Re: Hadley's 1st cast

[Guest guest]

Hi Shauna,

That's is great that Dr. Sturm was able to get so much improvement.

Adjustign to the cast is not easy, but gets better overtime. Give it

the weekend. If hadley is still very uncomfortable call linda in the

morning.

When was Hadley's last x-rays done, prior to Chicago's? And what

postion was the first x-ray compared to Chicago's?

I understadn your frustration on wanting Hadley's curvet o be

corrected, but as Miss Mehta indicated to us with Max's curve int eh

80's, the castign process is goign to be a slow gradual process.

My biggest suggestion, having a child with such a high curve and

being casted by Dr. Sturm is to get a follow-up x-ray in about 4-6

weeks to see if the cast is still holding the spine at 17 degrees.

If it is holding that's great. If it is not holding, then hadley may

be a child like Max who needs to casted more frequently (every 8

weeks) than the norm (12-16).

My heart goes out to you. I know the feeling to hear that casting

may not work, but don't give up, you're giving Hadley many

opportunities to get better without surgery at such a young age.

Max just started to crawl 1 month before his cast and he readjusted

very quickly. It's hard to not want to modify the cast for hadley's

comfort. Look at Hadley's thighs when she tries to sit...if it

seems it's cuttign her leg circulation then call ASAP.

Please keep us posted on how she does.

Aekta

>

> Hadley got her 2nd opinion on wednesday at Shriners in Chicago and

it

> went great. They reccommended her to get casted right away so we

> ended up staying over night and they casted her in the morning.

Turns

> out Hadley's curve progressed now from 51 degrees to 74 degrees.

On

> wed. the dr was more optimistic about the cast correcting it

becasue

> she was in the 50 degree area and he said anything 50 degrees and

> under is more likely to get corrected than if above 50 degeres. So

i

> was excited about her getting casted. But yesterday when they

xrayed

> her before her casting sitting up, she was no longer in that

> category. Does anybody have any experiences of there child above a

50

> degree curve getting corrected. He said he didnt like the fact

that

> it was 74 degrees. That freaked me out! He said he's just hoping

it

> will hold her curve from getting worse. I wanted it to correct it!

> Casting i guess went ok. To me, it went horrible. it was the worst

> day i might have ever had. The good news is that they got her

curve

> down to a 17 degrees in the cast. He said that was really good and

> its good that she is so young and flexable!

> Today has been really hard. Everybody says she'll adjust but she

> can't even sit up! She was pulling up on furniture and starting to

> climb steps before and crawling, but now she just falls over

because

> the cast is so heavy. It is so hard seeing her frustrated. Before

she

> was so proud of herself now she cant do anything!

> Her straps up over her shoulders go up super high above her

shoulders

> so she can barely turn her head! Is that normal?

> Her cast goes down super low. The nurse said she hasnt seen one

that

> low! Because of her curve area i guess. But it makes it almost

> impossible to diaper her. Any advice?

> Im just really not likeing this experience so far exspecially if

now

> it wont correct her! I need some help, advice, and encouragement

if

> anybody has any!

> Thanks

> Shauna

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Shauna,

That's is great that Dr. Sturm was able to get so much improvement.

Adjustign to the cast is not easy, but gets better overtime. Give it

the weekend. If hadley is still very uncomfortable call linda in the

morning.

When was Hadley's last x-rays done, prior to Chicago's? And what

postion was the first x-ray compared to Chicago's?

I understadn your frustration on wanting Hadley's curvet o be

corrected, but as Miss Mehta indicated to us with Max's curve int eh

80's, the castign process is goign to be a slow gradual process.

My biggest suggestion, having a child with such a high curve and

being casted by Dr. Sturm is to get a follow-up x-ray in about 4-6

weeks to see if the cast is still holding the spine at 17 degrees.

If it is holding that's great. If it is not holding, then hadley may

be a child like Max who needs to casted more frequently (every 8

weeks) than the norm (12-16).

My heart goes out to you. I know the feeling to hear that casting

may not work, but don't give up, you're giving Hadley many

opportunities to get better without surgery at such a young age.

Max just started to crawl 1 month before his cast and he readjusted

very quickly. It's hard to not want to modify the cast for hadley's

comfort. Look at Hadley's thighs when she tries to sit...if it

seems it's cuttign her leg circulation then call ASAP.

Please keep us posted on how she does.

