral Therapist. I have not experienced this gentle treatment, but it worked WONDERS for my friend's son. I'm sure you can search the internet for practitioners in your area, but to get started, look at the resources page on www.mamaology.com. Anne Trembly is listed. She is the person that helped my friend. If you don't live near here (Marietta, OH), I'm sure she would be willing to help you find someone near you.

Good Luck! **By the way, as far as I know, the little boy never had to wear a helmet and he is perfectly fine now. My friend occasionally takes him back to be seen - just like a follow up check up.

It just may work. Many cultures take the time to gently shape babies heads during the first month of life by rubbing their heads while their skull is still soft and maleable like clay. Because your child is 11 months old, the bones are more set so I guess the helmet is for the head like braces or retainers are for teeth in this case. I occasionally see babies with helmets and trust me, I see past the helmet to see the cute face and smile. No one worth their salt would judge a baby. I don't know the current shape of your child's head but, do something now because you may not be able to do anything later.

Good luck. The helmet is not forever.

my son had one and they get used to it really quick. Its not as bad as it sounds. Altho they are $3000 and not covered by insurance!