Am I completely crazy?

I got referrals for both of my 6 month boys to a pediatric plastic surgery place to get looked at for helmets. She said neither were horrible, both mild to moderate. But if I wanted to get the helmets she wouldn't call me crazy. So she gave me a referral and said to call this place if I decided to do it. So I went right away for one of them. His was in my opinion the worst. Flat straight across the back pushing the sides out. He has had his for 3 weeks now. Well I am a perfectionist and now my other son's head is REALLY bothering me. It is flat on the right side, causing the right side of his forhead to stick out farther. There is even this bump on the top that is caused from the right side being farther forward then the left. (They did x-rays already and said it is nothing serious or to be conserned about.) So I decided to send him to get the helmet. Well the people said he is measuring in what they call normal range and asked if we really wanted to go through with this.

So now I'm second guessing myself. They said his head is at the shape it will always be unless we correct it. If I only had one baby and couldn't compare the two side by side this wouldn't be a problem at all. And then lately I've been looking at my older DS's head realizing how you can see everything about it and how you will be able to see which one's head we fixed and which one didn't get it. All three boys have double cowlicks in the front which makes their hair stand straight up, so we have to keep it super short. So they won't have hair to cover it up later.

Am I crazy for still wanting it. Will I eventually get over seeing it everytime I look at him? I am a perfectionist, I know this, so it really does bother me. But the new doctor made me seem crazy for still wanting it since he was in the "normal" range. It has already helped my other son in just three weeks that I want to help his too.

TIA

 

My boys both got helmets and one is still in it. I've plugged into several communities in regards to plagio and when it comes to helmets, I've never heard of anyone regretting doing it, just NOT doing it. I think if it bugs you now, it will bug you even more later. If you can afford it, don't wait!

 

Thanks. That was my thoughts completely. It is tax return time. There is no reason we can't afford it and when hes 5 running around with the flat spot on his head I will be kicking myself in the butt because I didn't fix it when I had the chance and the money.

I'll just do what I think is right for my boys and not let the doctors make me start second guessing myself.

 

My daughter Ava has left torticollis and plagiocephaly because of it and was sent to physical therapy when she was around 2 months old. She is now over 5 months old and there have been significant improvements in the flat spot. We do a number of simple exercises with her in order to correct the torticollis and thus help fill out the flat spot. Your boys are still young and therefore with time you should be able to correct the flat spot without the helmet (not sure exactly how pronounced it is - you say mild to moderate). Have you considered this option? Obviously if you've already been through physical therapy and seen no improvements the helmet is probably the way to go. Just wanted to suggest a less expensive option and share our story in terms of dealing with plagiocephaly. Good luck in making your decision!

 

Neither of mine have the torticollis. Their spots are caused by their postions in utero. I did all of the repostioning stuff starting at 10-12 weeks until it was just useless to even try because they moved so much. The plastic surgeon dr. I saw said the only thing that will help is the helmet. Neither have improved since 4 months. But neither are "horrible" either. I know there are a lot more babies in the world that have it a lot worse than mine. It just bothers me when I look at them. To me it stands out. I know that if you were to walk by on the street you wouldn't notice it but people who see them every day do. They are identical twins but their heads are two totally different shapes because of the flat spots.

Thank you for the suggestion though.