Aekta

>

> Hadley got her 2nd opinion on wednesday at Shriners in Chicago and

it

> went great. They reccommended her to get casted right away so we

> ended up staying over night and they casted her in the morning.

Turns

> out Hadley's curve progressed now from 51 degrees to 74 degrees.

On

> wed. the dr was more optimistic about the cast correcting it

becasue

> she was in the 50 degree area and he said anything 50 degrees and

> under is more likely to get corrected than if above 50 degeres. So

i

> was excited about her getting casted. But yesterday when they

xrayed

> her before her casting sitting up, she was no longer in that

> category. Does anybody have any experiences of there child above a

50

> degree curve getting corrected. He said he didnt like the fact

that

> it was 74 degrees. That freaked me out! He said he's just hoping

it

> will hold her curve from getting worse. I wanted it to correct it!

> Casting i guess went ok. To me, it went horrible. it was the worst

> day i might have ever had. The good news is that they got her

curve

> down to a 17 degrees in the cast. He said that was really good and

> its good that she is so young and flexable!

> Today has been really hard. Everybody says she'll adjust but she

> can't even sit up! She was pulling up on furniture and starting to

> climb steps before and crawling, but now she just falls over

because

> the cast is so heavy. It is so hard seeing her frustrated. Before

she

> was so proud of herself now she cant do anything!

> Her straps up over her shoulders go up super high above her

shoulders

> so she can barely turn her head! Is that normal?

> Her cast goes down super low. The nurse said she hasnt seen one

that

> low! Because of her curve area i guess. But it makes it almost

> impossible to diaper her. Any advice?

> Im just really not likeing this experience so far exspecially if

now

> it wont correct her! I need some help, advice, and encouragement

if

> anybody has any!

> Thanks

> Shauna

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Shauna,

Don't give up hope yet....I wasin your place about 2 weeks ago, when Noelle's

first cast was done in Rochester and also thought of it as the worst day in my

life. Noelle could barely walk at first after they cast her, but 2 weeks later

I am happy to say that she is moving around almost as normally as she did

before! You've gotten great correction in that cast, which should make you very

hopeful for her future!!!! Noelle was at more than 45 degrees before casting

and also got down to 17 in her first cast. Dr. said she was pretty

flexible and that the correction she got made him very optimistic for her.

You've gotten even better correction than that, which also leads me to believe

that Hadley's curve is also very flexible and responsive to treatment.... A

really. really good sign. Diapering is a challenge because of the tightness,

but it seems to have loosened a bit around the bottom making it a bit easier to

tuck the diaper in. You will adjust and Hadley

will adjust even faster.... She is going to amaze you!!!! I believe that this

correction is a very positive sign for you and when you go back for your cast

change, your doctor will know a lot more based on her numbers at the next

x-ray..... Hang in there! Hugs, Steph

srorabeck wrote:

Hadley got her 2nd opinion on wednesday at Shriners in Chicago and it

went great. They reccommended her to get casted right away so we

ended up staying over night and they casted her in the morning. Turns

out Hadley's curve progressed now from 51 degrees to 74 degrees. On

wed. the dr was more optimistic about the cast correcting it becasue

she was in the 50 degree area and he said anything 50 degrees and

under is more likely to get corrected than if above 50 degeres. So i

was excited about her getting casted. But yesterday when they xrayed

her before her casting sitting up, she was no longer in that

category. Does anybody have any experiences of there child above a 50

degree curve getting corrected. He said he didnt like the fact that

it was 74 degrees. That freaked me out! He said he's just hoping it

will hold her curve from getting worse. I wanted it to correct it!

Casting i guess went ok. To me, it went horrible. it was the worst

day i might have ever had. The good news is that they got her curve

down to a 17 degrees in the cast. He said that was really good and

its good that she is so young and flexable!

Today has been really hard. Everybody says she'll adjust but she

can't even sit up! She was pulling up on furniture and starting to

climb steps before and crawling, but now she just falls over because

the cast is so heavy. It is so hard seeing her frustrated. Before she

was so proud of herself now she cant do anything!

Her straps up over her shoulders go up super high above her shoulders

so she can barely turn her head! Is that normal?

Her cast goes down super low. The nurse said she hasnt seen one that

low! Because of her curve area i guess. But it makes it almost

impossible to diaper her. Any advice?

Im just really not likeing this experience so far exspecially if now

it wont correct her! I need some help, advice, and encouragement if

anybody has any!

