Re: Recent Plagiocephaly diagnosis

[Guest guest]

Hi and welcome to the group. Where are you located and do you know

the brand of helmet your son will be wearing? They vary in look by

brand. As long as you have a good fitting helmet, it will be like

second skin to your baby. The key to getting a good fit is an

experienced orthotist. Most people respond well in public, but you

will occasionally get a rude person. I created an info sheet about

my daughter which I gave to people who were staring or had

questions. THis worked very well. You can read my daughter's story

and more in depth answers to your questions on her website:

http://hannahsnoggin.typepad.com/hannahs_noggin/ . There are

plenty of pictures there of her in her helmet, as well as per

progress. Six months is a great young age to be starting

treatment. My Hannah had severe plagio and needed 3 helmets to

correct it, and I'm glad we did each one. I have no regrets and her

head looks amazing compared to where we started out!

, mom to Hannah, DOCgrad

Cape Cod, Ma

--- In Plagiocephaly , " lnlazarou " <lnlazarou@y...>

wrote:

>

> My son was just diagnosed with plagiocephaly and it was

recommended

> that he wear a helmet. I am a little hesitant, for obvious

reasons.

> I need to find out more about the helmets. What do they look

like?

> Are they comfortable for the baby? How do others respond to the

> child wearing the helmet in public? If any one could give me some

> advice I'd greatly appreciate it. We need to decide quickly

because

> my son is 6 months old. Thanks.

[Guest guest]

Hello and welcome. You are diffinently in the right place to find

out info and to ask questions. There are meny here who are just

starting out and there are meny here who's kids have already

graduated from the band, but every one has great info to share. The

look of the band depends on who makes it. My daughter has been

banded now for two weeks and never even noticed it on her head. As

far as how people respond realy depends on the person. Usualy they

say she looks cute (we put lots of stickers, you can check out a pic

of my daughter under S. in the photos section). If they are

rude I realy don't notice since I realy don't car what people think.

I just remind my self that a few stares for a few months is better

then a lifetime of stares for the rest of her life (thats just

my oppinion). You should check out the files, database and photo

section. There is alot of realy good information to read threw. Best

of luck to you.

, CA

mom to S. (10mos.)

-Optic Nerve Hypoplasia

-Central Hypotonia

-Torticollis

-Plagiocephaly DOCbanded 11/18/04 and already rounding.

-Best baby in the world, wouldn't trade her for anything.

--- In Plagiocephaly , " lnlazarou " <lnlazarou@y...>

wrote:

>

> My son was just diagnosed with plagiocephaly and it was

recommended

> that he wear a helmet. I am a little hesitant, for obvious

reasons.

> I need to find out more about the helmets. What do they look

like?

> Are they comfortable for the baby? How do others respond to the

> child wearing the helmet in public? If any one could give me some

> advice I'd greatly appreciate it. We need to decide quickly

because

> my son is 6 months old. Thanks.

[Guest guest]

Hello and welcome to the board. Of course you are hesitant. If you

weren't I think it would be weird. It is good that you would like to

find out more about the helmets before just jumping in and getting

one. Here are some answers to your questions:

>>What do they look like?

They vary depending on what kind you get. has a Doc Band which

comes from Cranial Technologies. The Doc bands are open on

top...which I guess is why they call it a " band " . You can go onto

photos from this board and check out the different kinds.

>>Are they comfortable for the baby?

Of course I can only speak for my baby, but doesn't mind it AT

ALL? From the very second he got it he never complained about it. He

tugs on it from time to time, but in a playful manner....nothing

showing that it is bothering him. It has become a part of him. I

think he thinks it is just another peice of clothing or something.

Like he wears a diaper at all times, well he now wears a helmet! :-)

<<How do others respond to the child wearing the helmet in public?

This varies. People are actually very nice about it. Some people just

look and then look away since they don't know what to say. Others

look, then look at me and smile. Others look at then make a

sad face at me like " aww what happened to him? " . Others come up to me

and ask what it is. I like that the best. I like to explain it to

them. I get ALOT of people coming up to me asking me about it because

they know someone that needs it, have it, or is getting it. In the

beginning I was worried about how people would look or what they

would think. I also was sad that people wouldn't look at

because he was cute, they would now look because they thought

something was wrong with him...BUT it didn't take long for me to

change my mind about all of that. I don't mind taking him out, and I

dont mind the stares. I actually like the fact that I get to talk to

people and they meet .

>>If any one could give me some advice I'd greatly appreciate it. We

need to decide quickly because my son is 6 months old.

My advice would be if you see a problem and it bothers you you should

get the helmet. They have it on for a few months and then they have

a " normal " head for the rest of their lives. I am sooo greatful that

they have these helmets now that can help our babies. I saw

improvement in the first week. In 2 months from now won't even

remember that he wore the helmet, but he will thank us in the future

after seeing pics of him before it. Good luck with whatever you

decide.

Marcy and (8 months) in New Jersey

2 months in DOC band # 1 to correct mild assymetry

Now in Doc band #2 to correct Brachycephaly

--- In Plagiocephaly , " lnlazarou " <lnlazarou@y...>

wrote:

>

> My son was just diagnosed with plagiocephaly and it was recommended

> that he wear a helmet. I am a little hesitant, for obvious

reasons.

> I need to find out more about the helmets. What do they look

like?

> Are they comfortable for the baby? How do others respond to the

> child wearing the helmet in public? If any one could give me some

> advice I'd greatly appreciate it. We need to decide quickly

because

> my son is 6 months old. Thanks.

[Guest guest]

Welcome to the group! I see that you have already received many

responses so let me just share a little with you about our

experience. My son's DOCband was a great fit and it never bothered

him. Honestly! He acted like it wasn't even there from the very

beginning. I was shocked! As for other people's reactions, they

can be bothersome in the beginning but I found that when I decorated

my son's band it made him more approachable for others to come up to

us. I would always smile extra in public and kiss on him a lot to

let others know that he was just fine. I had a few rude stares but

I had a lot of nice people either inquire and gain information or

tell me their own child's helmet story. It will be fine for you!

Good luck and please share your story when you can.

Natasha

Atlanta, GA

--- In Plagiocephaly , " lnlazarou " <lnlazarou@y...>

wrote:

>

> My son was just diagnosed with plagiocephaly and it was

recommended

> that he wear a helmet. I am a little hesitant, for obvious

reasons.

> I need to find out more about the helmets. What do they look

like?

> Are they comfortable for the baby? How do others respond to the

> child wearing the helmet in public? If any one could give me some

> advice I'd greatly appreciate it. We need to decide quickly

because

> my son is 6 months old. Thanks.