Thanks

Shauna

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Hi Shauna,

Don't give up hope yet....I wasin your place about 2 weeks ago, when Noelle's

first cast was done in Rochester and also thought of it as the worst day in my

life. Noelle could barely walk at first after they cast her, but 2 weeks later

I am happy to say that she is moving around almost as normally as she did

before! You've gotten great correction in that cast, which should make you very

hopeful for her future!!!! Noelle was at more than 45 degrees before casting

and also got down to 17 in her first cast. Dr. said she was pretty

flexible and that the correction she got made him very optimistic for her.

You've gotten even better correction than that, which also leads me to believe

that Hadley's curve is also very flexible and responsive to treatment.... A

really. really good sign. Diapering is a challenge because of the tightness,

but it seems to have loosened a bit around the bottom making it a bit easier to

tuck the diaper in. You will adjust and Hadley

will adjust even faster.... She is going to amaze you!!!! I believe that this

correction is a very positive sign for you and when you go back for your cast

change, your doctor will know a lot more based on her numbers at the next

x-ray..... Hang in there! Hugs, Steph

srorabeck wrote:

Hadley got her 2nd opinion on wednesday at Shriners in Chicago and it

went great. They reccommended her to get casted right away so we

ended up staying over night and they casted her in the morning. Turns

out Hadley's curve progressed now from 51 degrees to 74 degrees. On

wed. the dr was more optimistic about the cast correcting it becasue

she was in the 50 degree area and he said anything 50 degrees and

under is more likely to get corrected than if above 50 degeres. So i

was excited about her getting casted. But yesterday when they xrayed

her before her casting sitting up, she was no longer in that

category. Does anybody have any experiences of there child above a 50

degree curve getting corrected. He said he didnt like the fact that

it was 74 degrees. That freaked me out! He said he's just hoping it

will hold her curve from getting worse. I wanted it to correct it!

Casting i guess went ok. To me, it went horrible. it was the worst

day i might have ever had. The good news is that they got her curve

down to a 17 degrees in the cast. He said that was really good and

its good that she is so young and flexable!

Today has been really hard. Everybody says she'll adjust but she

can't even sit up! She was pulling up on furniture and starting to

climb steps before and crawling, but now she just falls over because

the cast is so heavy. It is so hard seeing her frustrated. Before she

was so proud of herself now she cant do anything!

Her straps up over her shoulders go up super high above her shoulders

so she can barely turn her head! Is that normal?

Her cast goes down super low. The nurse said she hasnt seen one that

low! Because of her curve area i guess. But it makes it almost

impossible to diaper her. Any advice?

Im just really not likeing this experience so far exspecially if now

it wont correct her! I need some help, advice, and encouragement if

anybody has any!

Thanks

Shauna

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Thank you everybody for advice and encouragement. I had one of my friends pick

up 3 different kinds of diapers because the generic ones we were using wasnt

giving us enough elastic on the sides. I cant seem to tuck the diaper under her

cast at all! It is way too low. All the way down her but and if i diaper her

under it, the diaper is basically off her. Ive been doing it over and using the

pads around the cast so it doesnt get wet. Has anybody done that? It seems to

work, i think... Unfortanetly her cast did get wet once and i untaped it, washed

it, blew dry it, and taped it back up, but i still think it stinks. Any advice?

Id hate for her to smell like pee for the next 2-3 months!

She's still not adjusting to it!

Aekta-you mentioned that max only started crawling amonth before he was

casted. How long after casting did he start crawling? Hadley started crawling

about a month ago as well. It seems like it would be really hard to crawl in.

You also said in 4-6 wks go back to see if its still holding the 17 degress they

got it to. Is it possible for it not to? How could it not, she's so tight in

there! The nurse- Jeanna mentioned a little boy named max who had surgery

recently. Would that be you?

Everybody said there is hope for Hadley in getting corrected. Could any of the

mom's with children with 60+ degree curves chime in and give me any

encouragement? Any experience in your child being corrected? Or any moms that

there kid got surgery? Is it likely for Hadley to get it? What are the ages of

most children?

Thanks again. Any more advice with diapering and getting the smell out would

be great too!

Shauna

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Hi Shauna,

My son is 20 months and in his first cast. He is also not

walking yet. With the first cast, he could not crawl at all in the

beginning, so we built him a long bench about 7 inches or so off the

floor so that he would have a place to put his arms and play when he

was on the floor. He could also stand to play, but that gets tiring

after awhile and in the beginning, he was still getting his balance.

With , it was a slow process and it was weeks before he could go

back to crawling as he did before the cast. Initally, he would try to

crawl...cry...stop...and I would put him back to his bench. the bench

was a real life-saver for us in the beginning b/c it gave him more

indpendence to play on his own without me holding him all the time.

If you want a picture, let me know. Now, though, he crawls

everywhere! I know it's hard to believe, but they really do adjust.

's cast was also very very low and I remember wondering how in

the world we were going to get that diaper on in the beginning.

Although you are not supposed to put anything up into the cast...and

never ever to use anything sharp....we did use a tongue depressor (b/c

they had used it in the casting room), but only in the fold of the

diaper. So, you fold the diaper back, place your fingers in the

crease, tuck it with your fingers a little and then we used the tongue

depressor to push the fold of the diaper a little farther up, being

very careful with the cast & 's skin. Hopefully, this is not

bad advice...but it works for me and I can diaper now in no

time. Also, we've had no leaks. Oh, also, we wrapped the whole front

piece with tape. I laid him down on his back on the floor (letting

him watch TV), and we gently got tape around the whole front piece,

with our fingers. It was tricky, but I think it's kept pee from

leaking in the front.

I hope this makes sense. Best of luck.

>

> Thank you everybody for advice and encouragement. I had one of my

friends pick up 3 different kinds of diapers because the generic ones

we were using wasnt giving us enough elastic on the sides. I cant seem

to tuck the diaper under her cast at all! It is way too low. All the

way down her but and if i diaper her under it, the diaper is basically

off her. Ive been doing it over and using the pads around the cast so

it doesnt get wet. Has anybody done that? It seems to work, i think...

Unfortanetly her cast did get wet once and i untaped it, washed it,

blew dry it, and taped it back up, but i still think it stinks. Any

advice? Id hate for her to smell like pee for the next 2-3 months!

> She's still not adjusting to it!

> Aekta-you mentioned that max only started crawling amonth before

he was casted. How long after casting did he start crawling? Hadley

started crawling about a month ago as well. It seems like it would be

really hard to crawl in. You also said in 4-6 wks go back to see if

its still holding the 17 degress they got it to. Is it possible for it

not to? How could it not, she's so tight in there! The nurse- Jeanna

mentioned a little boy named max who had surgery recently. Would that

be you?

> Everybody said there is hope for Hadley in getting corrected.

Could any of the mom's with children with 60+ degree curves chime in

and give me any encouragement? Any experience in your child being

corrected? Or any moms that there kid got surgery? Is it likely for

Hadley to get it? What are the ages of most children?

> Thanks again. Any more advice with diapering and getting the smell

out would be great too!

> Shauna

>

> __________________________________________________

>

[Guest guest]

Hey Shauna! I am with you on the smelly pee-pee- issue bigtime!!!! The first

week Noelle was in the cast I think she urinated all the way up her back at

least 5 times and she was starting to get a little ripe! I did exactly what you

did, which was untape the bottom of the cast, pull out the white gauzy " shirt "

and wash it with a cloth, blow dry and re-petal it. Whew! What a process!!!!!

Pampers Cruisers work the best for us so far and other moms advised me to put a

Poise pad right in the diaper like a maxipad, so I bought the medium ones and

did that. I have also gotten something called a diaper doubler which is like a

maxipad with no adhesive and I stuff it horizontally into the back of her

cast(so the pad is parrallel to the bottom of the cast). At first, I took one

mom's suggestion and placed Noelle on her stomach across her daddy's lap and

that gave me juat a bit of room in the back to tuck the diaper and part of the

pad up there. Now, it's a little looser and

I can put the pad in with her laying on the changing table. The good news is

that after a few days the of staying dry, Noelle's smell went away. Another mom

suggested to cut up the odor eater pads that you put in your shoes into strips

and tape them to the outside of her cast being careful to keep it away from her

skin. I know how hard it is to watch your child struggle to do things that she

used to do easily, but she will do it.... Give ger some time and I bet in a

week or two you'll be posting about how incredible she's moving around! Hugs to

you! Steph

Shauna Rorabeck wrote: Thank you everybody for

advice and encouragement. I had one of my friends pick up 3 different kinds of

diapers because the generic ones we were using wasnt giving us enough elastic on

the sides. I cant seem to tuck the diaper under her cast at all! It is way too

low. All the way down her but and if i diaper her under it, the diaper is

basically off her. Ive been doing it over and using the pads around the cast so

it doesnt get wet. Has anybody done that? It seems to work, i think...

Unfortanetly her cast did get wet once and i untaped it, washed it, blew dry it,

and taped it back up, but i still think it stinks. Any advice? Id hate for her

to smell like pee for the next 2-3 months!

She's still not adjusting to it!

Aekta-you mentioned that max only started crawling amonth before he was casted.

How long after casting did he start crawling? Hadley started crawling about a

month ago as well. It seems like it would be really hard to crawl in. You also

said in 4-6 wks go back to see if its still holding the 17 degress they got it

to. Is it possible for it not to? How could it not, she's so tight in there! The

nurse- Jeanna mentioned a little boy named max who had surgery recently. Would

that be you?

Everybody said there is hope for Hadley in getting corrected. Could any of the

mom's with children with 60+ degree curves chime in and give me any

encouragement? Any experience in your child being corrected? Or any moms that

there kid got surgery? Is it likely for Hadley to get it? What are the ages of

most children?

Thanks again. Any more advice with diapering and getting the smell out would be

great too!

Shauna

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Hi Shauna,

From our experience with Max, Pampers cruisers work the best during

the day. We liked LUVs at night-it held more urine. But I tried

Huggies Goodnights that worked just as well (I think the smallest in

these are size 3). Do what you can to tuck in, that was key for us.

We limited fluids before bed. How old is Hadley again? We gave Max

a hearty snack (yogurt, bananas, etc...)and some sips of water

before bed. It was our transition to phase out milk before bed and

get his teeth brusehed too.

I never tried the pads-sorry I can't help on this, but many other

parents have.

The smell will fade in the next few days as the cast dries more.

You seemed to do your best in cleaning and drying it. Max had urine,

poop, and vomit at some point during his 10 casts and never really

smelled.

If Hadley can lift her arms above her head and has rotation in her

shoulders, she'll crawl in a few days. She has much adjusting to do

to the cast and to re-figure thing out. I also used early

intervention (Birth to 3 in WI) physical therapy to help Max work

with his cast. Although Dr. Sturm never thought that was necessary I

thought Max could benefit and he did. He stayed within range of

reaching his milestones.

Please keep in mind she's only had her cast about 36 hours. Her body

is adusting from anesthesia, the casting, possibly some discomfort,

and her limitations, and traveling.

Max's curve was rapidly progressive, despite bracing or casting.

Every child is different. Max may also have a connective tissue

disorder that can casue his scoliosis to be progressive.

I am amazed at Hadley's flexibility in that Dr. Sturm got such a

large improvement. That is very encouraging. That percentage of

improvement was not ever seen in-cast with Max.

Getting an x-ray in 4-6 weeks will determine if the cast is still

holdign the curve or if the curve is aggressive (like Max's) and

continued to progress. This will also help to determine when to re-

cast. As Hedley grows during the next few weeks, the cast will

loosen up a little.

Max's first cast was a nightmare...I had no clue what to expect.

Everyday gets better. Hadley will amaze you daily on how she

adjusts.

I believe nurse you are referrinng to is Jeanna/ (in early 30's,

brown hair, glasses. Yes, Max did have surgery (VEPTR II) 3 weeks

ago because his curve progressed very rapidly. We are very grateful

and fortunate to have casted prior to surgery. This has allowed Max

to grow from a 13 month old body to a 33 month old body. We knew

from Day 1 of meeting with Dr. Sturm and all the other doctors

including Ms. Mehta that Max would need surgery, but he strongly

recommended casting as the brace failed and Max was too little to

not try all non-surgical treatment options.

One more thing, Max had a large lumbar curve on his lower back. In

my opinion, it seems harder to correct with casting than a thoracic

curve.

Know you are doing the very best for Hadley and not settling for

surgery or now treatment. Also every child is different. So what may

work for one child with similiar numbers, may not be the same for

another child.

I hope Hadley has a good night.

Hang in there!

Aekta

>

> Thank you everybody for advice and encouragement. I had one of my

friends pick up 3 different kinds of diapers because the generic

ones we were using wasnt giving us enough elastic on the sides. I

cant seem to tuck the diaper under her cast at all! It is way too

low. All the way down her but and if i diaper her under it, the

diaper is basically off her. Ive been doing it over and using the

pads around the cast so it doesnt get wet. Has anybody done that? It

seems to work, i think... Unfortanetly her cast did get wet once and

i untaped it, washed it, blew dry it, and taped it back up, but i

still think it stinks. Any advice? Id hate for her to smell like pee

for the next 2-3 months!

> She's still not adjusting to it!

> Aekta-you mentioned that max only started crawling amonth before

he was casted. How long after casting did he start crawling? Hadley

started crawling about a month ago as well. It seems like it would

be really hard to crawl in. You also said in 4-6 wks go back to see

if its still holding the 17 degress they got it to. Is it possible

for it not to? How could it not, she's so tight in there! The nurse-

Jeanna mentioned a little boy named max who had surgery recently.

Would that be you?

> Everybody said there is hope for Hadley in getting corrected.

Could any of the mom's with children with 60+ degree curves chime in

and give me any encouragement? Any experience in your child being

corrected? Or any moms that there kid got surgery? Is it likely for

Hadley to get it? What are the ages of most children?

> Thanks again. Any more advice with diapering and getting the

smell out would be great too!

> Shauna

>

> __________________________________________________

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Shauna,

I so remember how rough our first few days were, but hang in there--it really

does get better!

If the cast is too long, you will know for sure within a day or so, I'd say.

Todd's first cast was a tad too tight/low on one hip. He was acting as though

he felt ill, like when he comes down with a cold, but was not running a fever.

He also did not want to bend his legs up if he could avoid it. After the second

night, he would not even bend the right leg up at all, and that is when we knew

we had a problem. If the cast is too tight/low, it will make a pressure sore

and you'd need to get it trimmed enough that the sore can get air and heal up.

You can peek up inside the cast with a flashlight or penlight, pressng down on

the skin, and try to check for sores if you're concerned.

Otherwise, you can rest assured that lots of us have had those really, really

low casts! Todd's is so low in the rear, it covers about half of his little

crack! I know some others have also had them this low. You just do the best

you can with the diapering. We've never been able to tuck the diaper under the

sides, but back and front should be manageable, if difficult. And yes, the

diaper does hang down far! Some people go down a size in diapers because of

that, so you might give that a try. But this also does get easier after you get

used to it and the cast loosens up a little.

About the high curve responding to casting, I'd say Hadley got some AMAZING

correction, going from 74 to 17 in her first cast!!!! Remember that each child

and each curve will be completely different. She will bounce back some after

the cast comes off, but even so, I don't think I've ever read of any child

getting correction that huge in a cast. My advice is to keep praying and

thinking positive thoughts, and try not to compare Hadley's curve with other

kids' since they are all so very different even if the numbers are similar. I

have to believe it will work for her!

Good luck!!

, Mommy to Todd

Hadley's 1st cast

Hadley got her 2nd opinion on wednesday at Shriners in Chicago and it

went great. They reccommended her to get casted right away so we

ended up staying over night and they casted her in the morning. Turns

out Hadley's curve progressed now from 51 degrees to 74 degrees. On

wed. the dr was more optimistic about the cast correcting it becasue

she was in the 50 degree area and he said anything 50 degrees and

under is more likely to get corrected than if above 50 degeres. So i

was excited about her getting casted. But yesterday when they xrayed

her before her casting sitting up, she was no longer in that

category. Does anybody have any experiences of there child above a 50

degree curve getting corrected. He said he didnt like the fact that

it was 74 degrees. That freaked me out! He said he's just hoping it

will hold her curve from getting worse. I wanted it to correct it!

Casting i guess went ok. To me, it went horrible. it was the worst

day i might have ever had. The good news is that they got her curve

down to a 17 degrees in the cast. He said that was really good and

its good that she is so young and flexable!

Today has been really hard. Everybody says she'll adjust but she

can't even sit up! She was pulling up on furniture and starting to

climb steps before and crawling, but now she just falls over because

the cast is so heavy. It is so hard seeing her frustrated. Before she

was so proud of herself now she cant do anything!

Her straps up over her shoulders go up super high above her shoulders

so she can barely turn her head! Is that normal?

Her cast goes down super low. The nurse said she hasnt seen one that

low! Because of her curve area i guess. But it makes it almost

impossible to diaper her. Any advice?

Im just really not likeing this experience so far exspecially if now

it wont correct her! I need some help, advice, and encouragement if

anybody has any!

Thanks

Shauna

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